Gadgets & Gear: Personal Trainer in Your Pocket

Happy New Year! I hope you’ve been having fun playing with all the cool toys you received for the holidays (which if your loved ones were reading this magazine last month you should have gotten some very cool gear)!

January not only ushers in a whole new year, but for many of us it also brings several New Year’s resolutions. If one of your resolutions is to get in shape, and if you happen to have gotten a new iPod (or even have an old one for that matter), this article is about how you can use your iPod to get better results with your resolution.

iPods and MP3 players in general are a great tool to help you stay motivated to do that extra mile on the treadmill or that extra rep on the weight bench. At the very least they provide music to help take your mind off of just how much your muscles hurt or how much you really don’t want to be there. Perhaps you didn’t know this, but that little iPod can be more than just a distraction. It can be a tool to help take your workout to the next level and help you see some serious gains, or losses, depending on your goal.

There are two things for your iPod that I would like to highlight in this article that I really think can turn that fun little gadget into a virtual trainer. The first item is the iPod + Nike system and the second is a whole group of websites that provide workout Podcasts for you to download.

iPod + Nike

Now this system has been around for some time but with the new generation of iPod Nanos and some new Nike shoes that support the system, I think it has finally hit the tipping point and the system is starting to take off. Unfortunately, this system is designed to be used with the Nano and not the iPod Classic, Touch, or Shuffle, but it does work with all generations of Nanos. The latest generation of Nanos with its phenomenal screen and diminutive size is what really made me stand up and take notice of the iPod + Nike system.

So what is involved with the iPod + Nike system you ask? As I stated earlier, you need an iPod Nano. You then need to go to the Apple store or to a local sporting goods store to pick up the iPod + Nike Sport Kit which has the transmitter and receiver set you need. This costs about $29.00. Finally, you need to go to your favorite shoe store and look for a set of Nike + shoes. These shoes are just like any other set of Nikes but these have a small space under the arch of your left insole where the transmitter goes. You then plug the receiver into the dock connector of your Nano, and you now have a state-of-the-art training tool.

Now, what does the whole system do? Well that transmitter in your shoe is a very cool little pedometer that transmits all its data to your iPod, which then can display all kinds of information about your workout such as your pace, how many calories you have burned, how far you have run, and how long you have been going. Don’t feel like fidgeting with an iPod while you are running? Don’t worry, the iPod not only displays all this information on the screen but will also talk to you through the headphones (adjusting the volume of your music when it does). It will even congratulate you when you have achieved a personal best time or pace.

The thing I think is one of its coolest features though is the PowerSong feature. What this lets you do is select one song that really gets you pumped, and when you press and hold the center button on the Nano, it will interrupt your playlist with this song. When the song is finished, the Nano will go back to your previous music. This is great when you need that last little kick to really pour it on and finish hard.

Even if that is all the iPod + Nike system did, it would still be a great tool for your cardio workout, but it gets even better with its synch capability. Once you get home from your run or walk, you can plug your Nano into your computer and synch it with iTunes and the www.nikeplus.com website to keep track of your progress. It can track everything from your total time out, total miles ran, and total calories burned, and can even break it down by day, week, month, or year. It uses a very straight forward graphical system that readily shows you where you stand and how far you have to reach your goals. If you are the really competitive type, you can even challenge your friend on the other side of the country to a virtual race and upload your data to see who wins!

So if you have an iPod Nano, and you are in the market for a new pair of running shoes, pick up a set of the Nike + shoes and the Sport Kit and start putting that Nano to really good use!

Podcasts

Now this “tool” is very straight forward. There are several websites out there that provide instructional video or audio Podcasts that you can use to help make your workouts either more productive, fun, or hopefully both. This truly is like having a personal trainer in your pocket except you don’t have to worry about running into him on the street with that disapproving look when he sees you with that triple scoop of Baskin-Robbins in your hand. Here is a list of several sites that you may want to check out. Two of these sites charge per Podcast, and the other is subscription-based. There are a few other sites that provide some free audio podcasts though their quality is commensurate with what they charge.

www.fitwisetraining.com

This site has video Podcasts on everything from strength training to yoga. Each video is $1.99 for a certain exercise/posture or they have packages that provide a complete workout for $9.99. It is very easy and straight forward and the only one on this list that is video-based.

www.podfitness.com

Now this really is having a personal trainer on your iPod or MP3 player because once you sign up with this subscription-based service, you put together a plan with a real life trainer who then develops a program for you. This program is downloaded either through the free iTunes or Zune software and then uses the music that you pick to create a whole workout session. The subscription rate for podfitness.com is $59.85 every thirteen weeks. It may sound like a lot, but you can’t even get one session with a personal trainer for that in most gyms.

www.itrain.com

Here they offer a bunch of different audio Podcasts with music for a variety of different workouts. The trainers can offer some pretty cheesy “motivation” at times, and the music is from their own collection of generic high energy music, but I really could imagine that I was in a studio with a trainer with their Podcasts. Prices vary, but each Podcast is a full 15 minutes to one hour workout for anything from $4 to $10.

Well, that’s it for this month. I hope this article has helped give you some ideas on putting that iPod to good use and that it helps you reach your fitness goals this year. As always, if you have any questions, feel free to contact me at jeff@healthandleisureonline.com.

Gadgets & Gear: December 2007

Wracking your brain trying to figure out what to get the Gadget Geek in your life for the holidays? Have no fear, this month’s article is all about some of the season’s top gadgets, any of which would put a silly grin on your little geeks face when they open it.

It has been a busy year for a lot of electronics companies. I can’t remember the last time I have seen so many extremely cool gadgets all out at once. There are some serious battles brewing among a lot of different companies to try to earn your dollar. Everything from MP3 players to cameras has seen some major cool factor injections and some serious upgrades to capabilities; all while keeping prices the same (if not a little less). So here are some of my top picks for the best gadgets of the holiday season.

MP3/MEDIA PLAYERS

Got a call from Lucifer the other day, and it seems he is a bit peeved at the sudden decrease in temperature down there. What happened? I bought my first iPod and switched my main MP3 player to Apple. More than one friend of mine asked if I was OK since I said it would be a cold day down there before I switched to an iPod. Well, I’m eating crow and believe it or not, it really does taste like chicken (it is a little bitter though).

For those of you who have been readers since our first issue this January, you will know that I was not a particular fan of Steve Jobs. While I have always thought that iPods were undeniably stylish, I’m also one of those who refuse to go along with the herd. Well, that article was written some time in November ‘06 and since then my wife got her little pink Nano (the last generation), and after seeing that Apple did make some serious improvements to iTunes for Windows users, I broke down and purchased an iPod Shuffle (which I did rate very highly in my review of best music players for the gym). It became my favorite music player for when I work out and actually took over as one of my main players. It is so easy to use and so incredibly well designed that I was sucked in. I still held on to my SanDisk Sansa player for my main player (meaning the one with my entire music library) but started having serious thoughts of moving completely over to iPods this summer. Apple cinched the deal with my #1 pick for must have gadget this season.

iPod Touch: This thing brings a grin to my face every time I use it. From the incredibly cool cover flow feature that lets you ‘flip’ through your music collection like flipping through a stack of LPs (for the younger readers out there, those are the things that look like really big black CDs) to the huge screen which is incredibly gorgeous when showing off pictures or watching movies. And, believe it or not, it does a great job showing off web pages. Shortly after the iPhone came out, I had said that if they ever came out with one without the phone feature (which has been a letdown for some people), I would be the first to buy it. I was one of the first people to get one of the first shipments to the local Apple store.

