For years Garmin had an unassailable position with their GPS watches representing the ‘gold standard’ for runners. The move to low-cost Bluetooth activity trackers rocked the industry as it pushed manufacturers to include more features, wireless syncing, and lower prices. Garmin pushes the envelope again with ForeRunner 225, the first major running watch with integrated optical heart-rate sensor from Mio.
Just as Apple Watch opened for pre-orders, the Garmin VivoActive arrived in stores and the hands of runners and athletes everywhere. I had written up announcement at CES, so I was thrilled to get one in my hands to play around with. Now after a week, I want to check in with my initial likes and dislikes of the VivoActive.
I’m not the greatest at keeping tabs on the things I do at the gym, and I’m even worse at tracking my performance. Even on the treadmill, grasping the monitor grips while running full speed is pretty dangerous. Luckily Fitlinxx’s AmpStrip is one of those products that might stop me from injuring myself.
During CES 2015, Judie was part of an interview with the CEO of Withings. She loves the brown Withings Activité watch she bought (she has also since purchased it in black) and was good enough to get me a review sample of the smaller, less expensive Activité Pop.
We love our BOB jogging stroller. It’s great for running as well as everyday strolling, especially if you find yourself on rough roads or if we want to walk along rail trails. It can be a little weird to get used to pushing a stroller and running, and KidRunner has an expensive but intriguing solution: pull your kid instead!
Throughout our lives there are transitional moments, starting or ending things like high school or marriages, celebrating awards and achievements. In running it’s no different – we had to start running, and depending on whether we race or not there will be a variety of memorable moments along the way. Running milestones are worth celebrating – let’s talk about why!
Fitness tracker company Fitbit announced today that their popular Fitbit Surge would be receiving outdoor bike tracking. The multi-sport mode allows users to record their running, cross training, cardio and now their biking workouts, all while automatically syncing wirelessly to the Android & iOS device that you use.
While it has been more than a week since I wore three layers over my face, I am still layered up against mornings in the teens with wind chills close to 0ºF. At the same time, I am seeing big clearance sales popping up on winter running gear, so I thought it would be fun to look at my gear!
One thing I told myself on New Years Eve was “if I make a resolution, I’m going to keep it”. That resolution was to not “get fit” but rather “be as healthy as possible”. The checklist was simple “hit the gym at least four times a week.” Now, that I do this I want to see the progress I make.
With warm weather allegedly on the horizon, it is time to start getting out and getting into shape. Pear Sports has developed a $99.95 kit turning your iPhone or Android phone into a training station. With heart rate monitoring and knowing your fitness goals, the app will use real-time coaching to help you meet your goals. Let’s take a look.
We’ve talked about safety and gear when running outside before (Mike has done a great job of covering the important points), but it’s important to remember safety doesn’t get checked at the gym door. If you’re doing anything, from treadmill running to weightlifting, make sure you know how to be safe. I learned that the scary way this weekend!
I wonder how many people all of us look at on a daily basis struggle with an eating disorder? How many people would you look at and say “YOU have an eating disorder? I Had No Idea!” Which is why this year’s NEDA Eating Disorder Awareness theme is perfect – it takes us beyond the skeletal frames and vomiting.
A few weeks ago I got my last ‘running streak’ update from TimeHop on my iPhone, meaning two years ago I stopped my running streak after 65 days. I started the streak because right after my last half-marathon of 2012, I took a couple of days off, didn’t have a goal, and I was concerned I would lose my ‘mojo’.
As a high school coach, I know the world of athletics has become incredibly competitive. In order to succeed, young athletes have to be willing to put in much more time than the allotted practice hours for a week. ShotTracker has developed a wearable device that assists basketball players to get workouts and track progress. Let’s take a look.
Because I have lost significant amounts of weight not once but twice in my life (almost 200lbs at 23, ~110lbs at 46) and because people have always seen me out running day after day, regardless of the weather, people tend to come to me seeking help or advice. But they really shouldn’t – I’m about the last person to ask.
I struggled to believe something I heard a couple of weeks before Christmas from a visiting technical group with a couple of runners. They were not used to being away from a city and indoor track, and were surprised about running in the dark mornings. But they said they wouldn’t wear reflectors or lamps because it ‘didn’t look cool’.
MIO Global made a big splash as the first to provide a highly accurate heart-rate monitoring without a chest strap. Now they are back with the MIO Alpha 2, which refines and improves on the original in every way. They also announced the MIO Fuse, which combines their heart rate monitoring technology with an all-day fitness tracker!
We already reported on the new additions to Garmin’s vivo line-up, the vivofit 2 and vivoactive, which round up Garmin‘s consumer wearable line. But they also added to their higher end products with the Epix and Fenix 3. The Fenix 3 is the latest in the company’s multi-sport category, and Epix is intended as a wearable GPS for outdoor enthusiasts.
Whether your game is golf, tennis, or baseball, how good you are relies upon your swing. Zepp makes products that give you immediate and helpful feedback on how you are doing and how you might improve. Dan and I had a moment to learn more; see what you think — is this the type tool you’ve been waiting on?
I wear a fitness tracker; not because I’m some athletic superstar, but because I like the constant reinforcement I get by seeing if I’ve reached my goal of 10,000 daily steps. They usually aren’t that fashionable — much less personable — though; that’s where the Mira comes in.
If you believe you can fly, then the VERT wearable jump rate monitor can measure how high. This device is the first sports wearable to measure and report jump rate data on iPhone, iPad, smart watches and other devices. with an accompanying app for iPhone or the VERTcoach team management app on iPad.