About IMU-RUN

Up to 75% of runners experience injury each year, and many of these injuries are totally preventable with appropriate feedback. I Measure U Run (IMU-Run) is a system that delivers powerful real-time guidance while you run to help you avoid putting your body at risk from overuse. The IMU-Run system does this by tracking the only metric scientists consistently correlate with risk of running injury: impact on the lower leg, or tibial shock.

If you are a runner at any level, chances are you have been injured, are injured now, or constantly trying new things to avoid getting injured. Injuries stop you running, when you can’t run things just get harder: you can’t hit your goals, and you miss the grounding, meditative experience of your daily run. With IMU-Run, you'll know when you’re putting yourself at risk of overuse injury – so you’ll have the power to make informed adjustments. Let’s take the guesswork out of running safely.

Based On Leading Science

Over the past 40 years, scientists who study human movement have been trying to understand the mechanics of running and the cause of running injuries. Even with the introduction of the modern running shoe decades ago, up to 75% of runners experience an injury in a given year.

Studies have shown that across a wide range of injuries and in various populations, there is one physical factor that predicts overuse injury: tibial shock.

Tibial shock provides a direct measurement of the impact forces experienced by your body with every step. What’s more, studies have shown that if runners receive real-time feedback on their tibial shock, they can make immediate adjustments to significantly reduce it.

I Measure U provides one simple number – called the Load Score – which runners can use to assess several important factors:

We know that repetitive loads experienced during running are important for the development of injury - being able to monitor them accurately is critical to avoiding these risks.

Unlike some other running trackers, we have a lot more than bullet points - we’ve prepared a scientific white paper summarizing the research that has gone into this revolutionary product.

Find Your Best Run

All runners are different. Different bodies, running styles, shoes, terrain, and levels of experience. We believe there’s more than one correct way to run, but no matter who you are, there is one metric that can track how well your technique and equipment are working for you. With I Measure U, every runner can finally have the necessary information to know what’s working and what isn’t.

How IMU Keeps You Safe

I Measure U Run is a complete system consisting of a wearable device and an app. Just fit the band snugly on your ankle, against the lower leg. Then, launch the I Measure U app on your smartphone and we’ll begin monitoring your every step!

As you run, our biomechanical algorithm uses the sensor information to calculate your Load Score, which takes into account how your bone and soft tissues are loaded, regardless of your running technique, muscle fatigue, terrain, or footwear. We can also determine a cumulative Load Score, which can be used to identify optimal recovery, allowing for tissue remodelling. You get real-time audio notifications of your Load Score, empowering you to make adjustments to your stride or switch terrain, and know if it’s having an effect. We’ll also let you know when your Load Score increases due to fatigue. This way, you can pack it in for the day, instead of running through it and packing it in for weeks.

The app also tracks your performances cumulatively, allowing you to calibrate your running regimen from one session to the next – so you’ll be able to stay healthy and hit your fitness goals.

Use With Current Gear and Apps

You don’t need to make any changes at all to get the injury warning benefits of IMU-Run: start using it with your existing routine and your current running shoes. It even works well alongside traditional run-tracking apps like what our friends over at RunKeeper offer!

Used By Olympians

Early last year we won a competitive innovation contract with Athletics Australia to build bespoke wearable monitoring solutions for athletes and coaches, allowing the coach to better quantify and manage workloads and reduce athletes’ risk of injury.

Created By A Team Of Experts

I Measure U was developed by experts in the field of biomechanics. The founders collaborate with leading researchers and elite coaches and athletes, including the Australian Institute of Sport, the Spaulding National Running Center at Harvard University, and Runkeeper to prove the effectiveness of I Measure U in preventing running injury.

Thor Besier, PhD
Thor is a co-founder of I Measure U and a leading biomechanics researcher with more than 70 scientific publications in the area of musculoskeletal injury and disease. Thor was previously the Director of Research at Stanford University’s Human Performance Lab, and an Assistant Professor in Orthopaedics at Stanford before returning home to NZ in 2011. Thor is currently an Associate Professor at the University of Auckland’s Bioengineering Institute.

Mark Finch
Mark was a nationally ranked competitive swimmer until a car accident ended his career. What followed was years of rehabilitation, which included him learning to walk and run again. He returned to swimming as a coach as soon as he was able. Supplementing his experience in sport, he holds a Masters in Biomedical Engineering and has spent the last 7 years working at the Auckland Bioengineering Institute, MIT, and studying at Stanford University. Mark has dedicated his life to making a profound difference in injury prevention and rehabilitation - which lead to him founding I Measure U.