If you thought the iPhone was super sleek and stylish, the Touch outdoes it by being even more slender and stylish (I personally prefer the black bezel around the screen vs. the iPhone’s stainless steel). My mother, who is not a gadget geek by any stretch of the imagination, was even grinning like a little kid when she saw all the cool things the Touch can do. Even beyond playing music and movies or TV shows, I have to say the features I use the most are the web browser and the picture viewer. While you can only use the web browser at Wi-Fi hotspots and not everywhere like with the iPhone, it comes in pretty handy when you need to look up something on the internet and don’t have your laptop or don’t want to use the more truncated version on most cell phones.

This isn’t the internet you have seen on most phones, it is the real deal and uses Apple’s Safari browser just like the Mac computers. While it can be a little hard sometimes to hit some of the really small hyperlinks on some pages, all in all it works like a charm. As for pictures, the Touch is like carrying around entire picture albums. It is so cool to hand the Touch over to a friend and let them flip through the photos from your last trip. You can even zoom in on the picture with a little ‘finger-spread’ motion on the touch screen or shrink them down again with a ‘pinch’ motion.

While the Touch doesn’t have the gargantuan hard drive capacities of the new ‘Classic’ iPod, it does come in both an 8GB and 16GB capacities and cost $299 and $399 respectively. The 8GB version is probably a bit small unless you have a relatively small music collection. I have a decent size music collection, a movie, a TV show, and about 500 pictures loaded onto mine, and I have 7 out of the 16GB left on my Touch. Oh, and when you are at the store, pick up a case for the Touch, because while it is awfully pretty and sleek, it is a finger print magnet.

The Rest of the iPod Lineup: Okay, I already gushed about the Touch, but I have to give a quick shout out to the rest of the iPod lineup. Apple has made some very cool changes to the rest of the iPod line. Now the Nano is even smaller but has a bigger screen and supports video (in fact the screen on the Nano has the highest resolution out of any iPod) and comes in 4GB and 8GB flavors ($149 and $199 respectively). The now ‘Classic’ video iPod comes in 80 and 160GB versions ($249 and $349), and both are still very sleek and now have an anodized aluminum front which doesn’t streak up with finger prints like the last several generations of iPods (can’t say that about the stainless steel back though). Both the Nano and Classic have updated their interfaces and support their own version of Cover Flow, not as cool as the version on the Touch, but still pretty cool. Finally, the still very cool Shuffle comes in some new colors but otherwise is unchanged and still only costs $79.

Sony Walkman NWZ-A818: “Ding dong the witch is dead, the wicked witch is dead.” Not really, but Sony’s SonicStage software is. The albatross that has been hanging around Sony’s neck for the last several years of digital music player history is finally gone and with it Sony’s proprietary music format. The ATRAC3 music format was actually not bad but it never got much support out of anyone other than Sony, so it kind of died on the vine. Now Sony music players will support both unprotected AAC (music encoded using iTunes though not purchased from there) and both protected and unprotected WMA (so it supportS all the other music sites such as Napster and Rhapsody) as well as MP3. On top of that it also has a slide show viewer for pictures and can even support some video formats. The killer is that it has tremendous battery life compared to an iPod (almost 36 hours) and the fact that they actually ship with a nice set of earphones not the junk ones like with the iPod which is even better because music on the Sony sounds fantastic. The new Walkman comes in 2GB ($120), 4GB ($150), and 8GB ($200) versions. Finally, Sony is back in the music game.

Archos 605 Wi-Fi: This is the media gadget to end all media gadgets, though you will pay for it. The Archos 605 is a full-blown media center in your pocket, albeit a very large pocket. Sporting a 4.3 inch touch screen, 30, 80 or a 160GB hard drive, a music player, a video player, picture viewer, and basic Wi-Fi connectivity right out of the box is impressive enough. Where the Archos really shines, and takes a bigger bite out of your wallet, is in the applications you can buy for it. For an extra $20 each you can get high-def video playback or internet radio; for an additional $30 you can buy the Opera web browser plug-in and get full internet connectivity with Flash video support (for sites like YouTube) and out of the box it supports MP3 and protected WMA. You can buy the plug-in to support AAC but not the protected files from iTunes. The add-on that is the real sweet deal for this machine is the $99 DVR Station. This gives your Archos the ability to download TV right from your cable box and have them available for you to watch where ever you want. It includes the base station that plugs into your TV, and you even get a very good program guide to select which shows you want it to record. You don’t have to just watch the shows on the Archos player though since it can act as your TVs main video recorder.

The only thing holding the Archos back from being the mother of all gadgets is the rather short battery life, though Archos will be glad to sell you an additional battery for $49. The 30GB version retails for $299, the 80GB for $350, and the 160GB for $400 without the add-ons.

CAMERAS

Canon 40D: This is my new baby. I love this camera. I would marry it if it weren’t illegal in most states, though I might be able to get away with it in Nevada – you can get away with anything there. With a 10.1 megapixel sensor, blazing fast shooting speed, a three inch screen with the ability for live view (which is great when you can’t put your eye to the viewfinder), as well as 14-bit A/D processing and a new weather sealed body this camera is at the pinnacle of semi-pro cameras.

While other makers may have just released cameras with bigger sensors, or image stabilization in the camera body, or higher resolution screens, the one thing they can’t match is the Canon selection of lenses. Not only does Canon have the largest selection of lenses, but it also has the largest third-party support as well. So, if there is a focal length you need, you can get it for the Canon. While watching your favorite football game look at all the cameras with the big white lenses on them, those would be Canon lenses.

While shooting with a digital SLR is a little more complex than your regular point-and-shoot, once you learn how to use an SLR you will be amazed at the things you can do with it. The 40D sells for $1300 for the body only (which is great if you already own Canon lenses) or $1500 with a lens kit.

Canon S5 IS: The fourth generation in a line of very good cameras the S5 isn’t so much of a revolution, or even an evolution, it is more of the same with a little touch up. Still it is probably the best of the super-zoom class currently on the market. With an 8 megapixel sensor, a 12X zoom, and a 2.5 inch screen, this is the closest thing you can get to owning an SLR without having to buy all the lenses.

While other super-zooms, namely Sony’s H9, have a bigger sensor and screen, they also took a step back in ease of use. The Canon has kept it’s simple design and top-notch interface. If your geek just wants a camera with a little more ‘reach’ than your typical point-and-shoot, or if they just want camera that has a few more advanced features, the Canon S5 IS would make a great present. You can get the S5 for $400, though if they don’t need the two extra mega-pixels and half an inch of screen, you can get the S3 IS for a steal right now.

