Skulpt launches its science-backed smart fitness trainer

Skulpt

Skulpt has launched its Personalized Smart Fitness Trainer, which includes a compact body scanner device and mobile app that work together to provide customized workouts and nutrition guidance based on precise measurements of users’ muscle quality and body fat.

This sort of science-driven techniques, according to Skulpt, were previously only available through professional fitness testing and coaching, and now everyone can use it to get fit faster.

“The Skulpt Personalized Smart Fitness Trainer gives fitness enthusiasts more than just a way to track their workout,” Jose Bohorquez, PhD, co-founder and CEO of Skulpt, said in a statement. “It actually gives insight into the effectiveness of their program and provides actionable advice based on the data from muscle quality and body fat assessments, which are more closely correlated to fitness than any other measures.”

The mentioned body scanner device, called the Chisel, accurately measures muscle quality and body fat across 24 muscle groups. It uses Electrical Impedance Myography (EIM) that analyzes how tiny amounts of high-frequency current flow through muscles. Originally developed by Harvard Medical School neurologist and Skulpt co-founder Dr. Seward Rutkove, this method is used to measure and track the muscle health and progress of patients with muscular disorders. The science behind Chisel was originally funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and National Institutes of Health (NIH), and is currently in use in clinical trials at universities and major medical centers including UCLA and Johns Hopkins.

The Skulpt app on its end relies on proprietary algorithms to translate data from the measurements into actionable advice with guidelines from the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM). Right now it’s an iOS exclusive title — Android version is in development as we speak — and connects to Apple Health.

The Skulpt Personalized Smart Fitness Trainer now available for $99 at Skulpt’s website, as well as at BestBuy.com, DicksSportingGoods.com and Target.com.

In November 2015, the company has raised $4.1M in Series A round, led by Nautilus Venture Partners and with participation of returning investor Caerus Venture Partners.