As the client, adidas miCoach is an interactive training service for anyone who wants to train for his or her favorite sport, general fitness or just for fun. Bringing the knowledge and experience of adidas’ elite coaching partners to the masses, miCoach provides users with real-time coaching and all the tools they need to track performance and monitor progress to get the results they want. The breadth of the offer includes a free to access web platform and training community with hundreds of training plans, free mobile apps as well as a comprehensive range of tracking devices.

The ultimate intent was to relief the runner from the hassles of cables, separate body mounted sensors and complex user interactions associated with many of the existing running watches. Runners should be able to easily track, view and understand all aspects of their performance as they run (pace, distance, heart rate), as well as receive real time guidance so they can efficiently follow planned interval training in a single device. Hence, the product design should reflect the magnitude of opportunities you have as a consumer in the most simple and user friendly of ways.

Runners need an optimized fit, feel & function to avoid ‘in-run distractions’. Appealing to the serious runners’ desires, a theme of bold, precise and reduced was used to influence how the strap framed the technology to form a secure lock onto the wrist from a product design perspective. From a user experience point of view, it was key to share our understanding of coaching with internal and external teams to ensure the UI framework addressed all requirements using prototyping already in early stages of the project. User feedback helped to stay focused throughout the development and continuing into post-launch support.

miCoach SMART RUN got everything a runner needs. We integrated multiple hi-tech components into a watch form factor (color touch screen, heart rate, GPS, music & video, WiFi, Bluetooth) without comprising design by using only premium materials engineered in optimal ergonomics. The biggest value the product delivers is the “all in one” user experience for runners - no more need for separate sensors, carrying music players or syncing data. The way the form factor is merged with functionality conveying the magnitude of opportunities and value the consumer is provided with makes the product design of the miCoach SMART RUN outstanding.

We want to offer a user interface for a smart running-watch that would liberate the athlete from cumbersome accessories, yet deliver the most complete and professional training experience to date. For the first time, runners of all abilities will be able to track their runs using GPS mapping, monitor their heart rate off their wrist, listen to their favorite music and get real-time coaching – all in a single yet simple, color touch screen running watch.