It’s not every day that a company features on a global platform but we are delighted to see FitrWoman profiled in-depth this week by CNN. Myself and Georgie were in London in September to be interviewed for this major piece published a few days ago by CNN Sport and CNN International. It’s been quite a journey for FitrWoman since its launch in June at the Female Athlete Conference in Boston.
Our Users
So, who has been using FitrWoman? Well, they are female athletes of all kinds who train regularly and are serious about progressing. Performance levels range from recreational to the elite athlete. Feedback and engagement has been positive from every level. After a debut in the Apple App Store in which it featured as App of the Week, the app has been steadily downloaded by women worldwide. It was particularly pleasing to see the Celtic FC Ladies team and coach Andrew Wiseman featured in the CNN piece and the testimony about using FitrWoman was a nice aspect of the article.
A quick look at the metrics of the CNN piece shows that the article was placed before a potential audience of 97.9 million people, with over 30,000 clicks so far and 1,000+ social shares. CNN also shared the profile with its 38m Twitter followers.
Excitement about FitrWoman has been building and as 2017 draws to a close, we are thrilled to welcome British middle and long distance Emelia Gorecka as an Ambassador. We are delighted to be a part of her journey towards Tokyo 2020.
On social media, Eva Woods, a member of the Chelsea Ladies FC performance team, has been kind enough to recommend the app. Dr. Stacy Sims of the New Zealand national Olympic team has also highlighted use of the app as a resource for the team. Elsewhere, in the UK, HerMoJo is releasing a suite of online booklets aimed to increase participation in sport for girls between the age of 14 and 17. FitrWoman is featured in the brochure along with advice on training and nutrition.
Female Athlete Research
On the development front, Orreco has recently begun a research study to drive female athlete research on a global scale and to inform future developments of FitrWoman. We have been busy planning out our roadmap and future releases while talking to our users, hearing how the app has benefited them and how they go about planning their training and nutrition on a daily basis. This information will help us to identify and prioritise key requirements for future releases. A recent questionnaire showed feedback around 3 main areas:
1. Gaining an understanding of their physiology
2. Knowing how to fuel their training
3. How they can make smarter decisions around their training
Feedback
Here’s what some people said about FitrWoman:
· “Giving me an understanding that menstrual cycle is a contributing factor in what my energy levels and performance abilities might be on a given day.”
· “Helping me understand how my energy levels will be effected during my cycle and how my performance will consequently be affected.”
· “Understanding how to fuel my training.”
· “Reminders of what to eat on different days to help maintain steady constant energy levels.”
· “Advice on best ways to exercise at certain times of the month.”
· “The “what’s happening” section. I like knowing what’s happening in my body, and probably didn’t know this before.”
· “Understanding the changes to my physiology and what types of training might work best at different points in my cycle.”
Next Steps
Our plan is to take FitrWoman to the next level and make the information in the app more personalised. As we know, not every person is the same or reacts in the same way – so we want to provide personalised advice and identify trends overtime to better inform training and awareness.
It’s amazing to reflect back over the last 6 months and see the progress to date. We are very pleased with the support for Orreco and FitrWoman and how passionate people have been. The global engagement and profile has been very welcome indeed and it’s been gratifying to hear people’s stories. They tell us the app is making a big impact on their lives and that it allows them to be proactive and not reactive to symptoms of the menstrual cycle.
Roll on 2018!
