Dublin based health technology start-up GetHealth has been selected from over 150 European start-ups to be one of only 12 finalists taking part in the prestigious European Student Startup competition taking place in London this Friday May 3rd.
Having made it through two rounds of rigorous screening, which comprised of a video pitch along with detailed assessment of a business plan, GetHealth now has the opportunity to pitch to a group of highly sought after investors from around the world in the Grand Final, held today in The Royal College of Chemistry in London.
The ESS is Europe’s first Angel and Venture Capital Competition exclusively for students. Its aim is to bring together ambitious and driven entrepreneurs from a variety of backgrounds and connect them with investors to give them the opportunity to find the funding they need to start up their companies. It will also give investors the unique opportunity to invest in an exciting mass of high potential new businesses in just one morning, at one location.
It is hosted by the London School of Economics Students’ Union Entrepreneurs in partnership with many of the continent’s top entrepreneurial student societies including the Oxford Entrepreneurs, and the Cambridge University Technology and Enterprise Club, among others.
GetHealth Limited, started in September 2011 by undergraduate students Liam Ryan and Chris Rooney, has developed a mobile app which makes the process of getting healthy simple and fun for users. The app enables users to check-in and earn points for their daily health achievements, such as eating their 5 fruit and vegetables or doing 30 minutes of exercise. The app also has a social component, allowing users to connect, collaborate and compete with other like-minded individuals so that they can support and motivate one another in achieving their health goals.
GetHealth was initially funded by the NDRC Launchpad, Ireland’s number one accelerator programme, in September 2011 and has also been recipient of the Competitive Start Fund through Enterprise Ireland. CEO of GetHealth, Liam Ryan said on this most recent success: “It is great to get the recognition from an organisation as well regarded as the European Student Startups; a glance at their partners shows they are connected with some of the top universities in Europe. GetHealth is about helping people be proactive about their health, instead of waiting until it’s too late. We want to help people take charge of their health in a way that is fun, intuitive and enjoyable. Having the opportunity to pitch our philosophy to such a range of investors is just what we need to take us to the next level.
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For further information, please contact Chris at chris@gethealthapp.com or on 0851307934
About GetHealth: GetHealth is a mobile and online platform which helps people improve their health through social interaction and gameplay with their family and friends! Their beta users describe them as the “Foursquare for Health”, allowing people to check-in to the healthy tasks they do each day, earn points, and motivate their friends to a healthier lifestyle.
About European Student Startups: European Student Startups is Europe’s first Angel and Venture Capital Competition exclusively for students. Hosted by the London School of Economics Students’ Union Entrepreneurs in partnership with many of the continent’s top entrepreneurial student societies, the competition was founded in 2011. At the Grand Final of ESS, the best entrepreneurs will pitch to an audience of experienced investors, looking to put their money into Europe’s best new enterprises.
On March 4th, we selected 350 users to receive a personal invite into GetHealth’s March into Spring campaign to test our beta version. We had invites requested from 71 countries, with people from over 15 countries finally taking part, and what an amazing 4 weeks it was!
We’ve learned a lot and seen people achieving real results; including increased energy levels, better hydration, higher levels of fruit and vegetable intake, and most importantly: people having fun discovering how to be healthy!
Check out our awesome info-graphic to see just what the numbers mean.
Our campaign, delivered through our mobile and online application, provided users with:
Weekly goals and targets.
Ability to log daily health tasks and earn points, which creates a metric through which users can measure their progress.
Weekly detailed email reports.
Connections with other like-minded individuals for motivation and support.
Daily notifications direct to your smart-phone.
**Check our Liam’s live blog for an insight into the day to day of the campaign.**
Now that we have sifted through the data and analysed the feedback, let’s take a look at what we’ve learned:
First and foremost, we found that the majority (64%) of our users were more focused on healthy tasks than they were before starting the campaign. A similar number, 62.3% felt that the app helped them live a healthier lifestyle. This is a major success for us at GetHealth! Our mission is to get people focused on and thinking about getting healthy and then making it easy and fun for them to do so.
More specifically, we found that people ate healthier food through checking-in to our Munch category: 60.5% of users acknowledged they were eating far more fruit and vegetables; 3 out of 4 users felt they were drinking more water; and our users averaged 5 breakfasts per week – the most important meal of the day. These three factors alone are enough to show that the March Into Spring Campaign put people on the road to healthier lifestyles.
We also saw that many users – around 40% – increased their physical activity. Whether it was a walk, run, swim or cycle, users consistently checked-in to the Move categories (1,633 check-ins over the campaign). In total, - walk+run+cycle - our users travelled the equivalent distance of Dublin to Chicago over the month-long campaign!
We received great feedback about our Mind category; this focuses on mental health and wellbeing. Users read more books (392 hours of reading), got better sleep and even meditated (122 hours) during the March Into Spring campaign.
With the recent news – officially announced on TechCrunch last week – that GetHealth has been selected as one of 13 companies from around the world to be a ‘Healthcare Transformer’ by New York-based program StartUp Health Academy, now is the time for us to learn from and improve upon our beta version. The feedback from our users over the month-long trial has been outstanding, and it gives us the information and motivation we need to build on our success and take it to the next level!
Thank you to all those who took part and stay tuned to hear more about GetHealth!
