Top 5 things that will change when “Internet of things” and Yoga come together

In about 5 years, smart refrigerators are expected to become household things. Your refrigerator will scan the things in it and report a stock update. It could add things to your shopping cart in the retailer website. It could also compare with your friends’ refrigerators and rank the contents in your refrigerator based on a health index. You might hear suggestions from refrigerator like “above average fat content” or “you will run out of milk today” or “your friend purchased a bottle of Chateau Latour”

The age of “Internet of Things” will soon dawn upon us. It will (and has already: For instance Ralph Lauren) connect the day-to-day things to the internet and also multiple things between themselves with the help of sensors, electronic devices and of course the internet.

How could internet of things transform the way we practise yoga?
Here are my 5 points:

1. Asanas/Postures: Smartmat can give you feedback on alignment of postures and distribution of weight on the mat immediately. If you are practising yoga alone or away from your tutor this could make a world of change to your yoga practise. Check out this video and you can pre-order a Smartmat here
2. Breathing: Your smart phone/sensors could find when your normal breathing is altered during a yoga practice. It could give a warning too. There is no app on this now. (You have to be content with heart rate measuring apps or simulated breathing apps which are not Internet of things)
3. Bandhas/Body locks: Whenever Bandhas/body locks are not engaged sensors could detect the same and give you instant feedback
4. Meditation: There are several brain wave devices with apps which can detect what type of brainwaves your brain is emitting. Since your brain emits waves of certain frequency during meditation you will be able to get instant feedback whenever you deviate. Check one of the items here. Remember there is difference between calmness and mindfulness, so these devices might not be 100% accurate all the time
5. Interconneted devices: Now, you can connect the devices with each other too. Breathing device can be connected with the postures one or integrated together. This can help give proper feedback about complex postures where your breath is allowed to go out of pace when you are an apprentice. Also, these devices can be connected with similar devices that are used by your friends or your tutor, so you can instantly compare.

I know yoga doesn’t necessarily require technology, but if props can help progress faster, then why not “internet of things”. Isn’t it a prop too?

I got to go. My smart Diwali fireworks are updating me that it is time to burst them!

References:

Smartmat (2015) Smartmat. Available from: https://www.smartmat.com/ [Accessed 13 November 2015].

Wikipedia (2015) Internet of things. Available from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_of_Things [Accessed 13 November 2015].