Author: Enid Burns

Hit the Trails with Trimble apps on V Cast

A topographic map of the Mount Evans trail in Colorado.

Whether you’re working out; hiking or seeking geocached treasures, you may be bringing three or more devices on your jaunt. A phone to stay connected and be able to call for help if necessary; a GPS device to guide you on your walks or track progress for workouts; and possibly an MP3 player to keep you entertained on the long run.

Verizon added three services from GPS-enabled outdoors activity provider Trimble: AllSport GPS; Trimble Outdoors; and Geocache Navigator through its V Cast subscription service. AllSport is an app that tracks workouts such as walks, runs and bike rides with maps. The app records more than 20 stats including distance, time, speed, and calories burned. The program lets you track goals as you progress through the season. Continue reading Hit the Trails with Trimble apps on V Cast

Mio Discovers the Stick of Youth

There is no fountain of youth. At least not one we’ve found. But with exercise and nutrition you can turn back the hands of time — a few years. But how do you know when you’ve reached that magical and everlasting age of 29? Some tools can help you work towards and achieve your quest. The Mio FitStick is one such tool. This gizmo helps you measure your Heart Rate Variability (HRV), which is one way to gauge what’s going on inside your body. Continue reading Mio Discovers the Stick of Youth

Your Shape: Fitness Evolved Partners with Men’s and Women’s Health

You say to yourself you’re going to do those targeted workouts you see in the pages of Men’s Health and Women’s Health magazines… until you turn the page. With Your Shape: Fitness Evolved you’ll choose the workouts from the game, or opt for Men’s Health‘s “The Sleeve-Busting Arms Workout” and “The Ultimate Men’s Health Fat Loss Workout.”

Knowing that men and women workout differently, the game offers a fully different routine for the fairer sex. Women’s Health will provide workouts such as “The Perfect Legs and Butt Workout,” “The Toned Arms and Shoulders Workout,” and “The Skinny Jeans Workout.”

Your Shape: Fitness Evolved publisher Ubisoft has partnered with Rodale to provide these targeted, magazine-prepared workouts on its upcoming title. Expect Your Shape to provide dynamic, interactive, customizable and convenient at-home workouts. The team that brings you workouts in the magazines creates these workouts. Continue reading Your Shape: Fitness Evolved Partners with Men’s and Women’s Health

Intelitrainer Adapts Your Workout for You

Workout programs for the iPhone are plenty. The problem, however, may be that they are either repetitive or possibly somewhat random. Intelitrainer, a new app developed by celebrity trainer Michael George, gives you a varied workout based on feedback from previous workouts. The program has roughly 400 exercises with video demonstrations including unique, custom exercises created by Michael George.

A variety of workout goals including reduce body fat; tone and sculpt; cardio health; and build muscle are addressed from beginner to advanced levels. Intelitrainer then keeps a workout log to track workout history and weight. It can be used in a gym, or with equipment at home.

There’s so many workout programs in the iPhone App store. It’s hard to decide which one to commit to. Intelitrainer is $4.99 and compatible with the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad. It requires a WiFi, Edge or 3G network connection to check in from time to time. The ability to adapt custom workouts is a benefit. However it determines the workout based on your ability by feedback you provide during and after your session. If you skip an exercise, then it may determine that was more than you were able to handle. If you hit the “I did it” button, it may move on to the next incremental exercise or increase the number or reps next time. Intelitrainer requires a degree of fine-tuning that you may find tedius after a few reps.

Official Intelitrainer website

Belkin Runs with Fitness-Friendly iPod Touch Cases

Belkin FastFit iPod Touch case.

If the iPod Touch is essential to your workout — for music or apps that track your movement — it’s necessary to protect it. Belkin introduced a series of cases for the iPod Touch with a few ready to run the trails with you. The ProFit, DualFit and FastFit each offer protection, additional storage for keys, and ear-bud management. Continue reading Belkin Runs with Fitness-Friendly iPod Touch Cases

Intelli-Diet Stresses Portion Control Over Calorie Count

Diet is more than just about calories. Plus counting calories can be tedious. So why do so many diet programs make you tabulate your intake? An iPhone and iPod Touch app called intelli-Diet sets up personalized healthy eating plans and focuses on portions and foods. It’s not a spreadsheet disguised as a diet plan. Intelli-Diet founder Brian Atz says, “It thinks, you eat.”

The intelli-Diet features include:

  • Sets up a daily personalized healthy eating plan based on the foods you like.
  • Maps out meals for the following week and considers foods you have in stock.
  • Allows for meal variety by permitting foods to be exchanged for others.
  • Records weight loss progress and allows posting of success through social media.
  • Triggers meal reminders, generates grocery lists, and other features.

Intelli-Diet is currently being offered for a promotional price of $3.99 in the U.S. No word on what the app will eventually cost or when the price might be raised.

Official intelli-Diet Web site

Will Fonda Reach Her Prime with Two Workout Videos?

She coined the term “workout” in the 80s with her highly acclaimed fitness video in 1982. Actress and two-time Academy Award winning actress Jane Fonda hopes to capture the magic again with her Prime Time videos geared toward baby boomers and older.