Dublin-based health technology start-up, GetHealth has today been announced as one of 13 international companies picked as a ‘Healthcare Transformer’ by New York-based programme, StartUp Health Academy. Each Transformer chosen will participate in a 3 year programme run by Start-Up Health in partnership with General Electric. The program is part of GE’s healthymagination initiative a $6 billion global commitment to provide better health for more people by improving quality, access, and affordability of care. GetHealth Limited, started in September 2011 by undergraduate students Liam Ryan and Chris Rooney, competed against over 400 companies from around the world to earn a place on the coveted programme. The company has developed a mobile app which makes getting healthy simple and fun for users. The app enables users to check-in and earn points for their daily health achievements, such as eating their 5 fruit and vegetables or doing 30 minutes of exercise. The app also has a social component, allowing users to connect with other like-minded individuals so that they can support and motivate one another in achieving their health goals.
GetHealth was initially funded by the NDRC Launchpad programme in September 2011 and has also been recipient of the Competitive Start Fund through Enterprise Ireland. CEO of GetHealth, Liam Ryan said on this most recent success:”When we started GetHealth we could see that healthcare, particularly in the US, was starting to change focus away from reactive initiatives towards more preventative programmes. Here we saw the opportunity to leverage the growth in mobile technology to provide an app which makes health simple and fun, and ultimately help people improve their lifestyle. In GE and StartUp Health Academy we are delighted to have found partners who understand our vision and want to work with us to help realise it.”
One area of focus for GetHealth at present is the growing corporate wellness market. Increasingly, companies are investing in wellness initiatives in an attempt to reduce the substantial healthcare costs incurred by an unhealthy workforce, such as absenteeism, low productivity and employee health insurance.
The StartUp Health Academy represents a significant opportunity for a company such as GetHealth. The Academy bases itself on a simple premise: the best way to improve healthcare in America is to provide health and wellness entrepreneurs with inspiration, education, and access to customers, capital, and other critical resources. With this support, start-ups can innovate more quickly and build new solutions that will improve care and reduce out of control healthcare costs.
Speaking about GetHealth’s selection to the Start-up Health Academy programme, former executive director of the White House Athletic Centre, Ted Vickey – a GetHealth company advisor – said: “Getting people engaged in their health is one of the biggest opportunities for technological innovation. Creating behaviour change is the key to people living a healthy life. By combining game mechanics and social interaction, technology like GetHealth’s app is a simple and accessible way for people to make that change and enjoy the process of doing so.”
The StartUp Health Academy programme kicks off in New York today with workshops from senior executives from some of the world’s largest health companies including: Pfizer, Merck, Aenta and GE.
About GetHealth GetHealth is a mobile and online platform which helps people improve their health through social interaction and gameplay with their family and friends! Their beta users describe them as the “Foursquare for Health”, allowing people to check-in to the healthy tasks they do each day, earn points, and motivate their friends to a healthier lifestyle. About StartUp Health StartUp Health is a new model for helping innovation succeed in the health sector. Part community, part Academy, and 100% passion, they provide health and wellness innovators with a structured curriculum designed to help navigate the unique challenges of building a sustainable growth business. StartUp Health was founded in 2011 by health tech entrepreneurs Steven Krein and Unity Stoakes and is Chaired by former Time Warner CEO Gerald Levin.
…GetHealth’s ‘March into Spring’ campaign comes to an end!
On March 4th, we selected 350 of our private beta users to receive a personal invite into GetHealth’s March into Springcampaign. We had people in over 15 counties using it, and what an amazing 4 weeks it was. We’ve seen people achieving real results including weight loss, increased energy levels, sustained behavioral change and most importantly; having fun discovering how to be healthy.
Thank you for all your feedback and kind words. Later this week we will be releasing an infographic on the stats we’ve collected during the campaign, and we’re looking forward to keeping you up to date with our news over the coming weeks!
Happy Move, Munch and Mind!
From the GetHealth Team: Liam, Chris, Michael, Martin and Rob!
GetHealth’s March into Spring, a 4 week health campaign, is officially live and we’re receiving you loud and clear! Follow our cofounderLiam’s campaign by keeping track of his live blog here.
We really appreciate your feedback so keep it coming! Thanks!
NOTE: On March 4th, we selected 350 of our private beta users to receive their personal invite into the campaign. We have people in over 71 countries all over the world awaiting invites, so please hold tight. You can sign up today at http://gethealthapp.com, and we will be releasing invites later in the year.
Today, GetHealth’s ‘March into Spring’ campaign comes to an end!
On March 4th, we selected 350 of our private beta users to receive a personal invite into GetHealth’s March into Springcampaign. We had people in over 15 counties using it, and what an amazing 4 weeks it was. We’ve seen people achieving real results including weight loss, increased energy levels, sustained behavioral change and most importantly; having fun discovering how to be healthy.
Thank you for all your feedback and kind words. Later this week we will be releasing an infographic on the stats we’ve collected during the campaign, and we’re looking forward to keeping you up to date with our news over the coming weeks!
Happy Move, Munch and Mind!
From the GetHealth Team: Liam, Chris, Michael, Martin and Rob!
DAY 28 - Sunday
Happy Easter to all our wonderful followers here at GetHealth! It’s the last day of March into Spring. Get out there and hit your targets guys and girls. Tomorrow we’ll be shutting down access to the app, but don’t worry, we’ll be keeping you posted with our news.
