Failed iPod venture leads to success of MobileTrainer Tuesday, September 8, 2009 By Brian Brus Courtesy of The Journal Record OKLAHOMA CITY – Apple Inc.’s refusal to allow Jeff Johnson to develop a heart rate monitor through the company’s iPod a few years ago was actually a blessing, he said. Otherwise he wouldn’t have been driven to develop his health product, MobileTrainer, now in beta testing at Oklahoma City-based Fitness Fulfillment. The programs and database behind MobileTrainer take physical fitness training out of the gym and push it into a client’s computer or smart phone. Jeff Johnson said the system develops a personalized exercise routine that continues to evolve for each user depending on that person’s progress, preferences and equipment available. “You select your skill level, days that you want to work out and the type of equipment that you have access to,” said  Johnson, the chief executive of Fitness Fulfillment. “The database is quite large, with more than 1,000 different exercises and 40,000 workout combinations. It doesn’t matter what your fitness level is – we can provide a scenario to match.” The recommended exercises are then sent to a MobileTrainer account holder’s personal computer or cell phone. The exercise database itself at the company’s Web site is free to users, with an option to purchase advanced services with a full membership. Johnson said he’s interested in securing more capital to further develop the product’s graphics interface and marketing, and the sooner the better. The window of opportunity for his original heart rate monitor concept for the iPod – the version before Apple’s video touch-screen iPhone – closed quickly as technology improved. He has a lot of confidence in MobileTrainer and said he doesn’t think anyone could easily replicate its depth or complexity, but competition is fierce. Johnson’s business sense was honed by his experience with a business plan he wrote for the 2006 Donald W. Reynolds Oklahoma Governor’s Cup collegiate business plan competition while he was a student at Oklahoma State University-Oklahoma City. Encouraged by OSU-OKC adviser Joe Wilkie, Johnson wrote and presented the business plan as the sole team member. With support from i2E Inc., a nonprofit corporation that mentors tech-based start-ups, Johnson took his iPod idea and developed it into a more elaborate fitness training system. His development team includes R.B. Bruce as chief technology officer and Austin Spires as media director. He said additional capital will help move through the beta testing phase to fully enter the market. Johnson said he’s willing to give up a stake in his company to move forward. “The biggest challenge has been the funding and finding the right people to work with,” he said. “Now I have a team. We just feel so confident that this will help people get in shape and lose weight that we want to get it out there.” Copyright © 2009 The Journal Record All Rights Reserved 101 N. Robinson Ave., Ste. 101, Oklahoma City, OK, 73102 | P.O. Box 26370, Oklahoma City, OK, 73126-0370 | (405) 235-3100 415 S. Boston Ave., Ste. 101, Tulsa, OK 74103 | (918) 295-0098