Route to Delivery

Why INDIEGOGO?

We’ve tested I Measure U technology extensively with small groups of elite athletes, and we’ve seen how effective it can be. Now it’s time to give the same powerful benefits to runners around the world.

Your pledges will allow us to fund a production run of the wearable component of the system, and also to finalize development of the I Measure U app for iPhone and Android.

How is it personalized to Me and MY running style?
Everybody is different. IMU-Run uses algorithms based on physiological models derived from leading biomechanical researchers, but that doesn’t imply a “one size fits all” approach. We also take into account your body weight, height, age and running ability to create bespoke outputs that will help reduce YOUR risk of injury, tailored for YOUR body. Our smart algorithm will adapt and learn to your running style over time, so as you improve in your running our algorithm improves with you.

How does the app know when my technique changes?
The IMU-Run app will know when you are becoming fatigued through measured changes in your running form. This is done through our very own in house algorithms that process the motion data measured from the IMU-Sensor. It doesn’t matter if your running becomes faster, slower, longer, shorter, with less shock or more shock; our algorithm learns and adapts to your change in running form.

Isn't this only for professionals of serious runners?
The numbers don't lie, up to 75% of runners will get injured every year! Regardless of how good a runner you are, you're still at risk of getting injured. That is why we've made this technology to cater for all types of runners - we want to keep you running for as long as you possibly can!

How do you differ from other running campaigns like STRYD and Runscribe?
The main difference between IMU-Run and Stryd and Runscribe is that IMU-Run is focused on injury prevention.

Stryd is designed to estimate power and help a runner to define training zones.

Runscribe is designed to measure and monitor the motion of your foot. It can measure impacts too, but the impacts are at the shoe, NOT at the bone, which is where you need to measure them. 

IMU-Run is designed to give you real-time feedback on the impact loads that are being transmitted through your shoe-foot-ankle, and actionable advice on how to reduce those loads. We use a simple metric of impact load that is based on science and an understanding of how our tissues respond to load. One relevant and important number, plain and simple.

How long is the battery life? Is it rechargeable?
The IMU-Sensor battery lasts around 10 hours on a full charge, and is rechargeable via micro-USB (provided).

What other metrics does it provide me with? Does it measure cadence, pace, velocity, number of steps, stride length, and distance?
Our app will directly measure your cadence, load score and number of steps taken. It is built to work in parallel with your current running app, which will track all the same running metrics you are used to.

Will I need to wear one on each leg? Can I use two?

At launch, IMU-Run will support one sensor. However, we know that simultaneous measurement of both legs is something of interest for serious athletes, and we do plan to add support for multiple sensors in a subsequent update.  We may also introduce this as a stretch goal after hitting our target.

In the meantime, we suggest that all runners alternate measuring from the left and right legs over different runs. Our algorithms will learn over time, and will be able to identify asymmetric loading in your running style.  With data from both legs, we’ll be able to tell you which side is most likely to get injured, and even provide suggestions/feedback to help you reduce the asymmetry in your stride.

Will I be able to use it without my phone?
No, the real time feedback requires a smart device to communicate with to give you the feedback while you run. We support both iOS and Android platforms.

Will it work on my Smart Watch?
Smart watches are the new craze of 2015, and we would love to have an IMU-Run app running natively on your smart watch. Creating this smart watch app is in the pipeline, and we will try our best to fit it in with all our pledges. This awesome goal is dependent on your feedback, and if enough people want it, we will include it in our development phase.

Where is my data stored? Can I integrate it with all the mapmyrun/strava/runkeeper data that I already have?
Your data is securely stored in a cloud database that you can export and integrate with data from other sources.

Will there be a team app that contains all my team’s data?
Unfortunately we will not be creating a team app at this stage. If enough teams purchase the IMU-Run team package however, we will look at integrating it into our development stage.

I’m an engineering wizard. Can I create custom solutions with the sensor?
The sensor that comes with IMU-Run will only be compatible with our IMU-Run app platform. If you are looking for information on purchasing our IMU-Sensor for research purposes, please visit our website at www.imeasureu.com and contact us via email.

Are you looking at generating solutions for other sports? If so, will I be able to use the same sensor for different sport?
Yes this is the plan. We've got a number of solutions for different sports that are currently being tested and validated with olympians around the world. We just need the resources for us to tailor them for the greater consumer. The plan is to generate a IMU-home app where you can just purchase new solutions for different sports which would be compatible with the same sensor.