Thanks for being amazing and for keeping in touch with me over the last 4 weeks! Big love!
DAY 27 - Saturday
I did over 9 miles of walking and climbed the tallest Sailboat Mast int he world! So happy I was able to do that as I had a very poor MOVE this week. The one thing I’ve really noticed is that when you are really busy, it’s hard to prioritise to get in some activity. But understanding the net positive gains is something I truly understand!
One of my big entrepreneur fans is Richard Branson. Here he talks about the importance of getting exercise every single day. Not only does it make him feel good, he feels more productive during the day getting twice as much done! I’m off to find a island to run around!
DAY 26 - Friday
Today we had a photoshoot day for the team here at GetHealth HQ. It involved so much yummy MUNCH including Watermelons, Apples, Grapes and Bananas. Be sure to keep up to date with us over on Twitter to hear our news over the next few weeks and months: http://twitter.com/GetHealthapp
DAY 25 - Thursday
With lots of traveling today, it had be thinking just how much time we spend sitting day each day on our bums! Whether it’s commuting to work, sitting in an office chair for the day, watching TV in the evening - we do a lot of sitting down! For example, 61% of Irish adults are overweight and around 20% of Irish children are overweight or obese. I think we can and need to pioneer change and get some MOVE into our way of life.
I need to get myself an activity alarm - one of those gadgets that vibrate if you are not getting enough activity during the day. I used to have the Jawbone Up’s first version wristband, but since their wristband failure I haven’t purchased the new one. I think I will next week as I love Jawbone’s products!
DAY 23 - Tuesday
Remember how I mentioned I love interval training? Here’s some more info. Interval training is simply desribed as burst of intense effort followed by periods of rest, interval training keeps your body burning calories after your workout id done. Apart from being really food for weight loss, it’s the best way to train heart and lungs because it creates an unaccustomed stimulus, shocking your body into improving. Sounds extreme, but it makes sense.
I love the idea of the “after-burn affect” as I know my metabolism is going to be sky-high for hours after I train. After an evening training session, it’s literately burning calories as I sleep.
DAY 22 - Monday
A new app update went live last night, so be sure to download it! It wraps up some new features, bug fixes and speed improvements! Have fun this week guys and girls as a new week means a new points target!
DAY 21 - Sunday
After an extra training session in the gym today, I was feeling really tired. I came home any made myself a fruit salad, along with a large handful of Cashew and Brazil nuts. Yum! With that marked by Week 3’s points target achieved (that’s why I had to make sure I went to the gym!!). I really found it tough this week as work was exceptionally busy! Having your routine disrupted can knock your health quest off balance, but even just realising this helped me stay on track. I didn’t look after my MIND this week, so next week I’m really going to try pay attention to it!
It’s an early night for me today, and I’ll be able to kick start into Week 4 of March into Spring. It’s the last week, so I want to make sure I keep up my all my wins during my new health quest.
DAY 20 - Saturday
After the morning at the office working, today was my chance to get another session at the gym! Althought the gym closed early, I managed to get in a bike session and an upper body session! I really felt the difference in missing the gym the last 3 days, but it felt great to be back being active again! My philosophy is starting to become “Sweat every day”…trust me, it’s a great feeling to get active and feel your muscles alive.
A family party dinner tonight meant there was going to be great food and great fun! After a very scrumptious and healthy meal, there was, as we say in Ireland, lots of ceol agus craic (music and fun)!
DAY 19 - Friday
Boy was today a long stint in the office. I didn’t even get the chance get out for a decent walk. 12 hours sitting on a chair is not good for you. But some exciting news for GetHealth coming soon, I can’t wait to share with all of you!
Tomorrow I must do better, tomorrow I must do better!
DAY 18 - Thursday
I was bold last night! I was out at dinner, and had my first dessert during March into Spring. I know that we are all human, and sometimes we like to treat ourselves. While at a WildFitness holiday last summer, their trainer summed it your excellently: “We’re not telling you to never ever again have treats. just have them in moderation. And when you do treat yourself, enjoy every bite!”. I love treats, but moderation is the key. Lots of our users have requested that they check into their mad habits (like desserts, chocolate bars, no activity, smoking etc), and we’ve already been working on it for our Version 2 - stay tuned!
It was Banoffee Pie if you must know! :)
DAY 17 - Wednesday
I had a long walk into the office this morning. I smashed the 8,000 steps mark in just under an hour! I use a FitBit One and it’s a great way to track the level of MOVE I do each day, the calories I’ve burnt, and it’s great for tracking my sleep each night.
DAY 16 - Tuesday
I kick started the morning with a fresh omelet to get my Breakfast points in MUNCH. And I’m looking forward to heading to the gym later today.
Tip: I came across this awesome idea to help encourage you to drink water during the day. Get your bottle of water, and mark off time notches during the day that signify the amount of water you aim to drink by that time. Simple! Here’s my bottle. I aim to drink 2 liters a day, and I start by filling the bottle in the morning, and drinking a 3rd every 2 hours. I refill at 3pm!
