PEAR Sports And Coach Kastor Announce Creation Of Two ASICS LA Marathon Training Programs

IRVINE, Calif., Feb. 11, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- PEAR Sports, developer of the patent pending Heart Rate based interactive training platform in partnership with Coach Kastor, announced today the creation of two training programs intended specifically for ASICS LA Marathoners. Those programs, designed by elite athlete Andrew Kastor and Olympian marathoner Deena Kastor are meant to prepare runners for the upcoming 2014 ASICS LA Marathon. By combining PEAR's real time audio coaching and Coach Kastor's extensive knowledge of endurance running, Andrew's four-week program strives to eliminate injuries while promoting the importance of rest days. In addition, PEAR has created a first-ever "Race Day Coaching Guide" where Deena will virtually guide PEAR users through the entire marathon course.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140211/SF63288)

After 15 years spent as a competitive runner, Andrew Kastor founded Coach Kastor and now enjoys training some of the world's best long distance runners--among them his own wife Deena, a 12 times American record holder and Olympic Marathon medalist. By working together with PEAR, Coach Kastor now has the capability to extend their coaching digitally while breaching out the distance that separates them from hundreds of potential trainees. Andrew's four-week training program and Deena's race day program will be the first of many products in the partnership.

By bringing world-class coaching experience to its users, PEAR Sports further validates the PEAR promise to offer reliable and efficient training platform that draws its two main strengths from expertise and real time, biofeedback based interactive coaching. The partnership is a highly significant step towards a more personalized and a more educational PEAR experience--and one that may end up greatly benefiting numerous users across the globe.

PEAR Sports creates innovative personalized coaching technologies to help people reach their fitness goals. It builds next generation applications that improve fitness levels through customized, interactive coaching, and enables users to train smarter for better, faster results.  Both Deena and Andrew have accepted to share their expertise and knowledge with PEAR Sports. 

The four-week program developed by Andrew Kastor targets runners that have already trained for the ASICS LA Marathon and emphasizes the importance of rest days and not overtraining in order to avoid injuries. According to Andrew, "Taper is to peak properly so you are rested and injured free on race day." To facilitate the learning experience of the users, Andrew has carefully compiled a number of tips to guide people through the last month of training.  In addition Kastor mentions, "We want to get the racer to the staring line healthy and the finish line happy" To ensure that each workout is done at the right intensity, the program comprises the benefits of PEAR's proprietary technologies in the form of real time audio coaching. The technologies deliver biofeedback that builds off of the user's heart rate and fitness--in a way; users will feel as though Coach Kastor is training them. Beginner, intermediate and advanced plans are offered.

To give an idea of what runners should expect from the marathon, Deena has created a race day guide, which describes the course in detail. The program follows Deena running and talking in real life through the ASICS LA Marathon course--a type of coaching that has never been done before. This is meant to inspire runners to stay committed along the way of achieving their goals and to let them know what to expect during their race experience.  The program will act as the marathoners' own personal tour guide and thanks to GPS activation, racers will be cued in to landmarks of interest and letting them know where to find bathroom, food and drink stops in real time. 

According to Christian Schauf, PEAR's Vice President of Marketing, "By combining PEAR's patent training capabilities with world class coaching from Coach Kastor, we are providing a level of coaching to running enthusiast that was previously unavailable due to cost, geography or time. Now a runner across the globe can train with Coach Kastor any day, anytime and anywhere." Schauf continued with, "And we are very excited about our race day guide with Deena. It will literally be like Deena is guiding you along the route, which will provide a level of information and support never seen or experienced before."

Deena Kastor added, "We believe in PEAR's real time biofeedback based interactive coaching platforms and feel our partnership further validates the PEAR promise to provide a platform to coaches to train more effectively regardless of location."

The ASICS LA Marathon will take place on March 9^th 2014. After race day, both Deena and Andrew will continue to create running plans for PEAR Sports.

About PEAR Sports: Developed by a passionate team of entrepreneurs with athletic, technology and design backgrounds, PEAR Sports was born from the desire to offer smart and personalized coaching to anyone wanting to reach a fitness or performance goal. PEAR is a real-time audio coaching system that adapts to your heart rate and fitness level, putting a world-class coach in your ear with hundreds of custom workout plans. Strength training, weight loss, spinning, running and endurance training are among some of the plans they offer. The PEAR ecosystem has something for everyone--from beginners to seasoned athletes--and is continuously adding new workouts and plans. The system serves as a smart personal coach, delivering fitness, toning, and weight-loss benefits while users train and listen to their favorite music.  

SOURCE PEAR Sports