Chartered physiotherapist Eoin Everard sees the painful results of bad back behaviour every day in his clinic. "People are exercising, lifting things and even doing rehabilitation exercises with terrible technique," says Everard who has a PhD in biomechanics and human movement from UL.
“The reason for this is that they have no awareness of their position. This leads to an overload on the spine that can cause injury and damage.”
Everard's solution is BackAware, a smart belt aimed at recreational exercisers and elite athletes alike that provides instant feedback on the user's low back position.
“The idea is to allow someone to track and train their lifting technique and posture for better back health,” he says. “It also gives them the confidence that they’re exercising correctly which can be a source of uncertainty for someone doing exercises alone at home.”
Everard started working on the idea for BackAware in 2019 and the product was soft launched towards the end of last year.
“I know from clinical experience that those lifting with poor technique will be in trouble in later life,” he says. “That got me thinking about developing a piece of equipment that could let them know when they were doing an exercise poorly and help prevent back pain developing.
“People are exercising because they want to get fit and healthy but either they are not getting the results they should or, in a worst-case scenario, they are creating problems for themselves. With BackAware it’s like having a physiotherapist supervising your exercise sessions.”
Learning curve
To activate the belt, a user downloads an app and pairs the belt with their phone. The belt is calibrated to suit an individual’s “normal” posture and if someone flexes or extends too far, they hear a warning tone.
“There are posture trackers on the market, but their main function is to establish if someone is upright,” Everard says. “BackAware is the first ever tracker and trainer linked to the user’s specific back position and it can be used for any lift or any exercise and even sitting at a desk.”
The electronics inside the BackAware belt come from Asia while the belt itself is made in Nenagh, Co Tipperary. Covid put a brake on Everard’s plans so it has taken him roughly three years and a steep learning curve to bring BackAware to beta. “I’m not a designer or an engineer so it was a challenge to get what was a concept in my mind turned into an actual product,” he says.
As someone used to running his own business, Everard knew the importance of keeping things lean and has managed to contain development costs to €35,000. The project received funding support from Kilkenny LEO while Everard has recently participated in the Enterprise Ireland New Frontiers programme for start-ups run by the Synergy Centre at TU Tallaght.
The BackAware belt is aimed at three customer groups: individuals with back pain; those who want to learn correct technique for gym exercises or Pilates; and manual handling training companies/corporate entities interested in employee wellness given that back pain is one of the leading causes of absenteeism from work.
The belt can be used individually or in groups and the company has already had interest in the product from a Premier League football club in England. It is also partnering with the Football Association of Ireland to help younger players develop good exercise technique.
The belt retails at €149 and users can also sign up for a series of exercise and Pilates programmes (charged for on a monthly basis) to get more out of their investment. The belt goes on sale this month and Everard is now in the process of launching a seed round of €500,000 to accelerate the rollout of the product to multiple markets.
