Vancouver’s YYoga Launches Mobile App That Gamifies Fitness ‘Like Never Before’

Gamification is better applied to some spaces than others. One such area where it makes a great deal of sense is people and exercise (or rather, lack thereof).

Vancouver-based YYoga knows this and has unveiled its YYoga app, which uses gamification and social sharing “like never before” to inspire people to achieve their fitness goals.

Founding Partner Terry McBride unconventionally used social technology to build his music empire at Nettwerk Music Group. With the YYoga app, he’s bringing a similarly unconventional approach to the world of yoga, using technology “to strengthen social connections among yoga practitioners.”

“We all know that motivation is the thing that holds most of us back when it comes to fitness. This app is designed to give users a social tool to build their own supportive and flexible communities,” he explains. “It works like other social platforms, allowing people to create a profile and connect with friends so they can see who’s doing what. The idea? If you see that your friends are going to a class tonight, you’ll be more likely to go.”

The free iOS app enables people to reserve spots in YYoga’s studio classes and also provides a dictionary of poses, complete with instructions.

The gamification challenges reflect the four main reasonspeople say they do yoga: to minimize stress, to try a new style of yoga, to push themselves to practice more, and to develop more energy. Throughout the challenges, YYoga says that users receive beads towards a full Mala necklace, which is awarded and shared on social media upon completion.

“This app is filling a big gap in the market, creating what is essentially a totally new type of user-centered social fitness support,” affirms digital strategist Sandy Fleischer of Pound & Grain, who created the YYoga app. “The use of gamification in the yoga world is uncharted territory. Already, users are signing up for challenges and tracking their own progress, which shows that making a game of our goals—especially in the context of fitness—is a fantastic way to achieve results.”