Fitbit partners with New York Road Runners

This post was originally published on the Fitbit press site. It has been adapted from its original format.

Fitbit, the leader in the connected health and fitness market, today announced a two-year partnership with New York Road Runners designed to provide runners of all levels with relevant data, inspiration and guidance to reach their goals at the TCS New York City Marathon. The association between Fitbit, the first-ever official fitness tracker partner of the race, and the largest marathon in the world, extends beyond race day, encouraging runners to participate in enriching community-building activities and to use Fitbit’s platform of activity trackers and mobile tools to perform at their personal best.

“At Fitbit, we’re all about inspiring people to reach their health and fitness goals – whether that’s shaving a few minutes from a marathon personal best, or running in their very first race,” said Tim Rosa, VP of Global Marketing at Fitbit. “By joining forces with the largest marathon in the world, we’re going to help even more people by giving them meaningful tools and motivation to do their best. Today’s news is just the beginning as we work to deepen our partnership with the New York Road Runners organization.”

“We are excited to welcome Fitbit as a partner of New York Road Runners, and the official fitness tracker for the TCS New York City Marathon,” said Sarah Cummins, head of business development and strategic partnerships at New York Road Runners. “Fitbit’s track record of helping people lead healthier, more active lives makes them a great new partner to our community. With Fitbit’s help, we’ll further carry out our mission of helping and inspiring people through running.”

Train like a Champion

Fitbit presents a rare opportunity to train like Fitbit Ambassador Ryan Hall. As the current American record holder in the Half Marathon and Marathon, Hall created a unique 10-week plan for advanced runners who are training regularly based on his extraordinary experience and vast knowledge of the sport. The plans contain daily tips and guidance to help them prepare for the race and are available for download on Fitbit’s website.

“Based on my own training experiences and methods, I’ve designed a plan for runners that will help them train strong and feel great heading into the marathon,” said Hall, elite runner and Fitbit Ambassador. “Proper training includes keeping track of way more than just distance, pace and heart rate. Nutrition, hydration and sleep are also incredibly important in promoting proper muscle recovery and preventing injury – these are all things Fitbit enables that you can track with your Fitbit device to train smarter as you get ready for the starting line in New York City.”

How to Improve Your Training and Performance with Fitbit

The Fitbit platform – consisting of activity trackers and mobile and social tools – provides motivation and enables people to be more active, exercise more, sleep better, eat smarter, and manage their weight – all key components when training for a marathon. Here’s how it works:

Fitbit Activity Trackers

• All-day, Effortless Activity Tracking: Fitbit offers a full line of wearable health and fitness devices that automatically track daily steps, calories burned, distance traveled, floors climbed and active minutes so you get insight into your most important stats. Select Fitbit devices also feature SmartTrack to automatically track common exercises like biking, running, and other sports
• GPS Tracking: Fitbit Surge and Fitbit Blaze use GPS tracking for real-time actionable stats like distance and pace right on your wrist, so you can make instant changes. Following runs, see your route, pace and split times on the Fitbit mobile app or online dashboard to easily compare performance over different parts of your run and make adjustments to improve – because for many, seconds matter
• PurePulse Heart Rate Tracking: Fitbit Surge, Fitbit Blaze and Fitbit Charge HR use continuous wrist-based heart rate tracking to help you optimize workouts using simplified heart rate zones and let you track resting heart rate to see how your cardiovascular fitness is improving – all without an uncomfortable chest strap
• Multi-Sport and Exercise Modes: Fitbit Surge, Fitbit Blaze and Fitbit Charge HR let you record cross-training and other activities beyond running – yoga, cycling, weight-lifting – so you can see stats like workout intensity and calories burned for a full picture of your training in prep for the big race
• Automatic Sleep Detection: Track how long and how well you sleep, illustrating where adjustments in lifestyle might be necessary during training for better recovery and performance

Mobile and Social Tools

• FitStar Personal Trainer and Yoga Apps: Virtual coaching through customized fitness plans and interactive workouts let you stream video workouts anytime, anywhere to build strength, gain flexibility and maintain endurance
• Nutrition and Hydration Tracking: Log food and water intake within the Fitbit app to monitor calories in vs. calories out to so you get the right amount of hydration and fuel while training for race day
• Motivation: Social connectivity with friends and family on the Fitbit app provide added support as you train, motivate, and challenge each other to reach your next training milestone
• Strava Integration: Fitbit and Strava offer a unique, two-way integration empowering you to track your all day activity, exercise and maximize your workouts, as well as connect, compete and engage with other performance athletes on Strava

Connect with Fitbit at the TCS New York City Marathon

To kick-off New York Road Runners’ premier event, Fitbit is offering unique opportunities during race week. At the race expo, runners will be able to demo Fitbit activity trackers and receive tips and instruction on the best ways to utilize the Fitbit platform for their marathon. Fitbit will also host shakeout runs led by its brand ambassador team of professional athletes including Ryan Hall as well as his wife Sara Hall, a premier distance runner who is running the 2016 TCS New York City Marathon, and ultramarathon runner Dean Karnazes. The events let runners connect with each other, get inspired, and have some fun before race day. The runs will take place leading up to the race with specific details available soon on Fitbit’s website.