ICON Health & Fitness Moving from Exercise into Sleep

ICON Health & Fitness, while its name may not be recognized by most, has been a major player in the exercise industry since the late 1970s. ICON is the parent company of well known brands including NordiTrack, ProFrom, Freemotion, Weider, Gold’s Gym, and more. The company tends to be on the forefront of innovation in fitness, and has a few patent documents to back it up. One of ICON’s signature companies is iFit, which is a subscription service intended to bring coaching directly to the individual – via an app, wearables, and connected fitness equipment. This includes everything from nutrition and dietary coaching to cardio equipment providing interactive classes. However, it seems the company is not stopping at coaching that takes place when a user is awake, and is now making a concerted effort to move into sleep.

In 2015, the company partnered with Customatic Adjustable Bedz to develop sleep products that utilize iFit products. While this partnership does not seem to have continued as far as development, Customatic does still sell a bed that includes the technology. iFit now includes sleep tracking in their coaching program, as well as a specific heart rate monitor that can be used. NordicTrack seems to have taken over the role of Customatic and sells a mattress with iFit connection and sleep tracking technology included. Now, ICON seems to be looking to expand past just tracking, as they recently filed a patent application for a rocking bed frame which uses kinetic motion to adjust a user’s heart rate and help them fall asleep.