[GetHealth Dublin] Don’t forget, you can join Chris tonight at 6.30 GMT on one of his bi-weekly fun runs. Here’s the route we’ll be taking: http://bit.ly/ZHt5yk (Meet us at Portobello Bridge)
DAY 15 - Monday
Week 3 is off to a speedy starting, as this weeky we’re in the Fast Lane, and the total points target this week is 340. That’s 90 more points from Week 2’s target, and 170 more points than our first target in Week 1. This week we’re looking for:
120 points in Munch
125 points in MOVE
95 points in MIND
It’s a Bank Holiday weekend here in Ireland, but that’s no reason to stop kicking ass on my health quest. I played some Hurling (Ireland’s national sport and the fastest field game in the world) today to grab some MOVE points. A nice change to the Gym, but looking forward to getting back there tomorrow.
DAY 14 - Sunday
Happy St Patricks Day to all our followers all over the world. Did you know that we are an Irish company based in Dublin? And proud to be too! Enjoy the celebrations where ever you are today!
If you have yet to hit your Week 2 target of 250 points, today can be a great day to go for a relaxing walk, put your feet up with a book, or cook up a storm. Happy Move, Munch and Mind!
DAY 13 - Saturday
Saturday morning is my opportunity to (sometimes) have a lie in. I made sure to check into my sleep points in MIND and headed to the kitchen for a morning MUNCH. I got my 4 whole-grains, sliced up some apples and bananas with a dollop of yogurt. I’ve kicked started the morning, and now it’s time to hit the gym.
It was time to weigh-in again with thebody composition analyzer. I’m off to a good start, as I’m already seeing results from Week 1’s weigh-in! Awesome! It’s a hard upper body session along with a 45minute interval training on the bike. These results are awesome - remember I’m keeping an eye on body fat %, not my weight. I’ll write on that more later next week.
Here’s an an estimated chart of the results you’ll expect from lowering your body fat %. I’m getting the results after 2 weeks of March into Spring from being conscience on what I’m eating, how much I’m moving and making sure I rest mentally! Can’t wait to see what my results are going to be like at the end.
DAY 12 - Friday
It’s Friday, and I’ve got that Friday feeling. It’s off to the gym with me now. Can’t wait to get my MOVE on today, as I’ve been sitting in the office all day. If you’ve yet to hit your target of 85 MOVE points this week, you best get going!
DAY 10 - Wednesday
Today is my rest day from training, but so far today I’m reached 30 minutes of walking to get some MOVE points. Walking into the office is a great way to kick start the day.
It’s going to be a long day in at the office, but I’m keeping best best friends with the water cooler to keep me hydrated.
Best of luck with your Move, Munch and Mind today!
DAY 9 - Tuesday
I kicked off my day with a 7.30am swim. It’s the only time I can train in the pool because the place is not packed. Just me and the morning’s army! I’m not going to lie, it was very difficult to jump out of bed that early for a training session, but boy did I feel good after it! I did 20 one length sprints (front-crawl) where I hop out at the end and walk back to recover. I followed that with some hypoxic training to try improve my anaerobic fitness (which literally means living without air). This is specifically to promote strength, speed and power and by body builders to build muscle mass. MOVE session two followed right after with a circuit workout up on the gym floor focusing on my core muscles (think sit ups, leg raises, planks etc). I deserved the long shower after that whopper session!
It’s out to meetings all day, but I packed a bag of brazil nuts and walnuts. About 100g of brazil nuts provides somewhere between 600-700 calories. The nuts are an especially excellent source of mono-unsaturated fatty acids that helps to lower LDL or “bad cholesterol” and increases HDL or “good cholesterol” in the blood. A healthy snack to add to my MUNCH points.
DAY 8 - Monday
Are you set for week 2? Here’s what’s in store.This week is titled Firm Ground - you’ve started to understand your capabilities on your health quest and this week is your chance to develop those healthy habits. You can download it and stick it on your fridge: http://bit.ly/March-Into-Spring_Week2
Thanks for the great support we’ve felt all over the world. We’ve had awesome people in over 71 countries (wow!!!) request private invites to our application. The last sent of private beta invites go out today, so if you’ve missed the boat - don’t worry. Later in the year we’ll be posting our exciting news here on our blog, and you can still sign up on our website. Thanks everyone!
Woo! While at the gym this morning, I found one of my socks that I had thought I’d lost “in the washing machine”. It was stuck inside my other pair of shorts. Big thanks to the old woman on the x-trainer who spotted it fall on the ground! Cheeky sock trying to skip out on MOVE points :)
I managed to squeeze in an extra session tonight after work. I grown to love interval training for a number of reasons: it takes less time than a standard workout, you train at high intensities for shorter period, you don’t loose muscle and you burn fat quicker. Remember, with traditional cardio session you lose fat because you burn it while you’re working out, and after you’re done, your metabolism doesn’t really stay on a “high” like it’s on while you’re exercising. With interval training however, even though you don’t burn as many calories during the exercises, you can burn much more fat for the rest of the day. You literally burn fat as you’re sleeping! MIND points and MOVE points! Winning!
DAY 7 - Sunday
Sunday is our chill out day at GetHealth. A great opportunity to get in some MIND points. Our goal this week was to spend at least 30minutes either Meditating, Reading or partaking in your hobby. If you’ve yet to get those points, go get em today!
Personal health tip coming up: if you use a pineapple slicer like me (emm, yummy pineapple) you can cut the sides into slices and you can chomp away to get a further bite of the pineapple. Gets about 20% more out of your pineapple!