Sony DSC-W80: A great pocketable camera with an incredibly easy to use interface and great performance in a wide range of situations, though to be fair, like many compact cameras with their tiny sensors, it’s image quality does suffer a bit in indoor/low-light situations. I spent weeks to find the best camera for my wife that was easy to use, had a nice size screen, and was stylish enough for her to carry around. The W80 is very easy to use, has a fast start up time, a 2.5 inch screen, a picture setting selector that tells you on the screen what each setting is best for, and best of all, it came in pink (my wife’s favorite color) as well as a host of other colors. The Sony W80 is a great little camera for everyday use and you can pick it up for $230.

GPS DEVICES

Garmin Nuvi 660 or 350: Want your lovable geek to make it to the holiday dinner on time and not end up somewhere in Ohio? Then maybe give them an early present of a GPS navigator. Garmin is by far the leader in the GPS market and makes units with very powerful receivers and a ton of features. The problem is that you pay for that power and versatility. Both devices can give turn-by-turn voice directions and can display maps in both 2D/3D. Both can also get current traffic updates and come with a 90-day trial subscription, but after that you (or they) have to pay. You can get the Gamin Nuvi 660 for $800 and the 350 is $500. If you are looking for a unit that is a little less expensive, you can look at the units made by TomTom, especially the XL-S which provides a lot of great features for about $100 less than the Garmin 350.

Well, I’m about out of space, so I guess I have to end it here. I could go on for pages though on all the latest games and toys that the geek in your life would just love this holiday season. It surely is a great time to be a gadget geek.

As always if you have any questions about this article or any gadget at all, please feel free to write me at jeff@healthandleisureonline.com.

Gadgets & Gear: November 2007

In honor of National Diabetes Month I thought I’d review some of the blood glucose monitors out on the market. Fortunately, I don’t have diabetes and have never had to use one of these increasingly sophisticated devices, but many people in the US (about 20 million at last count) do need one – though about a third of those don’t know it yet.

Now, I will do a lot for our readers but I was not about to turn myself into a human pincushion to test the whole gamut of monitors on the market. It really wouldn’t accomplish much anyway since we are all aware that it gets easier, especially with alternate site testing – more on that later. So why do this article at all? Well, even though using these blood glucose meters (BGM) may be pretty straight forward, there is a dizzying amount of meters on the market (over 25). Each has different features and it may be hard to decide which is best for you. So what I hope to do with this article is to explain what all those features are and highlight some of the most popular meters on the market.

Now many people with diabetes didn’t even get to pick out the meter. For most, the doctor or nurse came into the room and handed you one. The doctors are supplied these meters from the manufacturers to give out to the patients for free. Before you get thinking that these meter manufacturers are so nice for giving out free meters to people; it’s really business. It is not unlike how inkjet printers are sold well below their actual cost, since the manufacturers know they will more then make up for the loss on the front end when you go to buy the ink (which for some systems can cost more than said printer).

With blood glucose meters you are going to have to buy their testing strips and that is where they make their money (2-3 strips per day for the rest of your life adds up to a lot). Even if your doctor doesn’t hand you one, virtually all insurances will cover one, and if you really don’t like the one you are given, you can actually pick one up at a pharmacy without a prescription (though you do need a prescription for the strips).

So what are some factors to consider when choosing a blood glucose meter? Here is a quick list of some different items to compare and what they mean to you.

Size: This one is easy. Is the meter (and its test strips and the lancet to draw the blood) easy to carry around? Virtually all of these meters have a case to carry all of these items together or you just may want to stash items where you most commonly test (i.e. home and the office).

Battery: Important but most likely not a deal-breaker. Some units use easily replaceable AAA batteries while others use a watch type battery. The only issue is if you really need to do a test and it conks out on you and there is not a pharmacy around.

Testing Time: This is an easy one. How long do you like to wait for your results? Most meters run anywhere from 5-60 seconds. A shorter time is probably better if you test a lot in public and don’t want to draw a lot of attention to yourself, but it has no bearing on the quality of the results.

Sample Size: How much blood do you want to give up each time you test? Me? I like keeping as much of my blood as I can. In the past, meters required quite a large drop of blood but now you can get away with as little as 0.3uL (microliters) and with very few meters requiring over 1.5uL. The advent of these smaller sample volumes helps prevent a lot of extra pokes due to unproductive pricks.

Alternate Site Testing: Again, due to the reduced amount of blood required, people are now able to poke themselves in places other than their fingertips. These other locations (like further up the arm) tend to be less sensitive and will hurt a lot less. There is still some question as to whether the blood drawn from alternate sites will accurately reflect sudden changes in blood glucose levels. Either way, you should only use alternate sites if the device has been approved for it and your doctor agrees.

Meter Calibration: Every new batch of test strips you use will be minutely different than the previous batch and so to insure continuity of results, the new batch will have to be ‘coded’ into the meter. Many meters do not require any input from the user, while others will need you to input a code from the bottle, while others will require you to first use a test strip to calibrate the machine.

Download Capability/Memory: Virtually all meters have some memory; anywhere from 50 to 3000 of your tests. This allows you to track over time how well you are controlling your diabetes and combined with other information such as what you ate and did each day, can help you further control your diabetes. Many meters will also allow you to download all your test data to a computer to better help you manage the information.

Other Features: Some meters have easy to read screens, while others hold all the testing strips in a disk or drum in the machine. Others have strips that may be more comfortable/easier to use. These vary radically between meters so you will have to see which features matter to you the most.

Please see the chart below for some detailed information on a few of the most popular meters.

As always, feel free to write to me about any questions you might have or if there is something you would like to see me write about. You can email me at jeff@healthandleisureonline.com.

Gadgets & Gear: Keeping Your Kids Safe Online

Are you a parent with kids still at home? Do they have easy access to the computer? Are you worried about what they see on the internet or how long they are on there; or worse yet, what damage they can do to your computer? Heck, I worry when my WIFE is on there, and she is an adult, albeit a technically-challenged adult (except when it comes to finding shoes online). Well, if you haven’t updated your computer’s operating system to Vista yet, Microsoft has given parents a huge reason to upgrade.

With Vista, Microsoft embedded parental controls that were either impossible to find or completely absent from previous editions. Now that kids can instant message their nursery-mates before they even leave the hospital after they are born, (Hey, which of those people at the window is yours? I hope mine aren’t that funny looking couple that keeps looking at me or I’ll never make it on America’s Next Top Model!) the tools are all the more needed. While not perfect, they put in a lot of powerful tools for parents to use and make it much easier.

So what kind of things does Vista let you control? You can now restrict specific websites they can view, or limit access to age-appropriate websites; you can allow or deny downloads; and also set up filters to block certain content from all sites. You can also set time limits for how long they are allowed to be on the computer by blocking off time periods that are open for use. You can also block certain games from being played. If you think it is okay for Katie to play Grand Theft Auto, but don’t want little Jimmy playing it just yet, you can set that up. You can also block other specific programs from running, like your tax software, for instance (I would hate it for little Jimmy to buy you an extended visit from the IRS).

