A new application, Plyo, rewards students who spend time at their colleges’ recreation centers with discounts from local businesses.

The app tracks user locations at St. Thomas and the University of Minnesota and awards points for time spent in exercise facilities. Those points can be used to redeem discounts and free items at local places including Punch Pizza, Erberts and Gerberts, Subway and Starbucks.

The Plyo website states that “You earn 50 points per hour of exercise, or 100 points per hour if you add a friend to your workout.”

A recent development limits students to three hours maximum to earn points.

However, some St. Thomas students are misusing the app and earn points by spending time in or near the AARC or McCarthy Gym without actually using the facility to exercise.

“I’ve noticed a lot of people using it. It’s hard to say whether or not more people are going to the gym because of the app. It’s that time of year more people are trying to work out and start some kind of routine in the gym,” said St. Thomas junior Joseph Koegel, a student medical assistant with the sports trainers on campus.

Koegel has accumulated around 6,000 points, and he plans on redeeming them in the near future.

The Plyo website advertises to companies that are interested in giving students rewards by stating, “Reach lifetime customers in their habit-forming stages.”

By advertising to college students using the app, businesses hope to drive future sales after the students graduate and can no longer use the app and recreational centers on university campuses.

Student gym employees Jared Thorp and Hannah Shwartz both downloaded this app at the beginning of the semester and have accumulated over 1,000 points just by showing up to work.

“I’ve heard people talking about it, and noticed more people working out since this semester has started,” Thorp said.

Schwartz agreed and said that she’s excited to redeem her rewards for a gyro at The Naughty Greek.

Lexie Nustvold can be reached at lexie.nustvold@stthomas.edu.