DAY 6 - Saturday
Today I had another hard session in the gym. I was doing interval training on the rowing machine followed my a circuit focusing on mid-body. Pooped after it but I think I might have achieved enough MOVE points to get me up into the Top 5 on the GetHealth leaderboard. Huzzah!
Sweet Potatoes, I love them after training. They are an excellent source of carbohydrates, rich in digestive fiber, and packed with important vitamin other nutrients to fuel my body. Not only that, sweet potatoes ranked number one in nutrition out of all vegetables by the Center for Science in the Public Interest.
DAY 5 - Friday
Wow, the week has flown past fast! Have you got that Friday feeling? I know it’s the end of the work week, but keep in mind that our health doesn’t take a weekend off. Keep up your health quest, you’re doing great!
[GetHealth Dublin] - Our second night this week, making sure we get all of Week 1’s goal in MOVE points. Remember the goal was to get the equivalent of 1hr of running this week (or 3hrs 30mins of Walking, or 1hr 20m of cycling etc).
DAY 4 - Thursday
Did you know that today is World Book Day? One of the goals we’ve set for you this week is aim for at least 30mins of MIND points. Celebrate the day that’s in it, and grab your favorite book and start reading!
It’s 3.30pm, time to hit the gym! As I forgot to track my starting weight on Monday, I decided to do it today. I guess it’s better late than never, right?
With my shoes and socks off (skin needs to touch the electrodes of the machine), my gym’s body composition analyzer was able to automatically compare several key measurements with respect to my age, height and gender. Here’s a print out of some of my readings including: Weight, Fat %, Fat Mass, Total Body Water, Muscle Mass, Basal Metabolic Rate, Bone Mass, a unique Visceral Fat indicator and Body Mass Index.
I’m looking forward to tracking the difference (I hope) after the 4 weeks!
[GetHealth Dublin] Due to some last minute duties, we postponed our run tonight till tomorrow. Like before you can meet us at Portobello Bridge at 6.30pm.
DAY 3 - Wednesday
With Day 3 in full swing, I made sure to get my MUNCH points at dinner time. I think it’s safe to say I got my 5 Fruit and Vegetable right? :)
We’ve had a number of our users asking us what the difference was between Fruit&Veg and Greens in our MUNCH category. Greens are specifically targeted for you to try eat more cruciferous (plant-like) vegetables, (e.g., broccoli, kale, cauliflower, asparagus) All the yummy green stuff! For me I always count fruit in my Fruit&Veg, but find it hard to get the green leafy varieties.
I managed to get my MIND points this evening by completing a reading/hobby task. As part of my role as coleader at Health2Dublin.com, I had the opportunity to interview Dr Ronan Kavanagh - a rheumatologist with an interest health technology. We were discussiong the role of technolgoy and social media for healthcare professionals. You can watch back on our live stream here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FaYQqYcHHZE
By the way, you guys are the best:
DAY 2 - Tuesday
Wow, GetHealth has got user in over 38 countries. Welcome aboard! GetHealth is going to help you log daily health tasks to track your progress.
As a busy startup, it’s great to have the bike at hand to jump between meetings in Dublin when necessary. A great excuse to get in more of my MOVE points!
We’re heading for a run later today at 6.30pm [note I got the time wrong on the video, oops]. If you are in Dublin, Ireland, come join us at our meeting point at Portobello Bridge: http://goo.gl/maps/9ik6u
[GetHealth Dublin] - Tonight we kick off the first of our biweekly fun runs. Here’s the route we’ll be taking: http://goo.gl/maps/lLSUI. You can join us every Tuesday and Thursday night at 6.30pm. Meet us at Portobello Bridge.
Chris sporting our very first logo! Looking good buddy!
DAY 1 - Monday
Hooray!! Today we launch our 4-week called “March into Spring”. This is the first time we’ve opened up our application to those who have requested an invite, and we’re excited to show you what we’re building and share with you some plans for the future.
Here’s what’s in store for Week 1. We’ve aptly called it First Steps we are not only testing the GetHealth app, but also starting out on your own health quest. You can download it and stick it on your fridge: http://bit.ly/March-Into-Spring_Week1 :)
After launching the campaign and sending out the private invites, I decided to get straight to the gym and start cranking up the MOVE points. My good friend William Cuddihy is the strength and conditioning coach for the Muster Rugby team. He’s prepared a 4 week training program on top of March into Spring to make sure I’m pushed to my max!
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Wow, thanks for reading all the way throguh my live blog for March into Spring. If you want to contact me directly, you can ping me a mail at liam@gethealthapp.com.
Listen up everyone, it’s the final week of March into Spring. This is the week you’ll really start to see your own results. If you are anything like our cofounder Liam, you might have noticed that Week 3 was tough to reach your target. Week 4 is your chance to be consistent on your health quest, aim for that last little push and smash that points target again.
For Week 4, we’re set our sights on theFinish Line, and the total points target this week is 380. That’s 40 more points from last week. And if you’re like me, you’ll know that last week’s target was tough to hit. This week we’re looking for:
Hooray! We’ve reached the halfway point of “March into Spring” and it’s amazing to see you all Moving, Munching and being Mindful. Our cofounder Liam is already starting to see the results! Now that it’s past that halfway point, we’re going to up the ante and set a bigger weekly target. We’re pushing you, but we’re doing it gently. We know people are smashing the target each week and we want you to do it again this week.
