IBM has announced that a leading provider of corporate fitness services is using business rules software to customize individual workouts to help consumers reach their fitness goals in the New Year.

Core Performance helps leading corporations develop on-site facilities that help employees get into shape through personalized workout programs that can be completed in less than an hour.  Developed by Athletes' Performance, the industry leader in performance training for elite athletes, these centers help employees improve their health, stress levels and quality of life.

According to the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey the majority of U.S. adults are either overweight or obese.  In a recent announcement concerning new dietary guidelines, U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said that most Americans need to lose weight to reduce their risk of developing chronic diseases.  Experts agree that both diet and physical activity are the keys to tackling America's weight problem.

The main hurdle for any fitness program is keeping participants interested in their workouts and motivated to stick with their workout regime.  Core Performance has come up with a way of keeping people engaged through its Core Performance Prescription Engine, which makes its personal training programs smarter and more responsive to the needs of the individual.

Using ILOG technology, Core Performance can deliver its proven methodology to large numbers of companies and employees.  The system is powered by IBM's WebSphere Business Rules Management System – software that allows Core Performance to embed training logic rules into its intelligent gym equipment.  Through this technology, the equipment gains the ability to react to changing circumstances, based on rules set by Core Performance's fitness experts.

For example, Core Performance programs its equipment in such a way that if a member is feeling sick, she can input that into the system, which will react by adapting her training programs to ensure an effective workout while reducing the possibility of overexertion, strain or injury.

"By making gym equipment work more intelligently, we are helping people maximize the effectiveness of their workouts," said Jon Zerden, chief technology officer of Core Performance.  "We are able to automate and customize personal training programs like no other facility to better measure an individual's progress and track their physical response to their training program.  It is a smarter, more efficient, results driven way to work out."

At his or her first visit to a Core Performance Center, each employee is evaluated and given a personalized workout plan based on his or her goals, current state of health and medical history.  Employees can alter their workouts as needed at any time.  For example, if an employee isn't feeling well, he or she can follow simple prompts on the fitness equipment to ensure that the workout isn't too difficult based on their level of fatigue or pain in a specific area.

For each individual, the equipment can track metrics like wattage output, repetitions completed, and calories burned.  When aggregated, this data can help quantify the impact of the Core Performance program for employers, while individual data can help employees and Core Performance specialists ensure that each individual is always progressing toward his or her goal.

"Advanced rules technologies can now be embedded into everyday products to make them more efficient and attuned to their users' needs," said Pierre Haren, vice president, ILOG products, IBM.  "Through its smart fitness machines, Core Performance can differentiate itself in the marketplace by offering members a more personalized, efficient and engaging workout experience.