The great thing about all these tools is that they are easy to use, easy to set up, and you can tailor the restrictions to individual accounts. This way, your account is the system administrator (with a nice strong password), and you can set up individual accounts for each of your children with age appropriate restrictions. You can also change the restrictions at any time and override restrictions instantly when the program blocks something that perhaps it shouldn’t have.

These restrictions do have limits, though, mostly with the blocked content from websites. It can be hard to judge what is offensive to everybody. I would make every image and word about Paris Hilton eradicated from view if I was writing software, but hey, that’s just me.

Overall though, it does a decent job of keeping your kids from the worst of the stuff, though some stuff can still pop up at times. If you want tight control over what your children can see, you can specify exactly which sites they can view and block all the rest.

Another great tool tied into all of these settings is a report you can receive that shows you what programs your child accesses, websites they visited and even what they TRIED to access, and how long they were on the site. George Orwell would be so proud! While stopping short of a full-on keystroke logger, this report can give you a good picture of what your child is doing on the computer when you aren’t looking over their shoulder.

Speaking of a keystroke logger, if you are really concerned about what your child is doing online or what they are ‘saying’ and to whom, these programs can tell you everything their little fingers punched into that keyboard. Hopefully your only shame from reading these logs is that you’ll find your little munchkin is a horrible speller, but if by the off chance they are the one out of those five kids that are solicited inappropriately online, you can find out early before it goes too far.

If you find all this ‘spying’ on your kids to be a little too akin to reading their diary, it is. Unfortunately, in this day and age, with instantaneous communications, you really have to be on top of these things. Now this isn’t to say that you have to do this for all of your children, which is the beauty of those individual accounts. Your teenager might be very responsible and need very little restrictions, while your elementary age children might need a little more restriction to keep them from the things they won’t, or shouldn’t, understand. All these are great options with the Vista system.

So, what should you do if you aren’t ready to completely overhaul your computer’s operating system? There are several programs out there that can do many of the things that Vista’s new controls can do. The two biggest names in parental control software, Content Watch and Net Nanny, have combined under the Net Nanny name, and their software is very highly regarded. There is also another program called CyberPatrol that is available, though it seems to be a bit more difficult to manage than either Vista controls or Net Nanny.

You can find these programs in some software stores and online at www.netnanny.com and www.cyberpatrol.com. Both of these third-party programs are geared primarily to blocking web content and tracking Instant Messaging clients. They do have some tools for controlling program access on the computer.

If you aren’t ready to get one of these third-party programs, I would encourage you to at least check out the settings that are available in your Internet Explorer. Under the “Tools” section of the toolbar, locate the Internet Options selection under that is a tab for content settings. This will allow you to at least set up some basic security measures for your child while they are online.

Now that I am done ratting out all the kids in the tri-county area, I’ve got to get to work on my own computer so I can block my wife from getting to all those shoe sites! As always if you have any questions on this or any other tech topic, feel free to write me at: jeff@healthandleisureonline.com.

Gadget & Gear: July 2007

So, my husband is recovering from surgery and is on a drug that prevents him from thinking straight, but takes care of the pain. So, I am filling in for his monthly column. You may recognize me from my “Ask the Doctor” section of this magazine, but that picture does not show the most important of accessories: my shoes.

I am in no way a “gadget geek”; however, the “GG” in my case stands for “Girly Girl.” I have only two gadgets to my name, an iPod Nano (pink of course), and a Motorola Razr cell phone (also pink). My husband had to load my music into the iPod and the ring tone into my cell phone for me.

So, I thought I would make this column about gear instead of gadgets. I love shoes. I collect them, like other people collect stamps (everyone has to have a hobby). Since I cover my clothes with a white coat every day, put my handbag in a drawer at work, and leave my sunglasses in the car, shoes are the part of my outfit that everyone sees. I also have very small feet and my size is difficult to find. So I thought I would talk about finding shoes and how to get the best prices.

July is a great time of year to talk about shoes. In July, most of the stores have a half-yearly sale and all the summer styles go on sale to make room for fall styles. However, it will be summer for quite a bit longer, so now is the time to buy. There are many options for shoe buying here in Metro-Detroit. The biggest selection in a department store is found at Nordstrom.

Nordstrom started as a shoe store, so they go above and beyond to accommodate the shoe customer. They carry sizes 4 to 14 in women’s shoes. They will also sell you two different sized shoes if necessary. If they do not have your size in stock, they will do a search of their stores and find your size and ship it to you. You will have to pay shipping, but it is minimal and the shoes will arrive at your house within a week. This is especially useful for the difficult-to-find sizes at the lower and upper ends of the size range.

We also have Macy’s here in Michigan now. I had placed a personal boycott on Marshall Fields when the shoe department manager told me they didn’t carry any shoe size below a 6. (I assume for the taller fashonistas out there, they didn’t carry the larger sizes either). However, when Macy’s arrived on the scene I was very pleased to find out they did carry some smaller sizes – not as many as Nordstrom – but at least they hadn’t effectively banned petite women from their store.

Nordstrom and Macy’s both carry a wide range of designers and prices, so you can find something within your budget. If you are looking exclusively at high-end designer shoes, Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus are where you need to go in Metro Detroit. You don’t have to go to New York to find Manolos or Jimmy Choos like Carrie Bradshaw from ‘Sex and the City,’ you just have to go to the Somerset Collection. A big plus here is also the sales. You can get a significant amount off of your favorite designer shoes if you catch a great sale. Nothing is better than a designer shoe that you didn’t pay full price for. I have been disappointed that Saks at Somerset doesn’t always carry the small sizes, but like Nordstrom they were able to order my shoes from a different store.

As for discount stores, there is only one worth mentioning: DSW (Designer Shoe Warehouse). This juggernaut of shoes can be found all over the metro area, with locations in Troy, Sterling Heights, Southfield, West Bloomfield, Roseville, Novi and Dearborn. Go to their website www.dswshoes.com for addresses and maps.

At DSW, everything is always on sale. They will list both their price and the department store price, and your receipt will tell you how much you saved. In addition, DSW has sales at the end of the season as well, so the shoes are even cheaper! DSW also always has clearance racks in the back. This is ALWAYS where I start shopping when I go into DSW. They have great deals back there. DSW will put a brightly colored sticker on shoes that are the smaller or larger sizes so they are easier to find.

Since DSW is a warehouse, they are unable to order specific sizes or styles, so if they have a shoe you love and it’s not in your size, you are out of luck. The manager did tell me that each store gets to order a size range and a style type for their shoe shipments. She said that they had recently changed their size range to accommodate taller women so predominate sizes are 7 – 11. Occasionally, I can still find a 5, but I have to look hard.