For Week 3, we’re in the Fast Lane, and the total points target this week is 340. That’s 90 more points from Week 2’s target, and 170 more points than our first target in Week 1. This week we’re looking for:
Wow, what an great week we’ve had, and what a start to March into Spring. Beside the (awesome) hiccup earlier in the week, everything has been going smoothly. It’s great to see all those points clock up and to see the number of people that SMASHED their week 1 target. We’ve been excited to hear your feedback too. It really is great for us to hear what you think of the application and how you use it. Please keep it coming!
So, are you set for Week 2?This week is titled Firm Ground, and the total points target is 250. you’ve started to understand your capabilities on your health quest and this week is your chance to develop those healthy habits. This week we’re looking for:
GetHealth, a mobile and online platform which helps people improve their health through social interaction and gameplay with their family and friends, is proud to announce that it has been awarded the first Runner Up prize at the global Hackovate Healthcare Innovation Competition in Kansas City, Missouri on February 26th 2013. The competition was designed to identify innovative mobile, online, social and other applications that help consumers navigate the exhausted healthcare system in the US.
In 2008, more than 1.4 billion adults globally, 20 and older, were overweight. Of these over 200 million men and nearly 300 million women were obese. More than 40 million children under the age of five were overweight in 2011. Obesity is preventable.
Here in Ireland 61% of Irish adults and 20% of children are overweight and obese and a chronic disease pandemic looms as a result. Chronic conditions such as diabetes and heart disease are set to rise by 40% by 2020. The Irish taxpayer is facing a heavy burden to meet the huge economic cost of obesity. Taxing the bad food market is not the answer, proactive wellness is. And technology can facilitate real longterm behavioral changes.
For the Hackovate grand final, ten finalists were chosen from submissions across 11 different countries and 22 different states to compete for the grand prize. Only 2 were based outside of the US. As a finalist, GetHealth delivered a 10-minute presentation about their company followed by 5 minutes of questions before a panel of final judges representing H&R Block, Cerner, Google Fiber and Sandbox.
“Our team is working towards changing the healthcare landscape by focusing on 100% real results for our users. By focusing on a proactive healthcare system that promotes the discovery of how to be healthy in a fun and personal way, we form longterm behavioral changes.” says Liam Ryan, CEO of GetHealth. “We are scaling our enterprise sales throughout the United States and here in Ireland for our next corporate launch in May. We are building on this acknowledgment, and it’s another reason why we are passionate about building the number 1 health and wellness app on this planet.”
Notes to Editor
Hackovate Health’s official press release following the event can be read here and the official recap of the event can be found here.
GetHealth is a mobile and online platform which helps people improve their health through social interaction and gameplay with their family and friends! Their beta users describe them as the “Foursquare for Health”, allowing people to check-in to the healthy tasks they do each day, earn points, and motivate their friends to a healthier lifestyle.
GetHealth Corporate is launching it’s next corporate package in May 2013. Please contact Chris at chris@gethealthapp.com for more information.
About Hackovate Health
Hackovate Health is a health-focused innovation competition hosted by H&R Block and Think Big Partners. The competition is designed to identify innovative mobile, online, social and other applications that help consumers navigate the new healthcare landscape.
To learn more about Hackovate Health, please visit www.hackovate.com.
About H&R Block
H&R Block, Inc. is the world’s largest tax services provider, having prepared more than 600 million tax returns worldwide since 1955. In fiscal 2012, H&R Block had annual revenues of $2.9 billion and prepared 25.6 million tax returns worldwide.
This morning we officially launched our 4 week March into Spring campaign, based on a 4 week programme developed by Dr. Mark Pettus in his book “Its all in your head – change your mind, change your health”.
Over the next four weeks, as promised, we will provide you with week by week goals for the 4 week campaign facilitated by our app. You will be able to log daily health tasks and earn points which creates a metric through which you can measure your progress.
As part of the campaign, we’ve officially set up our Facebook page! Woo! If you would like to join the conversation there throughout the campaign, we will be sharing discussion topics, photos and motivational insights. It’s a chance for you to gather around the other users on our app.
It’s T-minus 4 days to go until we launch our 4 week Public Beta. We’re so excited at GetHealth HQ to give you a sneak peak on what we’re working on, that we decided to let you into the app from today.
This morning you will have received information on how to access the application. Please follow the instructions and if you have any problems setting up, just let me know.
On Monday morning, we will be emailing you with an idea of your weekly goals that you can achieve in our three pillars of a healthy lifestyle: Move, Munch and Mind.
We have teamed up with Dr. Mark Pettus, US clinician and author of the book ‘It’s all in your head – Change your mind, change your health’ to bring you a 4 week health campaign delivered through our app. The campaign will help you to get hooked on the health habits that will help you look better, feel better, and live longer.
If you have yet to sign up for the private invite: you can do so now by inputing your mail at www.gethealthapp.com.
Please enjoy using our app. Let us know if anything breaks, or if you’d like to see some specific features in the app. This is what it’s all about huh!
Every day we wake up, we automatically take note of what we have to do that day. Those tasks are the goals that we’ve set out to achieve. When we get them done, it shows that we are making progress, and we can move onto the next task.
The same applies with your health. I have found it important to have a clear picture of what it is I want to achieve, and therefore, I know exactly what it is I must do to get there and work towards. I set goals for my health so I have something to aim to achieve. For example, this summer I plan to cycle in a 140km race in the west of Ireland with two of my friends. Without that goal firmly placed in my mind, I wouldn’t know why I train for it, or why it’s important. I want to be able to complete the race and feel great having overcoming the goal I set out.
