There are all sorts of innovative apps available to help improve our health and wellbeing, but one new app in particular is a breath of fresh air. Zenytime pairs with a sensor that allows users to control its games with their breathing. It is aimed at reducing stress and improving wellbeing.
Breathing is closely tied to wellness, related as it is to oxygen intake, heart-rate and muscle relaxation. As such, breathing exercises can be used as a means of changing and improving our mental and physical conditions. Practices such as yoga make use of breathing exercises, whilst devices such as RESPeRATE are aimed at coaching people through such exercises.
Zenytime uses gamification to encourage its uptake as a breathing-controlled wellness app and as a means of taking people through similar breathing exercises as might be employed in yoga or coached by RESPeRATE. It provides a number of games that are controlled by breathing and that require the use of certain breathing patterns for success. Zenytime says that the patterns employed are proven for "improving stress management, cardiovascular health and cognitive and athletic performance."
According to the company, we typically draw breath around 15 times a minute. Its games aim to reduce this to up to six times a minute for short sessions a few times a day.
"Our games have been designed to promote deep, rhythmic breathing to bring more oxygen into your cells and to trigger the many short-term rewards of controlled breathing," says Zenytime co-founder Celine Vignal in a press release. "Zenytime games are adapted to people of any age, as well as exercise enthusiasts and professional athletes."
The Zenytime app pairs with a dongle that tracks the user's breathing, heart-rate and blood oxygen levels and connects to a user's mobile device via Bluetooth. Games are being developed based on yoga, fitness, sports and wellness disciplines. An app dashboard provides stats, tips and rewards.
The dongle (or "puck") is made from made of aluminum, plastics and a rubber-like material. It weighs just over 3.5 oz (100 g) and will run for several weeks from a single charge. It is charged via a USB cable. Both iOS and Android apps will be available.
Zenytime will retail for US$99 but is available to pre-order for $79. It is expected to begin shipping around the end of this year and beginning of next.
The video below provides an introduction to Zenytime.
Source: Zenytime