More recently, I have started buying my shoes on-line. I have found this to be great since I was already paying shipping on my shoes that had to be ordered from another store elsewhere. The department stores all have websites, and you can order directly from them. The websites have some nice features that allow you to search by size, or designer, or both.

It helps to search by size, that way you are not disappointed when your size is not available in that fabulous red pump. The website will also give you a lot of detail about the shoe including heel-height and the type of fabric or leather used to make the shoes. The department store websites always have a sale section, even if there is not a sale currently in the store. DSW has a website, but you cannot buy shoes online. However, there is an equivalent to DSW online, and it is www.zappos.com.

Zappos has upped the ante on the online shoe shopping game by offering free overnight and return shipping, to accommodate those moments of weakness when the 4-inch stiletto sounded like a great idea. Zappos can be initially overwhelming, even for me. However, the trick to Zappos is to narrow the search. Zappos has a sophisticated search engine (my husband would be so impressed!), so not only can you search by size and designer, but by style, color, and heel height.

So if you are looking for a red pump in a size 5 with a 2-inch heel, Zappos will only show you those shoes. You don’t have to narrow it that far, and you can search only for red shoes, size 5. Zappos also has a section for high-end designers and for vegetarian shoes (no leather). Like some of my husband’s tech websites, Zappos also offers reviews from customers about the shoes and the fit. They will also tell you if the fit runs to size or slightly big or small.

So, ladies, happy shoe shopping! A great pair of shoes can really make your outfit unique. Just tell your husbands that of course you need 10 (or more) pairs of black pumps, even if he can’t tell the difference between them! My husband will be back next month with something much more tech-oriented for those of you who were expecting a review of mega-bytes or mega-pixels or something.

Gadgets & Gear: June 2007

My wife, the estimable Dr. Lockwood (who writes the Ask the Doctor column in this fine publication) recently had a patient ask her if I would review something for her in the magazine. Yes! I at least have one reader!

Anna, from Clawson, had seen an ad in her local paper for a device called the RESPeRATE and asked if I could look into it. My wife suggested that it might be useful if I also included some home blood pressure monitors to the article since she is often asked for advice by her patients and doesn’t really know which is best.

Great… now I have to answer to both my editor AND my wife when writing these articles! Just kidding, I’m very glad to look into this for Anna, and I’m always looking for requests from our readers for things they would like me to review.

So here you go, a look at the RESPeRATE device and some good blood pressure monitors for the home.

RESPeRATE: This device markets itself as a way for people to lower their blood pressure (BP) without taking medication and with no side effects. By using the RESPeRATE three to four times a week, the maker INTERCURE (way too many capital letters in this article), says that you can lower your BP 36 points. That is a pretty big claim and while those numbers are a bit higher than most users might see, the potential is definitely there.

The device works by monitoring/regulating your breathing rate. It does this with a strap that goes around your chest that is connected to a device the size of a portable CD player. Also connected to the device is a set of headphones that emit a tone when you are to breathe in and then when to breathe out. By gradually lengthening the time between breathing in and breathing out, the device tries to get you to below 10 breaths per minute.

Their studies have shown that when people train themselves to get down to this rate their BP begins to drop. This device is based on the science of biofeedback and actually has the potential to do its job with no side effects like they claim. You could also get the same benefit by sitting quietly in a room listening to peaceful music since all this device is really doing is helping you calm down.

If you have high blood pressure due to stress (and who doesn’t nowadays with Michigan’s state flower – the traffic cone – in bloom), this device might help you quite a bit.

If on the other hand, your blood pressure is elevated due to other biological factors/diseases, you won’t be able to use this device by itself and you will still need to take medication (I’ll let my wife tell you which ones). Also, at $299 the device isn’t cheap and I would argue that the money could be better spent on an Enya CD or a year membership at a yoga studio that will help you learn the same things and maybe help keep you in shape which may also help lower your BP.

Home BP Monitors: I’ll admit it; I’m not an expert on blood pressure monitors. Despite my rather high-strung personality and the vast quantities of salt that I ingest, I am quite fortunate that my blood pressure is actually pretty low (actually the exercise helps with that). Other than my yearly physical, I have had very little interaction with a blood pressure monitor but fortunately I hang around a lot of people who do. I quizzed a lot of physicians in the area and was surprised that one name kept coming up as the BP monitor they recommend most: Omron.

Omron is probably the biggest name in the business and without a doubt has the largest selection of home monitors available. Some things to consider when purchasing a home BP monitor are whether to buy a wrist model or the full arm cuff model.

Another decision to make is whether to get a manually inflated model or an automatically inflated model (I won’t even bother with electronic vs. analog since I’m a gadget geek and will always go for the digital version).

First, I’m going to narrow this down a bit due to the feedback I received from my physician friends. Go with the full arm cuff model since it typically gives more accurate readings than the wrist models but be sure that the cuff with your machine is a good fit for your arm before buying it.

Use a measuring tape to measure the circumference of your relaxed left arm about a third of the way up from your elbow. The box for the monitor will say the range, in inches, that the cuff will work. Next, go with the automatically inflated model over the manual since it will be easier to use and be more consistent (though if cost is a factor, go for manual since it will be significantly less expensive).

Using the above guidelines, you could pick just about any Omron model and it will do a very good job for you (Panasonic also received quite a few nods from physicians as well). No matter which model you pick, you should test it out at home to find out what kind of numbers it gives you. Then you should take the monitor and a record of your BP readings with you to your doctor so he can compare your readings with the one taken at the physician’s office. This will help the doctor figure out if your BP is artificially high in the office due to white-coat syndrome (hey, my wife scares me when she’s in her white coat, and I know she’s a sweetheart).

Hold on to your receipt! If your monitor is not giving you readings that are within a few points of what the doctor got in the office, take it back and get another model.

Three specific models I would recommend are the Omron HEM-773AC, the Omron HEM-780N, or the Omron HEM-711AC. The 773 has a nice storage compartment on the device and comes with a larger cuff for your arm, as does the 780. The 711 comes with a smaller cuff. The 773 and 780 have a retail price of about $129 and the 711 retails for $89 but all three can be found cheaper on Amazon.com. So, there are a few models to choose from if your doctor recommends that you have a blood pressure monitor for the home.

Thanks to Anna for asking for a review of a gadget and please feel free to email me any request you might have at jeff@healthandleisureonline.com.

Gadgets & Gear: May 2007

Back in our premier issue, I reviewed several music players that would be great for the gym (if you missed it, you can download the issue on our new website at: www.healthandleisureonline.com) and I promised that I would go over music file formats in a future issue. Well, the future is now. If you went out and bought one of the players I recommended, or perhaps received one as a gift and it is still sitting in its box waiting to be filled with music because you aren’t sure what to do, this article is for you.

Many people call their digital music player an “MP3 player” but to tell you the truth, only a small fraction of the people out there are actually using the MP3 music format for their music! I could fill this entire magazine with an article about all the different music file formats out there like AAC, MP3, WMA, FLAC, OGG, ATRAC and dozens of other acronyms out there. For this article though I’m going to focus on the three music file formats that you most likely will be dealing with: MP3 (MPEG-1 Layer 3), AAC (Advanced Audio Coding), and WMA (Windows Media Audio).

