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Neuroathletic training & performance
Free metronome app: train rhythm, timing and movement
A beat can turn a simple movement into a coordination task: gaze shifts on the beat, precisely timed joint circles or a finger sequence following a colour signal perceived to the side. This is why I developed my free metronome app. Use it directly in your browser and, after setup, offline on Android and iOS too.
The metronome is one of my six free training apps. Here I explain every setting and show five tasks and a beat-accent variation for connecting rhythm, attention and movement.
Try it directlyOpen the free metronome app. Choose tempo, sound and duration. A practical starting point is a familiar shoulder circle with a fixed point reached on every beat.
Why use a metronome in training?
A metronome gives movement an external time frame. It may help perform repetitions evenly or structure a particular movement pattern. Define what one beat means: a gaze shift, the highest point of a joint circle or the next action on a coordination chart.
The task becomes interesting when it changes. With increasing speed, you adapt your movement. With omitted beats, you continue keeping time without the familiar signal. You can deliberately switch between following, adapting and continuing independently.
The app supplies rhythm; it does not measure how accurately you meet it. Observe your performance yourself or with another person. Choose the movement first and adapt tempo to it.
Tempo: from steady to unpredictable
Beat frequency: 20–300 BPMBPM means beats per minute. 60 BPM equals one beat per second, 120 BPM two beats per second. Set tempo through the number field, slider or plus/minus buttons in single-unit steps. Quick-selection buttons offer 40, 60, 90 and 120 BPM.
Tap tempoTap “Tap tempo” several times in your desired rhythm. The app calculates a tempo value from this. You can start from a movement already comfortable to perform. Then check the displayed value and adjust if needed.
Under Tempo pattern there are five options:
The five tempo patternsConstant: The set beat remains constant.
Faster to upper limit: Tempo increases gradually and remains at the upper limit.
Slower to lower limit: It decreases gradually and remains at the lower limit.
Alternating: It alternates faster and slower, reversing at the limits.
Random within limits: At a change, the app chooses a tempo from the defined range.
Faster to upper limit: Tempo increases gradually and remains at the upper limit.
Slower to lower limit: It decreases gradually and remains at the lower limit.
Alternating: It alternates faster and slower, reversing at the limits.
Random within limits: At a change, the app chooses a tempo from the defined range.
For variable tempo, set lower and upper limits each between 20 and 300 BPM. Starting tempo lies within these limits. The step size is 1–100 BPM. Random tempo has no step size, since the new value is selected directly from the range.
The interval between tempo changes is also adjustable: fixed after 1–128 beat positions or random after 1–8. In the random option, the app chooses the interval afresh for every section. Omitted beats also count towards this interval. Random tempo and random change interval are separate settings.
Signals: sound, volume and deliberate gaps
Four soundsUnder Beat sound choose Click, Wood, Beep or Bell. Use “Listen” to try the chosen sound. Volume ranges from 0–100 %. At 0 %, sound is muted; the visual signal must then be enabled for the session to provide a perceptible signal.
Omit beatsOmit none: Every position receives its signal.
Regularly: omit every 2nd to 32nd beat, for example every fourth.
Randomly: 1–90 % omission probability per beat position. 20 % is a probability per position; it does not guarantee exactly two gaps in ten beats.
Regularly: omit every 2nd to 32nd beat, for example every fourth.
Randomly: 1–90 % omission probability per beat position. 20 % is a probability per position; it does not guarantee exactly two gaps in ten beats.
During an omission, both sound and colour signal are absent, but the rhythm continues in time. You define the task: continue movement through the gap to keep time yourself. Or deliberately stay still during a gap if that is your agreed rule.
Beat accent: emphasise the first beat of each bar
Accent sound and 1–12 beats per barEnable the Accent, choose a separate Accent sound and set 1–12 beats per bar. The special sound marks the first beat of each bar. With four beats, you hear Accent–2–3–4 | Accent–2–3–4. In continuous counting, these are positions 1, 5, 9 and so on.
A beat is one time position; a bar groups several together. At 60 BPM with four beats, a bar lasts four seconds. The accent changes the sound at the start of the bar, not the interval between beats. If an accent position is omitted, it also stays silent. After a pause, the existing bar position continues.
Exercise variation: four finger contacts as one sequenceChoose 40 BPM, four beats per bar, a clearly distinguishable accent sound, no omissions and 16 beat positions. While sitting, touch your thumb sequentially to index, middle, ring and little finger. On the accent, begin at the index finger; the other contacts follow on 2, 3 and 4. Practise with one hand first, then separately with the other. The accent makes it audible whether the finger sequence and start of the bar remain aligned.
Visual signal: see the rhythm
Enable the coloured training area through Visual signal. Choose from green, red, blue, yellow, white and black. At least one colour remains selected. The colour sequence cycles through selected colours or chooses randomly per signal.