The so-called fitness queen made a huge impression in home video with the original workout. But sometimes technology isn’t kind. Fonda’s big hair and Freddie Kruger-esque black and red-striped leotard was one thing with the soft focus of the early 80s video. Now Jane Fonda: Prime Time Walkout and Jane Fonda: Prime Time Fit & Strong won’t necessarily be in high definition, but they will be in the sharp focus of DVD, and on widescreen. The audience, on the other hand, may not have a problem with larger-than-life aged Barbarella.

Kick Off with the Nike Total 90 Tracer Ball

As football season starts here in America, it’s still worth thinking about the sport the rest of the world calls football, what we call Soccer in the U.S. Just in time for fall ‘futball’ Nike introduced its Total 90 Tracer ball. The new ball is designed for consistency, accuracy, touch and visual acuity. The ball has hand-sewn seams, improved bladder tension and the surface texture you expect to kick around the field. The surface texture is actually a micro-textured casing, which regulates airflow equally across the ball’s entire surface. The ball is then less prone to wobble, and takes a more direct, arrow-like flight. Continue reading Kick Off with the Nike Total 90 Tracer Ball

Brace Yourself, and Your Ankles, for the Basketball Court

Basketball is almost synonymous with hi-tops. That’s due to the tendency for players to sprain their ankles with running, jumping and cutting moves typical of the game. Even with the added support of a higher shoe, injuries are still common and can rack up to $3,000 to $5,000 per sprain, and downtime from the season. A new company, Ektio, wants to reduce the number of injuries due to sprains with its two models the Wraptor and Post Up, which will be available in November for the early days of the basketball season.

The Wraptor is a traditional high top with leather, quilted stitching, perforated leather details and patent leather toe and ankle accents. The Post Up is a three-quarter top shoe with mesh walls to keep cool. The defining feature of both shoes in the Ektio line is built in straps within the wall of the shoe to anchor the ankle and prevent rollover injuries. The shoe’s design incorporates “anti-rollover bumpers” on the outside of the sole as well. Continue reading Brace Yourself, and Your Ankles, for the Basketball Court

Nike Brings New, Lightweight Uniforms to 10 College Football Teams

What’s the one defining characteristic of a team? Is it a legendary coach, the color of the stadium’s artificial turf, or the hide of the animal the team’s named after? Nike introduced its Nike Pro Combat Uniform to 10 college football teams that rank in the preseason top 25, and each have unique designs to their uniforms. The design of the uniforms also got a revamp.

Teams will have an advantage with a lighter uniform. The padded base layer allows for specific pad placement to suit each position, which adds a customized element to the new cloth. The base layer’s fabric and padding also allows for critical protection and greater mobility over traditional pads for unencumbered speed. Continue reading Nike Brings New, Lightweight Uniforms to 10 College Football Teams

Study Explains Difference Between the Sexes in Terms of Soccer

Research shows men kick the soccer ball differently than women. The study, published this month in the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, finds males activate certain hip and leg muscles more than females during the most common soccer kicks – the instep and side-foot kicks. While men activate more muscles, the data may explain why female players are twice as likely as male players to sustain anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury.

“By analyzing the detailed motion of a soccer kick in progress, our goal was to home in on some of the differences between the sexes and how they may relate to injury risk,” said orthopaedic surgeon Robert H. Brophy, MD, the study author and assistant professor of orthopedics at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. Continue reading Study Explains Difference Between the Sexes in Terms of Soccer

Swimmers Lose Their World Record Suit

Banned: The full-length swimsuit worn in swimming competitions including the controversial Beijing Olympics. On the first of the year the Federation Internationale De Natation (FINA), the governing body of competitive swimming; water polo; diving; synchronized swimming and open water swimming, ruled that competitive swimmers must discontinue the use of the rubberized suits. Now the aftermath and controversy of so many new world’s records takes place.

Last year 108 world records were broken, and nearly 30 so far this year, cites an article on Canadian radio site CBC. A second article mentions other sports associations enforce an 18-month waiting period when revolutionary technology is introduced to equipment. These suits were embraced after just three months of testing. And not all competitors had access to the suits during training and competitions. Continue reading Swimmers Lose Their World Record Suit

Nike Patents New Lacing Tech

Laces. Velcro. Buckles. Bindings. You need one of those to tighten the shoes to get the support you need. Nike recently filed a patent for shoes with tightening laces. Or at least self-tightening straps. A battery and electronics built into the heel of the shoe control the laces and maintain a snug or loose and comfortable setting for the wearer. This technology is still in development, but fun to think what it will be like to slip into a pair of shoes and have the straps tighten on command.

Of course there are drawbacks in relying on this technology. The electronics could cause the shoes to tighten on their own, or give up working while laced on your feet. Is there an emergency out setting? We’re not sure if the battery is replaceable, and therefore its life could possibly determine the life of the shoe. On the flip side an electronic indicator to replace your shoe might be what some people need. I’ve seen people wear their shoes into the ground. Quite literally.

[via PopSci: Nike Patents Back-to-the-Future-Style Self-Lacing Shoes]