First though, what is the purpose of all these music file formats? Uncompressed audio, like that on a CD, is a pretty memory intensive file. The CDA (CD Audio) files on a disc run about 10 megabytes (MB) per minute and would fill up most portable music players with just a few albums if not just a few songs (In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida and Stairway to Heaven)!

Audio file compression formats out there use the fact that most of that 10MB/minute is actually filled with lots of sound you can’t hear, and they pull that data out and just leave the stuff you can hear. When these systems finish compressing (known as ripping) the music, you typically end up with a file that runs about 1MB/min! This is what allows you to put so much music on a little portable player.

When you are ripping your music collection over to any one of the music file formats, you will sometimes hear stuff about bitrates. This number represents the compression (and therefore quality and size) of the music file and not all bitrates are the same. For example, 128 kb/s (kilobits per second) is the bare minimum for MP3 files because below that you will really notice some breakdown in music quality, while both Apple’s AAC and Window’s WMA you can get very good sounding music at a bitrate of 96kb/s. Just for comparison, music on a CD has a bitrate of about 1411 kb/s! If you want to make it easy on yourself, just remember 128 kb/s, at this bitrate you will get good quality MP3s and great quality AAC or WMA files.

Just so you know, I don’t support one file format over any other, they can all sound really good or they can sound really bad. What matters most is the software that you use to “rip” your music, the bitrate, and the player that it is being played on. Of course some players have a primary music format; iPods/iTunes use the AAC format and do the best job playing and ripping music to that format, while virtually every other player and music site on the market (with the exception of Sony) uses the WMA format and they do the best job playing that file type.

The Formats:

MP3: While not the first audio compression format out there, it is the most famous. If you want the most versatility for your music, meaning the ability to play it on just about any player on the market, you should use this file format. I can’t think of an “MP3 player” out there that doesn’t support this file format. If you rip your music to this format you will be able to listen to all of your tunes no matter whether you have an Apple iPod or a player by Creative, SanDisk, iRiver or any other manufacturer. When ripping to this format be sure that it is at, or above, 128 kb/s for the best sound quality.

AAC: If you have an iPod or have downloaded music from iTunes, you are using this file format. AAC is the successor to the MP3 file format and uses the same type of algorithm to compress the music. AAC is a much ‘cleaner’ format and can produce a better quality music file using less space than an MP3 file. You can get great sounding music with a bitrate of 96 kb/s and anything above that is gravy.

WMA: The format from the boys and girls at Microsoft is the format that Napster, Rhapsody, and most of the other music sites use. It is also the ‘native’ format for most of the music players out there that aren’t labeled iPod. WMA uses a different compression algorithm than MP3 and AAC but still results in the same thing, a smaller music file. If you have a Windows PC, the Windows Media Player software on your computer is built to rip your music to this format. You can also get great sounding music with a bitrate of 96 kb/s, everything above that is just taking up extra space on your player.

Finally, a note about security and converting between files. The reason that MP3 has been kind of left in the dust is the fact that the song can’t be “protected”; meaning that you can just share the file with anyone and the record companies don’t like that. Both the AAC and WMA formats support what is called Digital Rights Management and limit how many devices you can have your music on or how many times you can burn it to a CD. Now any song you rip from a CD you own is completely free from any of these restrictions (though you aren’t supposed to share them), but all the songs you buy from iTunes and Napster are protected. You need to be aware that these protected files may not play on every player even if they say they support that file type.

People also ask me all the time about converting file formats. One of the things I always found annoying about iTunes is that it wants to take over all of your music files and change them to the AAC format. You can do this, but I recommend that you re-rip the file from the original CD instead of converting it from an MP3 or WMA format or the other way around. This is because you are taking an already compressed file format and running it through another compression algorithm. It won’t compress the file much since most of the stuff to go has already been taken out, but it can get rid of some stuff you want. I suppose my next column is going to have to be on how to get all of this music on to your player!

If you have any questions on music players, music formats, or any old gadget question, feel free to write me at jeff@healthandleisureonline.com.

Gadgets & Gear: April 2007

I’ve always said that video game consoles could be good for you. I personally believe that when you have age appropriate games, kids (and adults) can learn a lot about themselves and others by playing video games. You also can develop hand/eye coordination, problem solving skills, and fine motor skills. Now as it turns out, you can also get yourself into shape using your Microsoft Xbox, Nintendo Wii, and Sony Playstation.

Games that get you moving are nothing new, but up until a few years ago you only really found them in arcades. The big game that a lot of people know is Dance Dance Revolution (otherwise known as DDR, go figure). Ever since DDR and its sequels hit the Playstation 2 a few years back, kids and adults have been working up a sweat and mastering dance moves that would make John Travolta cry. A few other games have hit the consoles since then, but with the advent of the Nintendo Wii and it’s innovative controller, the attention has really been drawn to what can be done with a video game console.

A few weeks ago both local and national news covered the story of a man in Philadelphia who conducted his own little Wii fitness experiment. Over the course of six weeks, he played the Wii Sports game 30 minutes a day and kept the rest of his routine the same. During the “experiment” he tracked a wide variety of fitness measures to include weight, Body Mass Index, calories burned, and body fat. What happened was pretty amazing.

At the end of the six weeks, he had lost 9 pounds, his BMI went from 25.1 to 24, body fat went from 19% to 17.2%, and he lost 3.5 inches from his waist! Now the nine pounds may not sound like a lot, but I’m betting that he added some muscle to himself which countered a bit of fat he lost. I was most impressed at the 3.5 inches off his waist. He did this by playing four of the five games on the disk (which comes bundled with the Wii): bowling (yes, bowling), tennis, baseball, and boxing. He didn’t play the golf game since he didn’t think he could get enough into the game to burn a lot of calories.

As part of the experiment he also measured how many calories he burned during each of the games to find which gave him the best workout. The device he used is good for measuring calories burned, though there is some argument over whether it accurately measured everything. Either way it gives a good idea of how many calories you can burn playing each game. Here is what he found (each is calories burned during a 15-minute interval):

• Wii Baseball: No Data

• Wii Bowling: 77 calories

• Wii Tennis: 92 calories

• Wii Boxing: 125 calories

Granted he played each of these rather aggressively with full motions and was even doing the dodges and hopping/bouncing like a real boxer would, but these are still some pretty impressive numbers. And to think, he did it all in the comfort of his own living room. He didn’t have to drive to a gym or hire a trainer, and the best part is that he had fun doing it. I think that he may have changed his lifestyle a bit to get these results in just six weeks, but I still think that the Wii Sports helped a lot.

There is another story of a girl, now 21, who over the last four years has played Dance Dance Revolution and burned off over 95 pounds! She credits the game for being so fun that it added movement to her rather sedentary lifestyle and that she enjoyed it so much that it just became a regular activity. She is going to be working with a national group to help teach kids about adding activity to their day to help lose weight and stay fit.

