Abstract
Wearable and Internet of Things (IoT) technologies in sports open a new era in athlete’s training, not only for performance monitoring and evaluation but also for fitness assessment. These technologies rely on sensor systems that collect, process and transmit relevant data, such as biomarkers and/or other performance indicators that are crucial to evaluate the evolution of the athlete’s condition, and therefore potentiate their performance. This work aims to identify and summarize recent studies that have used wearables and IoT technologies and discuss its applicability for fitness assessment. A systematic review of electronic databases (WOS, CCC, DIIDW, KJD, MEDLINE, RSCI, SCIELO, IEEEXplore, PubMed, SPORTDiscus, Cochrane and Web of Science) was undertaken according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. From the 280 studies initially identified, 20 were fully examined in terms of hardware and software and their applicability for fitness assessment. Results have shown that wearable and IoT technologies have been used in sports not only for fitness assessment but also for monitoring the athlete’s internal and external workloads, employing physiological status monitoring and activity recognition and tracking techniques. However, the maturity level of such technologies is still low, particularly with the need for the acquisition of more—and more effective—biomarkers regarding the athlete’s internal workload, which limits its wider adoption by the sports community.
Highlights
The concept of Internet of Things (IoT) emerged back in 1990 when the first device, a toaster, was connected to the internet to enable its remote control [1]
Bringing the IoT into sports opens a new era in athlete’s training, for performance monitoring/assessment and for fitness assessment [2]. This is achieved through the inclusion of IoT wearable technologies that rely on sensor systems to collect, process and communicate information, such as biomarkers and/or other relevant indicators, that can be used to estimate the athlete’s capacity and evaluate the evolution of its physical and health conditions and potentiate its performance
The remaining 232 articles were screened for their relevance based on their title and abstract, which resulted in the elimination of 177 additional studies
Summary
The concept of Internet of Things (IoT) emerged back in 1990 when the first device, a toaster, was connected to the internet to enable its remote control [1]. Bringing the IoT into sports opens a new era in athlete’s training, for performance monitoring/assessment and for fitness assessment [2]. The application of IoT solutions in sports and fitness has allowed simplifying data acquisition processes with the use of wearables that allow a faster and more efficient improvement in the athlete’s training. These devices are carried by athletes in the form of clothing or accessories and are designed to include sensors, a microprocessor and a communication unit that enables connectivity within a personal area network (PAN)
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