Here are some health goals you can start adopting today:
Move #1 - Move More
Research from the University of Massachusetts revealed that the more you sit, the greater your appetite - even if your body doesn’t need the calories. Inactivity spurs secretion of gherkin, a hormone the increases the urge to eat. One trick that works for me is to set an alarm to buzz on the hour, and make a habit of getting up from your chair to stretch and walk around.
Move #2 - Discipline
If you want to achieve results, whether is be weight loss, run a marathon, tone up; you need to be consistent with your routine. If you only run once a week, it’s very hard for you to build on that days achievements. Even if it’s miserable outside with the rain, get your boots on and get out and move. By the time you would have stopped thinking about it, you would have been back and showered. Little by little wins, and you will achieve your goal.
Munch #1 - Eat More Often
I recently read an article that said to “eat more often to eat less”. Now, specifically they mentioned “eat more often”, not “eat more food”. The reason for this comes from the description of the body that I have mentioned before. Our bodies, built like machines, are made up of calorie-burning mechanisms called the thermic effect of eating and your basal metabolism (or resting metabolism). By eating smaller meals more often during the day - at least four and as many as six to eight - you keep both mechanisms revving high. Skipping meals throttles down your metabolism. Take your time and chew more!
Munch #2 - Listen to Your Gut
Stop eating when you feel full. A Penn State Study found that people ate 30% more food when they were served bigger portions, yet felt no more satisfied than those who’d received smaller portions. Start by ordering less than usual, and then gauge how satisfied you feel before ordering more.
Munch Bonus: Hydration
To keep our bodies functioning at its best, we need to hydrate. It’s so important, but the majority of people, including myself, forget to. So..hydrate, hydrate, hydrate! One trick is to get 2 litre bottles (like a sports bottle), and mark off 2hour increments from the top down. The goal is to drink two litres of water before days end.
Mind #1 - Sleep Routine
Our body is estimated to need between 6-8 hours of high quality sleep a night in order to function at its best the next day. The best trick I have found is to go to bed at the same time each night, and get up at the same time each morning. Have you heard of the phrase “an hour before 12am, is worth 2 after”? Sometimes is can be really difficult to get out of bed in the morning. The snooze button is so accommodating, especially when you’d kill for another 10 mins in bed. Try this gaol for 7 days in a row, and see if it works for you.
Mind #2 - No Stimulating Before Bed
Ever have trouble actually “getting to sleep”. You toss and turn for an hour before you start to feel sleepy, and then nod off. Our minds are so powerful, science has only grasped the basic functionality. Our neurones sends millions of packets of information around your body throughout the day, all controlled from brain. When you go to sleep, you’ll have the best chance of actually getting to sleep if you begin to wind down at least 2 hours before bed time. Turn off your screens, put away the phone. Try to read a book, or meditate. It works for me!
They are loads of possible goals you can set out to achieve, what’s yours. Join the conversation and leave a comment below. Or ping me a mail at liam@gethealthapp.com!
In our blog posts over the last few weeks, I’ve talked about the reasons why you should invest in your health and the benefits you can achieve from doing so. Now, a next step is to understand what we are actually going through when we start out on a health quest; what personal challenges are we facing (if any), what barriers are preventing us from starting now, and what do you need to know to be informed about what I am doing.
When I came out of university last year, I noticed laziness setting in after my exams, a lack of energy that had me mopping about the house. I knew I had to: cut back on the fast food and deli sandwiches I was eating for lunch, get more physical activity each day, set a proper sleeping rountine, reduce my alcohol intake, etc…So I made the decision to focus on my health. And do you know what the hardest thing about starting on my health kick? Trying to understand the right way to actually do all those things I wanted to do. I was uneducated about what I was supposed to be doing in order for me to lead a healthy life. I was looking up against a tall bleak cliff face, and boy was it going to be a steep climb.
Here are the 2 biggest challenges about keeping informed about how to be healthy:
1. Misconception about what to focus on!
Here’s an example. If you train too much but don’t eat right, you’ll eventually burn out. You won’t be able to sleep soundly, and you’ll eventually become stressed. Because you become stressed out, you start to indulge in unhealthy food, which in turn leads you back to living a sedentary life. My point is, if you don’t focus on your holistic health you may as well be opening a window and closing another.
2. Health articles can be totally irrelevant to you.
Health articles online are a waste of time, unless they are relevant to where you are on your health quest, the goals that you’ve set out to acheive, and that are informative while being easy to understand.
The solution is simple, but only if implemented and executed correctly (hint hint; I’m working on it with my team). The solution is to get the right information to the person while understanding where they are on their health quest. If I’m overweight and can only walk for 20minutes a day, don’t give me content to read that is about running marathons or weight lifting. Help me to focus on getting the most nutritious food into my belly first and begin to form health habits in my eating routine. Then use that success to motivate me to continue on my health kick.
When the person is informed and educated, they are in a position to make a better decision on their health, and potentially change their life for the better.
^L
As always, if you have a thought or feedback you’d like to share, please comment below or drop me a private message at liam@gethealthapp.com. Thanks everyone!