Now I’m not saying that all games, or even most games, are going to do much for you fitness-wise but most of the game systems out there have one or two games that can help give you a workout and be a little fun at the same time.

Here are a few programs and the systems you can find them on.

Dance Dance Revolution (Playstation, Playstation 2, Gamecube, Xbox, Xbox 360, and coming soon to the Wii) – This is the one that got the movement going (pardon the pun). Using a pad that you put on the floor in front of the TV, you try to match your foot movements (by stepping on one of four directional arrows) to the beat and the commands on the screen. This game is not only fun by yourself, but the fun factor goes up exponentially when you have a group of people and goes up even more if you have two of the pads so that you can duel. Only drawbacks to this game are the seizure inducing graphics, “interesting” song choices, and making a fool out of yourself in front of your children and friends.

Wii Sports (Nintendo Wii) – As mentioned above, this game comes bundled with the Wii and has five different sports from which to choose: baseball, golf, boxing, bowling, and tennis. Depending on how much you put in to each of these games, meaning how much you move your entire body, you can get one heck of a workout. Just watch out because they are already talking about ‘Wii elbow’ from people getting repetitive use injuries from these games as well as injuries from flying controllers!

Yourself Fitness (PC, Xbox, Playstation 2) – This “game” never really took off, even though it is executed very well and has a very good exercise program. Perhaps the problem is that it is quite obviously an exercise program (hence the fitness in the title) and people like to be tricked into working out.

Anyway, this program has a virtual trainer named Maya who leads you through a fitness routine of your choosing and even shows you how to properly perform each action and after getting feedback from you, even adjust the program to suit your goals. The program has over 500 different exercises and over 2000 recipes to help you lead a healthier lifestyle. Hopefully they will give this program an update and try again because it really was a great idea.

You may have to hunt for this program since the game platforms (with the exception of the PC), are all last generation and the supplies of games for them are drying up.

Video Camera Games (Playstation 2, Xbox 360) – There are actually a few different games under this category. Both the Playstation 2 and Xbox 360 have little web cameras that you can plug into them. The Playstation 2 device is called the Eye Toy and has a whole suite of games that allow you to interact with the game on the screen. The Xbox 360 has the Live! Vision camera which right now really just adds video messaging and video chat to the system, but it does have one game, TotemBall. TotemBall requires you to hold your arms out in front of you and move them up or down to help steer a ball around the screen. I played this for about 15 minutes and at the end of that time I thought my arms were going to fall off! The Eye Toy games have a lot more variety to them, though only a few of them have the potential to actually give you a workout.

As you can see, video games aren’t always about shooting aliens, blowing things up or driving around a city committing crimes. Some games can help get your rear end off the couch and even burn off a few pounds from said rear end. This is only the start of this trend; Nintendo has already announced plans for a Wii Fitness game that will help expand on the publicity it has gotten from the Wii Sports games. Never ones to turn away from tons of money, I’m sure Microsoft and Sony will have something out as well in the near future. Who knows, perhaps in a year or two, parents are going to be telling their kids to play their video games or better yet, fighting them for the controller.

Gadgets & Gear: March 2007

As a man who needs pretty much every gadget as soon as it comes out, just for the sake of having said gadget, this was a no-brainer for me. I was really looking forward to getting this gadget though, because my other love – other than gadgets – is reading.

So, tell me I can have something that combines both? I’m in heaven.

Actually, I already had one of the older digital readers, the Rocket eBook, but it never really “took off” (pun not intended). If there is any device that has the possibility of putting a digital reader in the hands of millions of people though, it is the Sony Reader.

Incredibly svelte at 6.9 inches tall, 4.9 inches wide, 1/2 inch thick and less than 1/2 pound, the Sony Portable Reader makes taking a virtual library on the road an almost stylish task.

It comes with a satin-like black cover that does a great job of protecting the Reader (it has a little magnet in the corner that sticks the cover down when it is closed, a nice touch), but you can replace it with a leather cover in three different colors if you so choose.

The Reader is a marvel of engineering.

It uses the new E-Ink technology that makes the screen look just like a printed page. This is because the E-Ink system uses little microspheres that are embedded in the screen and when voltage is applied, each ‘pixel’ turns either white or black. This system gives the Reader its top notch clarity and contrast.

Another benefit is its minimal battery useage. It only uses power when you turn the page. You can get over 7,500 page turns with just one charge, which will come in handy when you feel like reading War and Peace five times.

Also, when reading a book on your Sony Reader, you can walk away from the reader; come back a week later, and the same page you left will still be there on the screen.

The Sony Portable Reader can also play music (either in MP3 or unencrypted AAC format) though this will drain the battery much quicker, and the headphone port is on the bottom of the device. The reader has about 64MB of internal memory which won’t hold much music (but it will hold a ton of books), but it supports both Secure Digital memory cards as well as the Memory Stick so you can add a lot more space for music or books. The reader can also show off pictures if you so choose but they are in black and white and it is not really the Readers’ strong suit.

This thing really is the ultimate beach reader. You can just imagine yourself sitting on a beach somewhere in the world with a good book on the screen, some great tunes through the headphones, and a beautiful view all around you.

If there are any drawbacks with the player, that would be in the content area. You download books from Sony’s Connect store through the software that comes with the Reader (this is also how you transfer music and pictures to the Reader) but the selection on the site, while good, is not like going to your local Borders and picking up any book you want. Though, with the way this device has been selling out, more and more publishers are bound to take notice and make sure they get a lot of their catalogs on the Connect site. The eBooks are typically priced much less than their paper counterparts and once you download them, you own them forever, even if your computer crashes or you lose your Reader. You can also import Word documents and PDF files, though the formatting of some PDFs may or may not look so good on a 6-inch screen. Also, when the Reader is ‘turning’ pages, the entire screen will flash black and then display the new page. Frankly it doesn’t bother me a bit, but my wife thought it was a tad annoying.

So if you are looking for the ultimate gadget for the person who loves to read, this is it. If you yourself are an avid reader and you always weigh down your suitcase with tons of books, this device can solve that for you. You can purchase the Sony Reader at either your local Sony Style store (if they are in stock) or you can order it online from www.sonystyle.com. It isn’t cheap at $349.99, but you will be the coolest bookworm on the beach.

Gadgets & Gear: February 2007

Welcome back to this month’s edition of Gadgets-n-Gear!

Every year, I smile at the influx of new members at my local gym, only to see them disappear by the time March/April rolls around. This is great for the gyms since they get so many new members who enroll, go for a short time, stop going, still pay their dues and tell all their friends that they have a gym membership!

The key to staying with any exercise regimen is keeping up your motivation. Last month, I reviewed several MP3 players that can help keep you entertained as the treadmill rolls past your feet, and that can immeasurably help you stay with a program.

The thing that will motivate you the most though, is for you to see results from your workout. Nothing is more demoralizing than being sweaty and sore and not seeing any benefit from it.

