Walking can be good exercise, but the Pro-X Walker – which gets your arms in the swing of thing with added resistance – helps increase the workout. This waist-based gizmo was developed in Germany as an alternative to Nordic walking, but it shares the fuller workout by getting the arms, shoulders and back involved. It isn’t just about walking either, as 12 exercises have been developed to help you tone up and slim down. Read the rest of this entry »
While Teddy Roosevelt may have said walk softly but carry a big stick he probably didn’t mean to get in shape. However, the American Nordic Walking Association has noted that walking with poles burns more than 40 percent more calories per hour and works more muscles than normal walking. It also provides that big stick – just in case.
Swedish company BungyPump is even looking to improve on those numbers with its new springy poles. These don’t exactly put a spring in the step but these reportedly work even more muscles than static sticks. Unlike other sticks these are also gentle on the shoulders and elbows but also help relieve pressure on the knees and hips. We just wonder what Teddy R. would have thought! Read the rest of this entry »
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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has good news and bad news. The agency’s Vital Signs report found that “62 percent of adults say they walked for at least once for 10 minutes or more in the previous week in 2010, compared to 56 percent in 2005.” But in the National Health Interview Survey, it also found that only “48 percent of all adults get enough physical activity to improve their health.” Read the rest of this entry »
Runtastic added two features to its activity tracking app. Ideal Weight 2.0 and Altimeter are now part of the Runtastic Pro apps, which cost about $3.99 in the Android and iPhone app stores. Read the rest of this entry »
From Runner’s World: Running v. Walking: How Many Calories Will You Burn?
Two weeks ago, I began planning an update to a Walking v. Running calorie-burn article that I had written for Runner’s World magazine in 2005. When that article subsequently appeared on the RunnersWorld.com website, it attracted a lot of interest and comments. Some of those comments displayed the widespread confusion and outright disbelief that’s common to this topic. Read the rest of this entry »
Since 2009 the Alliance for Biking & Walking has solicited public nominations to help shine the spotlight on those making a difference for the bicycle and pedestrian advocacy movement. This week The Alliance announced its 2012 Advocacy Award Winners who are leading the way in the “people powered movement.” Full winner list after the jump
The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society has created a free fitness tracking app to support its Team In Training (TNT) endurance sports training efforts. Team4Cures, the new app, helps get a fitness program in action whether the sport is running, walking, swimming, cycling or hiking.
A long walk will get you where you need to go, and at the same time allow you to burn a few calories. But the rest of the process is just wasted energy that could be harnessed for something else. At least that’s the idea of the electrowetting process, where a liquid that is normally hydrophobic will be forced to move by applying an electric current.
This is now a concept being used in a pair of shoes but in reverse. By walking with special shoes that contain the special substance you could force the mixture over several electrodes and create a current while walking. This energy in turn could be stored on a battery for future use. Currently a team of engineers at the University of Wisconsin are looking into how to actually bring this from concept to an actual product – but in the future you could juice up your mobile phone simply by walking. Think of this as a way of walking and talking!
[Via Ubergizmo: Electrowetting process helps you generate power while you walk]
Winter might be upon us, but it is still hunting in many parts of the United States. You may live near or enjoy hiking on trails that are close to legal hunting grounds with your four-legged ‘best friend’, and EzyDog wants to help your canine stay safe in the woods. Especially if your dog likes to run off-leash.
Their solution? “Blaze Orange” for your pooch!
Read the rest of this entry »
It shouldn’t have to come to this, rewarding people for biking and walking – since better fitness should be the reward itself, but Recyclebank, a company that already rewards people for taking everyday green actions with discounts and deals from local and national businesses, announced last week a partnership with Transport for London to develop a program to reward people for cycling and walking in London.
This program incentivizes people to cycle or walk in the British Capital to help reduce pollution, ease congestion and boost fitness among Londoners. Members will collect points for every journey they make by bike or on foot; these points will be redeemable for a growing range of offers and discounts from Recyclebank reward partners.
This rewards program is another example of many initiatives that the Mayor of London and TfL have taken to build and improve public paths and parks, and the many other initiatives that make up the city’s bicycle rental program, launched in 2010.
“Walking and cycling are the healthiest and greenest ways to travel and we are truly inspired by the excellent work TfL has done to encourage people to make greener transportation choices in London. We are excited to partner with TfL and look forward to motivating Londoners to take greener actions,” said Jonathan Hsu, CEO of Recyclebank. “Our hope is that this program becomes something that other cities can emulate to reduce their environmental footprint, realizing the collective impact of individual green actions.”
The program is being delivered at no cost to TfL and will be free to join for anyone who cycles or walks in London. We think it is a good way to get people to make that first step – and hopefully many to follow.
The wave of motion control-based video games systems, including the Nintendo Wii, Microsoft’s Kinetic and the PlayStation Move are designed to get users off the couch, but Silicon Valley start-up Striiv is looking to allow gamers to take it on the go. The concept is built around a $99 device that will reportedly measure a user’s activity and movement, and reward them in gameplay with their respective level of activity.
The gadget has the ability to measure every step, and let’s players hit personal goals, compete with friends and even make donations for walkathons and other activities. The folks behind the gizmo see this as part of the so-called “gamify” health and fitness movement, with the goal of making non-game activities more game-like by providing rewards for regular activities. These could include challenges such as taking a number of steps in a certain amount of time, or walk the number of stairs that are in the Eiffel Tower or the length of the Golden Gate Bridge.
New goals and activities will reportedly be uploadable to the device, and Striiv should be in gamer’s pockets later this year. While these challenges and goals around walking could wear thing, especially as gamers tend to be quick to move onto the next thing, it still looks like the company could be striiv’ing to make a step in the right direction.
Video after the jump
What does it take to get you to walk more? Would it get you on your feet to know each step you take will power your cell phone? That may soon be a possibility. InStepNanoPower is developing a shoe with a device in the sole that captures the energy created with each step. This energy is typically lost as heat in our tracks as we keep walking and creating more energy. Read the rest of this entry »
When MBT shoes first came out I looked into them. I ultimately decided not to get a pair. Since then I’ve remained one part curious and one part skeptical. I’ve watched all the brands come out, at every price, and I’ve watched more and more people wearing them.
One of the newer brands to reach the U.S. market is Ryn: Walking Science. Ryn is a Korean company that produces shoes that are said to tone your leg muscles as you walk. We covered Ryn earlier this spring when they were introduced to the U.S. market. We were able to get a pair for review, and here are the impressions we got. Read the rest of this entry »
