Training Gadgets - Futuristic Fred or Simple Sally?

Are you Gadget Man/Woman or Natural Man/Woman?
By Tim Long

It seems like fitness gadgets have exploded over the last ten years. Sure, there have been advancements in exercise equipment going on for a long time. Shoes, clothes and clothing materials, watches became digital, then there were splits and count-down timers. Heart rate monitors were the first big jump in exercise aids. I asked for extra hours in the bakery I worked at while I was in college just so I could buy a HR monitor, so I could be as 'advanced' as my training partner. Not being one to read directions or manuals, I thought the beeping alert when my heart rate max was reached meant cardiac arrest was imminent. Wearing the strap bothered me, if I even remembered to wear it. That was my intro to and exit from sports "tools".

There's nothing wrong with all the toys. If they motivate someone to get out there and be active, then by all means, use them. The run down on some of the more prominent gadgets include:

• Watches (stop watch, count down, splits, digital compass, barometer, thermometer and altimeter. -Who are we, Magellan?)
• Hear Rate Monitors (target ranges, downloadable charts, max hr. -Hey, if it’s beating, I’m happy.)
• GPS (track distance, location, plot routes, download routes traveled.)
• Nike+IPod (distance measuring thingy you put on your shoe, tracks distance like GPS, works with IPod. -So you can locate where you are after you've walked off the cliff while playing with the buttons.)
• Sunglasses with built-in MP3s
• MP3s built into clothing (Geez, we'll all be deaf!)
• Phones that track workouts
• Pump Pod (program that turns your IPod into a personal trainer. At least its battery will eventually wear out)
• Suunto Watch-Like Computer for Golfers (Worn on the wrist, this device monitors the tempo, rhythm, backswing length, and club head speed with every stroke. -As if golf isn’t frustrating enough.)
• Home Body Fat Tester (grab the handles and the digital screen tells you that you ate too much pumpkin pie. -Try a mirror.)
• Swimming Lap Counter (If you can’t count to 10, 20, 30, or 40, then you have bigger problems that swimming can't help.)

Okay, I have to admit to some gadgetry weaknesses, I picked up one of those giant exercise balls. I don’t know why, but I felt silly when I took it up to the counter. It came with a DVD, manual, and detailed instructions. Come-on, IT’S A BALL. I also bought some ankle and wrist weights (these are old school fitness tools).

I have friends who can tell you to the centimeter how far they cycled or ran on any given day, and likely have charts to reference training rides/runs in the distant past. I watch people racing in events, playing with the dials and buttons of their MP3s, stopping to fiddle with GPS watches, fumbling with multi-purpose belts holding water, sports drinks, gels, pills, powders, sunscreen, and stuff I probably don’t even know about yet. It makes Batman’s utility belt look like a simple Jethro rope belt.

Do we need all these things? Probably not, but like pointed out earlier, if it motivates someone to get out there and be active, meet new people, lose weight, and have a more positive outlook, then by all means try them out! I'll be busy figuring out how to use my new ball.