That’s why my other “must have” gadget for the gym is a Heart Rate Monitor (HRM) watch. They are also referred to as running computers but what sets it apart from a regular running watch is that it comes with a telemetry strap (the band that goes around your chest). This allows it to keep track of your heart rate throughout your workout.

Some of the more inexpensive watches have little sensors on them to put your fingers on to check your heart rate, but I don’t recommend these watches. Not only are they awkward to use while running on a treadmill, but having a constant monitor of your heart rate will give you better data to work with.

If you had told me several years ago that I was going to be a gym rat, have expensive running shoes, and have a HRM watch, I would have laughed you out of the building. After years of running in combat boots, I told everyone within earshot that the only time they would see me running again is if something big and scary was chasing me, or there was a Dairy Queen at the end of the street!

Running was very popular in the Air Force and I saw lots of people with their HRM watches. To tell you the truth, I thought they looked like pretentious dorks. I know now that they were working out smarter, not just harder – so at least they were smart, pretentious dorks.

I worked out for a long time without ever feeling the need to get a Heart Rate Monitor. It wasn’t until I realized that I had hit a wall in my workouts. I was getting diminishing returns from my time on the elliptical machine and from the strength training.

I asked one of the trainers in my gym for some advice. I assumed that he would offer his services at $75/hour, but he actually said that I should get a HRM watch. So I did.

The beauty of the HRM watch is that it allows you to do heart-rate based interval training. What does that mean? It means that instead of just putting in 30-40 minutes on the treadmill, elliptical, or cycle, you can break that time up into chunks and work out at different intensities.

Want to lose weight or train for a triathlon? Once you know your heart-rate zones, you will be able to optimize each workout to get you the result you want to achieve.

So what HRM watch should you buy? The leader, nay, OWNER, of this market is Polar. I thought about talking about some other manufacturers, but there really is no point in doing so. Polar is the best and has enough variety in their products (34 models at last count) to match any person or budget. You could spend $40 for a glorified pulse counter and not get much more than that, or you can spend a little (sometimes a lot) more and get something that will give you the tools to make the most of your workout.

I bought my Polar RS 200 at my gym. After I configured the screen to show me the time, what heart-rate zone I was in, and my heart-rate, the trainers helped me calibrate it. Calibration involved monitoring my heart-rate on a treadmill over a period of time with increasing speed/incline. There is an ‘easy’ calibration feature, but I recommend that you do the treadmill, because it only takes about ten minutes and it gives you much better data. Now that my watch is calibrated to me, I can monitor how hard I’m working throughout my routine.

Another benefit of the HRM watch is that it gives me a much more realistic estimate of the calories that I burn during my workouts since it is calibrated to know my cardiovascular fitness level, my age, my weight, and my body size.

The gym’s machines that have you just enter your weight don’t incorporate any other factors about you, thus giving you less accurate estimates on your calories burned.

Most machines I’ve used in the gym tend to over-estimate the calories burned between 20-25%. While I’m sure that helps people feel better about their workouts, it doesn’t help someone who is serious about losing weight.

This was a huge reason for the ‘wall’ I had hit. I had calculated my calories burned based on the machine’s totals and planned my calorie intake accordingly. But, I was way off and didn’t lose any more weight.

So, how did the heart-rate watch take me to the next level of working out? In addition to giving me a graphical representation of just how hard I worked out and how many calories I had burned, it also keeps records for several weeks that let me see how well I’m progressing. The Polar system is really nice because it has a website (www.polarpersonaltrainer.com) that allows you to transmit your data from some of their watches to their database. This feature allows you to track your progress according to the type of workout you set up on the site. If you want to lose weight, keep it in zones one and two; increase your cardiovascular fitness, use zones three and four; build serious athletic endurance, push it to zone five.

This is extremely helpful for someone who wants to see exactly what they have done and how they are improving. If you follow some of the plans they have on the site, you will start seeing results. At the very least, just having the watch and using the data it provides can help give you better results.

I also chose Polar over other HRM watches because they have the best technical support.

Most cardio gym equipment with heart-rate monitors (those bio-electric metal contacts on the machine), also synch with Polar telemetry straps. This allows you to bypass the heart-rate sensors on the machine – which can be awkward to use. As a result, you get the readout on the machines’ screen so you don’t have to look at your watch.

Polar’s 34 different watch models cater to any level of workout, budget or geek factor. I had a very hard time selecting which models to showcase here since there are so many to choose. I decided on three models: an entry level watch, an enthusiast level watch, and one for a pro. I highly encourage you to take a look at their watches at www.polarusa.com and find the one that matches your needs the best.

THE WATCHES

Entry Level –

Polar F6. The F6 isn’t Polar’s lowest model in specs or price. However, it is probably the most basic HRM watch that I would recommend for someone who is just starting a serious workout routine and plans on sticking to it (well, everyone PLANS on sticking with it).

The F6 comes in four different colors to match anyone’s taste and has all the bells and whistles to get serious results. It features “OwnZone” and “OwnCal” to calculate your workout zone and calories burned. It also has a coded telemetry strap to ensure that there is no overlap with other HRM watches. You can download your data to the Polar Personal Trainer website and update your watch with your settings through your home computer. MSRP: $109.95

Enthusiast Level –

Polar RS200/RS200sd. This is the model that I own (RS200). Not only does it have OwnZone and OwnCal, but also OwnIndex, which can tell you your real fitness level. This model also has the SportZone system which makes it easier to monitor your workout level (those zones 1-5 mentioned earlier).

The RS200 features a stopwatch and lap timer. It can tell you your average, and maximum, heart-rate for the workout as well as the time you spent in each zone.

The difference between the RS200 and the RS200sd, is that the RS200sd also has a foot pod that attaches to your shoe that adds speed and distance data to your workout. This feature is best for those who like to do their running outside.

I prefer to stay warm, dry and off the hoods of passing cars, so I stick to the machines in my gym and they tell me how far and fast I ran. The RS200 can also transmit and receive data to/from your home computer. MSRP: $149.95 (RS200) & $239.95 (RS200sd)

Pro Level –

Polar S625X. In addition to all the bells and whistles of the RS200sd, the S625X also gives altitude and ascent data for route profiling. The S625X adds the OwnOptimizer to let you know if you have rested enough before your next training session. The watch also supports the Polar bike accessories. A tri-athlete can store all the data they need to properly train with this watch and with the built-in infrared transmitter, it is even easier to transmit your workout data to your computer and the Polar training website. MSRP: $369.95

As I stated earlier, these are just a few of the huge array of models that Polar offers. With so much to choose from, you will find one that matches your goals and your budget. They may be a little more expensive than some other HRM watches, but you will be hard-pressed to find a watch that matches the tools and support of a Polar watch.

If you find yourself hitting that wall in your workout, you should see if a heart-rate monitor watch can help you leap over that wall and help you reach your real potential.

As always, if you have a question or comment on this topic, or any other gadget or gear topic, please feel free to write to me at: jeff@healthandleisureonline.com.

See you next month!

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