I am a big fan of phone-based fitness apps. It’s a great way to guide your workouts without the cost of a personal trainer or having to conform to a group or class workout schedule. Pear Fitness offers a tremendous number of workout options, and now they are adding TRX suspension training to the list!
Unless you live in a humid climate, it’s almost always a good idea to have a humidifier running in your home. They can help with everything from breathing issues, to preventing sinus infections, or providing relief from dry skin and hair. But knowing which humidifier to buy can be tricky. I’ve tried several brands; my favorite is the Dyson Humidifier.
I’ve been committed to getting in better shape this year. We ended up canceling our gym membership at the start of the summer, and I switched to bodyweight workouts for strength training. There are a few ways to take bodyweight training up a notch, including suspension straps, and Lifeline Fitness sent me their Jungle Gym XT straps to test!
While some people can simply include exercise as part of their healthy lifestyle, most people need more incentive: they need goals, motivation, and a PLAN. Simply tracking isn’t enough, something that Runtastic gets and has implemented in their new Results app. Results delivers focused training plans to help you reach your goals! Online training programs are becoming more and more popular and effective, replacing DVD and old VHS ‘Sweatin’ to the Oldies’ routines by focusing on shorter, more rigorous workouts that deliver visible results more quickly and effectively. It does this by maximizing the effectiveness of your workout time. “Runtastic…
Kev and I recently adopted Hephaestus, a similarly colored cat to my darling departed Avah. Heph was about six-months-old when we moved in with us, so one of the first things we did was get him fixed, and then we introduced him to the LitterRobot, which he took to like a champ. (Formerly) male cats are awesome, but the smell!
If you have an Auvi-Q auto injector, call your doctor immediately for a new prescription for an epipen. Sanofi Aventis is recalling ALL Auvi-Q injectors due to a potential flaw that may prevent medicine from being injected properly. They will reimburse you for the costs of the competitor’s replacement, so save your receipts.
The Aura Clean Ultrasonic Toothbrush System by Tao is more than just an electric way to get rid of those cavities, it’s also supposed to keep away the harmful germs in your bathroom away from your mouth as well.
Doesn’t it feel like I was just writing about the Garmin Forerunner 225 announcement? While it has actually been 5 months since the FR 225 reveal, since then they also added the FR 25 entry level GPS watch and each slowly trickled into availability. This year has been all about big new launches and slow product roll-outs that have left me scratching my head wondering what is happening with Garmin. Today Garmin announced three new watches that should have me excited, but instead resulted in a cynical eye-roll and vague interest in when they might hit stores – but why…
This past spring, Greg reported on the AmpStrip, a wearable device that used adhesive to stick to your body and monitor your vitals 24/7. It was being crowdfunded via IndieGoGo, and it sounded like a quantified athlete’s dream. Unfortunately, it’s apparently a pipe dream, as the company is pivoting away from fitness and is refunding all backers.
Beddit, a sleek sleep-tracking device, now has an Apple Watch to help you monitor your sleep habits and is available for purchase at Apple Stores worldwide. This non-wearable device fits underneath your sheets so you don’t have to worry about keeping your phone in bed or wear an uncomfortable monitor to sleep. You can pick yours up today for $149.95.
Like anyone might, I sometimes find myself in situations where I feel stressed, overwhelmed, unsure, or unmotivated. What if there was a way to train our brains to be more responsive, alert, and stress-free? What if there was a way to ensure that we performed at peak levels? Wouldn’t you jump on it? I’m pretty sure that I would!
Most gear reviews aren’t terribly controversial or difficult. Occasionally we’ll test hardware that doesn’t work right, or a piece of software that’s buggy. But The Foot Hammock was such a headache to install I nearly gave up on the whole review, until my coworker fell in love with the concept and convinced me to give it a try!
I’ve talked before about how every athlete should have a Road ID, but there’s another market that could use one: kids with allergies. Road IDs are tough, and meant to be worn in grueling circumstances, so they’re perfect for surviving toddlers. We bought a Road ID Slim for my son with food allergies, and we’re very pleased with our purchase!
I was a big fan of the Runtastic Orbit – a simple fitness wearable that met my ‘just work’ criteria for these devices: it fit well, tracked well, and instantly connected to my phone via Bluetooth and never failed to sync. Now they are announcing the Moment, which takes their solid fitness tracking and wraps it up with an attractive series of watch designs. Designed to meet the needs of all types of users, the Runtastic Moment is available in four unique styles that offer different size watch faces, types of bands and colors. Simply sync it with the Runtastic…
I can count on one hand the number of times I have eaten at McDonalds in the last several years. So at first the “all day breakfast” news didn’t phase me. But according to The Consumerist, McD’s needs so many eggs that it could exacerbate the egg shortage and drive up prices!
A few years ago, Judie and I reviewed a rechargeable electric toothbrush. We were impressed, and I have been using that toothbrush ever since. Recently, however, I’ve had a chance to check out two others electric toothbrushes. These come from Oral-B, and the first we’ll be looking at is the Oral-B Pro 5000 SmartSeries with Bluetooth.
You know what’s better than a good night’s rest? A good night’s rest on a mattress that you helped create, according to how YOU want to sleep. There are plenty of mattresses on the market, but are you ready to spend thousands for comfort — especially when you can do the same thing for less money?
Back in April I reviewed the Garmin VivoActive GPS Smartwatch, listing five reasons I loved it and three concerns. After a couple of months I started drafting a follow-up about how I STILL loved the VivoActive – but stopped when an update caused issues. The next update resolved the issues, but by early July I was done. Why? Read on!
This is the time of year when I do more writing than any other. In addition to my normal sermons and Gear Diary reviews, this is the time of year when I have to write my high holy day sermons. That’s where something like the amazing Ergotron WorkFit-T, Sit-Stand Desktop Workstation comes in more than a bit handy.
Polar is well-known for being the gold standard in athletic heart rate monitors, and in the last few years they’ve expanded into activity trackers as well. Their first pure activity tracker, the Polar Loop, was well received, and now they’re building on that with the Polar Loop 2, adding new colors and smart notifications to the mix.
Here’s something to try at your next house party: have everyone blow into an AlcoMate Revo breathalyzer as they arrive, write down their readings on a pad, and have them record their “scores” as the evening goes on. We did this on July 4th, and it was rather enlightening.