A few months ago, I wrote a post specifically addressing how my physical activity, my nutritional health and my mental health are the 3 core aspects I focus on when I started out on my health quest. I described them as the legs of a stool, and without one, I’m simply left to sit on my bum! This understanding is echoed in how GetHealth promotes Move, Munch and Mind equally, and allows our users to compete for points in each of those categories.
I now want to attempt to describe, and hence challenge you to reflect, on what I perceive to be your pillars of health - the supports you rely on during your health quest at times of apathy, laziness, lethargy, or dispassion. Think of those times when it’s raining outside, but you had penciled in one of your weekly runs. Or when, after a long day at work, the last thing you want to do is to prepare a healthy meal.
Here are some of my pillars that support the reasons why I invest in my health each and every day:
1. Simplicity - You can exercise for free these days. Its called walking. I’m not trying to be smart, but merely stressing that you don’t need to be in the gym to get your dose of exercise. You can using your body as weights (push ups, squats, stretching) to get quality results, so get out there and keep it simple. Our food is dominated by processed products. A great phrase I’ve heard lately that helps you to choose the right food to put in your body is to ask yourself “Would your grandmother know the ingredients?” If she does, it’s likely to be simple products with one or two ingredients, and they are sometimes best for nutrition.
2. Vitality - When you start to see results from your new lifestyle choice you start feeling full of vitality. You feel strong, confident, unafraid and full of energy. This is a natural drug, the best of any kind.
3. Stretch - While at WildFitness, I learned a tactic called a “tibetan power set”; after a workout, you complete a 4 minute power set of an extra such as pushups or burpees. You take 20 seconds of high intensity training, followed by 10 seconds rest. After 4minutes struggling with every inch of movement, your body has been pushed that little bit extra - and the results are astounding. Remember though, Rome wasn’t build in a day, so don’t expect to see those results over night, but every little step forward pushing yourself is a step closer to your goals.
4. Discipline - I say this time and time again; if you can only acheive results if you are disciplined in your routine. When you set out the goals you want to achieve, be consistent in your dedication towards the steps along the way. It is so easy to fall off the band wagon, and never get back on. For example, how did you New Years resolutions go?
5. Laughter - Laughter is the best medicine right? Laughter is a Happiness is a state of well being; this definition of happiness is commonly associated with experiencing pleasure or feeling good. Research has shown that when we are happy, we can enjoy a greater life satisfaction. Have you heard of the latest trend of Laughter Yoga? Happiness and other positive emotions can have a powerful influence on your health.
What are your thought on reflect above? What are your pillars of support? Please let me know, just ping me a message at liam@gethelathapp.com. Thanks for reading!
GetHealth is delighted to announce that they have been chosen as one of the top 10 finalists in the global Hackovate Healthcare Innovation Competition. The Hackovate Health Finale will take place next Tuesday (February 26) in the Union Station Extreme Screen in Kansas City, Missouri. The screen is literally extreme, look!
“Hackovate is a great acknowledgement of the work our team have been doing.” says Liam Ryan, CEO of GetHealth. ”Having the advisory support of people like Ted Vickey, former Executive Director of the WhiteHouse Athletic Center and currently a member of the Board of Directors for the American Council on Exercise (the largest non-profit accredited certification organization in the fitness industry), has allowed us to refine our product offering so it meaningfully addresses the issues arising from poor lifestyle choices and enables people to embrace preventative healthcare in a fun way. It will be an opportunity for us to demonstrate to the public how GetHealth takes on the Affordable Healthcare Act particularly with our upcoming launch of ‘GetHealth Corporate’ later this year in May”
The competition yielded submissions from across the world and has contributed to the growth of technology and innovation in the healthcare industry. As one of the top 10 finalists, GetHealth will present to a panel of judges from H&R Block,Sandbox,Google,Cernerand more. Hackovate Health has also a number of noteworthy sponsors including The Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation and Microsoft.
GetHealth is a mobile and online platform which helps people improve their health through social interaction and gameplay with their family and friends! Their beta users describe them as the “Foursquare for Health”, allowing people to check-in to the healthy tasks they do each day, earn points, and motivate their friends to a healthier lifestyle.
People check-in to Health tasks in 3 categories: Move, Munch and Mind - Move is about Physical activity (such as running, walking, cycling), Much is about the food you’re eating (did you get your 5 a day, did your get your 8 glasses of water), and Mind is about taking some time out for ‘me’ (destressing through meditation, reading etc).
GetHealth Corporate is launching it’s next package in May 2013. Please contact Chris at chris@gethealthapp.com for more information.
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About Hackovate
Hackovate is a global innovation competition to identify innovative mobile, online, social and other applications to help consumers navigate the new healthcare landscape.
Rising healthcare costs remain one of the largest expenses facing Americans today. The Affordable Care Act addresses key healthcare gaps such as providing expanded subsidized quality insurance coverage, removal of medical expense caps, elimination of denying coverage for pre-existing health conditions and expanding Medicaid for low income families. Even with the new legislation there will be substantial financial implications for millions of Americans. Hackovate believe technology based innovation has the potential to meaningfully address many of the consumer based financial and/or tax implications that will arise with the continuing rollout of “Obamacare”.
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If you would like to attend the event in Kansas, you can register at http://hackovate.eventbrite.com/. With only 500 guests, tickets are going fast. But you can watch the live stream available on the day of the event on www.hackovate.com/live