Each colour remains until the next beat position. During an omission, the grey resting background appears. With only one colour and no omissions, the area therefore remains continuously the same colour; it does not flash on each beat. Choose several colours for visibly changing signals. If light-sensitive, leave the visual signal off.
Duration, pauses and results
Three ways to finishUnlimited: Stop manually.
Fixed time: 1–7,200 seconds, up to two hours.
Fixed count: 1–10,000 beat positions. Omissions count too; 40 positions with every fourth beat omitted produce 30 audible signals and 10 gaps.
Fixed time: 1–7,200 seconds, up to two hours.
Fixed count: 1–10,000 beat positions. Omissions count too; 40 positions with every fourth beat omitted produce 30 audible signals and 10 gaps.
The first beat occurs at the session's start. When ending after a beat count, the final beat interval finishes completely. Pause interrupts, Resume continues and Stop ends the session. Pauses do not count towards training time. Use Full screen for the large display if supported by your browser.
On a computer, the space bar pauses and resumes; Esc stops. In full screen, the browser may use Esc first to exit full screen. Switching tabs or interrupted audio pauses the app. Keep it in the foreground during the exercise.
At the end, you see training time, beat positions, output signals and omissions. “Repeat” starts the same configuration; “Settings” returns you to setup. The app automatically remembers settings locally in the browser. There is no transfer between devices or assessment of your movements. You can hide the support notice for the current day.
Five neuroathletic training examples
Choose a brief comparison task that suits your aim beforehand: for example three gentle arm raises or five target throws from the same distance. Repeat it after the exercise block under the same conditions. This checks which variation supports current performance. Adapt the following starting values to your movement and device. Also define exactly which part of the movement falls on the beat. An audible beat and visible beat are different tasks; assess them separately first.
1. Saccades: one gaze shift per beatAim: Coordinate rapid, targeted gaze shifts in time.
Settings: 30 BPM, constant, a clearly audible sound, no omissions, visual signal off, duration 20 seconds.
Execution: Place two clearly visible points at eye level about 20 cm apart; sit about an arm's length in front. Keep your head still. On each beat, only your eyes jump to the other point. A beat corresponds to one gaze shift, not an out-and-back cycle.
Comparison and variation: Observe target accuracy and a still head. A separate round at 60 BPM doubles the number of gaze shifts per minute. Then compare the task you defined beforehand. Choose tempo according to performance, rather than trying to be as fast as possible.
Settings: 30 BPM, constant, a clearly audible sound, no omissions, visual signal off, duration 20 seconds.
Execution: Place two clearly visible points at eye level about 20 cm apart; sit about an arm's length in front. Keep your head still. On each beat, only your eyes jump to the other point. A beat corresponds to one gaze shift, not an out-and-back cycle.
Comparison and variation: Observe target accuracy and a still head. A separate round at 60 BPM doubles the number of gaze shifts per minute. Then compare the task you defined beforehand. Choose tempo according to performance, rather than trying to be as fast as possible.
2. Shoulder circles with a fixed timing anchorAim: Connect joint movement and external rhythm precisely.
Settings: Constant tempo, initially for example 40 BPM, sound on, visual signal off, no omissions, 20 seconds.
Execution: Circle one arm within a range you can control well. On each beat, the hand reaches the highest point of its circle. One complete circle occurs between beats. Practise without a beat first and choose a fitting tempo through “Tap tempo”.
Comparison and variation: Afterwards, check three arm raises or the same circles without a beat. In another short block, increase or reduce tempo slightly. Movement stays round while its temporal organisation changes.
Settings: Constant tempo, initially for example 40 BPM, sound on, visual signal off, no omissions, 20 seconds.
Execution: Circle one arm within a range you can control well. On each beat, the hand reaches the highest point of its circle. One complete circle occurs between beats. Practise without a beat first and choose a fitting tempo through “Tap tempo”.
Comparison and variation: Afterwards, check three arm raises or the same circles without a beat. In another short block, increase or reduce tempo slightly. Movement stays round while its temporal organisation changes.
3. Visual rhythm in the peripheral visual fieldAim: Maintain a gaze point and use timing information perceived to the side for movement.
Settings: 40 BPM, constant, volume 0 %, visual signal on; white and blue, fixed order, no omissions, 20 seconds.
Setup and execution: Sit in front of a fixed gaze point. Place the phone slightly to one side so you perceive colour changes without looking directly at it. Sequentially touch thumb to index, middle, ring and little finger of the same hand. Make exactly one contact per colour change.
Comparison and progression: First try the same finger sequence while looking directly at the display. Then compare a side position and the other hand. Both colours mark a new beat; a single continuously displayed colour would not provide visible rhythm.
Settings: 40 BPM, constant, volume 0 %, visual signal on; white and blue, fixed order, no omissions, 20 seconds.
Setup and execution: Sit in front of a fixed gaze point. Place the phone slightly to one side so you perceive colour changes without looking directly at it. Sequentially touch thumb to index, middle, ring and little finger of the same hand. Make exactly one contact per colour change.
Comparison and progression: First try the same finger sequence while looking directly at the display. Then compare a side position and the other hand. Both colours mark a new beat; a single continuously displayed colour would not provide visible rhythm.
4. Coordination sequence: from your own pace to an external beatAim: Connect a visual decision task with hand-foot coordination and timing.
Setup: Write a short sequence of L, R and B on paper, for example L–B–R–L–R–B. L means left hand touches right thigh, R means right hand touches left thigh, B means both hands simultaneously touch their opposite thighs.
Settings and execution: While sitting, first read the sequence left to right at your own pace and perform the movements. Then choose a suitable rhythm with “Tap tempo”. Constant tempo, sound on, visual signal off, no omissions, duration 20 seconds. Read and perform one symbol per beat; start again at the beginning when the line ends.
Comparison and progression: Count correct actions in 20 seconds. Only once the assignment is secure, increase tempo by, for example, 5 BPM. A new symbol sequence changes the visual selection task; a faster beat changes timing. Check both separately.
Setup: Write a short sequence of L, R and B on paper, for example L–B–R–L–R–B. L means left hand touches right thigh, R means right hand touches left thigh, B means both hands simultaneously touch their opposite thighs.
Settings and execution: While sitting, first read the sequence left to right at your own pace and perform the movements. Then choose a suitable rhythm with “Tap tempo”. Constant tempo, sound on, visual signal off, no omissions, duration 20 seconds. Read and perform one symbol per beat; start again at the beginning when the line ends.
Comparison and progression: Count correct actions in 20 seconds. Only once the assignment is secure, increase tempo by, for example, 5 BPM. A new symbol sequence changes the visual selection task; a faster beat changes timing. Check both separately.
5. Carry a joint circle's rhythm through a gapAim: Continue a movement in time even when external help briefly disappears.
Settings: Use the well-suited tempo from example 2; constant, sound on, visual signal off; omit every fourth beat, end after 16 beat positions.
Execution: Again perform one shoulder circle per beat position. On the fourth, silent beat, the hand also reaches the highest point. At the next audible beat, check whether movement and beat still align. The omitted position also belongs to the sequence.
Comparison and progression: Repeat the same circles without a metronome. Can you retain the timing structure? Only then use infrequent random omissions or a small varying tempo range. This example builds on the previously well-performed circle.
Settings: Use the well-suited tempo from example 2; constant, sound on, visual signal off; omit every fourth beat, end after 16 beat positions.
Execution: Again perform one shoulder circle per beat position. On the fourth, silent beat, the hand also reaches the highest point. At the next audible beat, check whether movement and beat still align. The omitted position also belongs to the sequence.
Comparison and progression: Repeat the same circles without a metronome. Can you retain the timing structure? Only then use infrequent random omissions or a small varying tempo range. This example builds on the previously well-performed circle.
Finding an appropriate progression
Change only one point initially: tempo, movement, omissions or colour rule. If the task goes well, try the same movement briefly without the metronome afterwards. Observe whether you can continue the rhythm yourself.
Check sound and visual signal on the device you actually use. Bluetooth in particular may delay sound playback. For a task tightly connecting sound and image, device speakers or a wired connection often suit a direct comparison better.
How the metronome complements my work
In my work with Applied Neurofunction I consider how perception, timing and movement work together. I assess functional difficulties, choose suitable integrations and compare performance again. A clear beat can structure a task or deliberately make it more demanding.
The app lets you repeat a jointly selected exercise between appointments. What matters is which rule fits your aim and how you perform it. Free availability makes it easy to include this exercise regularly in daily life.
Use in German and English
Use the DE/EN language button to switch the interface, instructions and installation help. The choice remains saved in the browser used if it allows storage. Other apps of mine opened on the same website adopt this language. Choose it separately on other devices or in other browsers.
Free on Android and iOS, including offline
Use is free of charge and without an account. Open the desired app on my website and tap the installation button with the arrow. It opens either available installation or suitable instructions for your device and browser. No separate installation file is required.
Android: add to the home screenOpen the app, for example, in Chrome and use the installation button. Follow the offered dialogue or instructions to add it to the home screen.
iPhone and iPad: add as a web appOpen the app in Safari. Installation help guides you through Share → Add to Home Screen. Enable “Open as Web App” if offered, and confirm with “Add”.
Prepare for offline use: Fully open each desired app once with an internet connection, then through its new icon too. As long as the saved browser data remains, use it without Wi-Fi or mobile data. Check this before your first offline session. Opening the overview page alone does not set up the individual apps.
After website data is deleted, load the app online again. Updates and links to my support also need internet. Installation help also covers supported computer browsers, such as Chrome or Safari on Mac.