Posts Tagged ‘walking’
Written by Peter Suciu on 19 December 2011
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]
Tags: battery, concept, electrowetting, Footwear, University of Wisconsin, walking
Posted in concept, Footwear, Research | No Comments »
Written by Brian O'Connor on 07 December 2011
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 »
Tags: canine, collar, dog, EzyDog, harness, Hiking, Running, walking
Posted in Exercise, General, Hiking, Running | No Comments »
Written by KineticShift on 03 November 2011
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.
Recyclebank Official Website
Tags: Biking, Cycling, Jonathan Hsu, London, Recyclebank, reward program, walking
Posted in concept, Cycling, Equipment, Low Tech, Outdoors, Sustainable | No Comments »
Written by Peter Suciu on 07 September 2011
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
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Tags: Gamify, Kinetic, Nintendo Wii, PlayStation Move, Strivv, Video Games, walking
Posted in Exercise, Gadget, Video Games | No Comments »
Written by Enid Burns on 31 August 2011
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 »
Tags: charge phone battery, concept, InStepNanoPower, Military, Travel, walking, Wi-Fi hotspot
Posted in concept, Footwear, Mobile Phone | No Comments »
Written by Enid Burns on 27 July 2011
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 »
Tags: fitness shoes, Ryn, Shape Up, walking, X-Run
Posted in Apparel, Footwear, Hands On, Running | No Comments »
Written by KineticShift on 21 June 2011
Walking is a workout everyone – at least most people – can do. It doesn’t really require any special equipment and whether it is just around the block or around the world, there is no shortage of locations to walk. The American Osteopathic Association released the findings of a recent survey and found that walking is the most popular way in which people keep fit in a typical week. Walking just 20-40 minutes a day can add five years to your life.
Now Reader’s Digest Association and Vivity Labs have come together to create Arookoo, a combination iPhone app, companion website and Facebook game that brings users together to walk – whether they are near or far. Arookoo, which means to walk in Japanese, helps users stay motivated by sending players on challenges that require taking more steps and rewarding for each step taken in a day. It includes motivating walking challenges, GPS map-based scavenger hunts, daily team challenges and even calorie and distance tracking.
Arookoo is available as a basic free app for the iPhone and iPod Touch from the Apple App Store, or with detailed health tracking, including calories burned and distance walked for $2.99. Time to walk your way.
Arookoo Official Website
Tags: Arookoo, iPad Touch, iPhone, Reader's Digest Association, Vivity Labs, walking
Posted in Exercise, Mobile Phone, Software | No Comments »
Written by Enid Burns on 08 April 2011
Trimble released new versions of its AllSport GPS app for the Android Market. This includes AllSport GPS Pro ($3.99) and AllSport GPS (free). The programs collect more than 20 fitness stats and calculate calories burned to help people reach their fitness goals. AllSport GPS apps track 14 outdoor fitness activities including running, cycling, skiing and walking. The apps also let you access real-time weather forecasts, chart workouts over time, and view street and park maps.
Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: AllSport GPS, Android, Cycling, Running, skiing, Trimble, walking
Posted in Cycling, Hiking, Mobile Phone, Running, Triathlon | 1 Comment »
Written by KineticShift on 28 January 2011
There is nothing exactly high tech, or even innovative about walking. But that won’t stop KineticShift.com from helping spread the word that walking 30 minutes a day, five days a week is the first step toward better health. This is the take-charge message from health advocates at Kaiser Permanente, who announced a new public awareness project aimed at starting a national conversation about the health benefits of walking.
Every Body Walk! is an online educational campaign aimed at getting Americans up and moving, and the site www.everybodywalk.org serves as a walking hub for news, resources on walking, health information, walking maps, how to find groups and even a personal pledge form to start walking. The site even provides a place to share stories about individual experiences with walking.
According to research more than 70 percent of all adult Americans lead sedentary lifestyles and this impacts the overall health of our country as a whole.
“The aim of the Every Body Walk! campaign is to inform Americans about the tremendous health benefits of walking,” said Bob Sallis, MD, family physician at Kaiser Permanente’s, Southern California Permanente Medical Group. “Walking is an excellent form of exercise for everyone and for those with conditions like diabetes, asthma, heart disease and depression, a regular walking regimen has the added benefit of helping to manage these diseases. I’m a strong believer in the power of walking and that’s why I literally prescribe it to my patients as front line medicine — often in place of medications.”
The Every Body Walk! campaign is powered by Kaiser Permanente. Campaign partners include the American College of Sports Medicine and their Exercise Is Medicine global initiative.
Every Body Walk! Official Website
Tags: Bob Sallis, Every Body Walk!, Kaiser Permanente, walking
Posted in Exercise, Outdoors, Software | No Comments »
Written by Peter Suciu on 31 December 2010
While many people probably walked miles during the pre-holiday season while shopping, many more probably let their fingers do the walking instead. One downside to e-commerce is that it makes it all too easy to click away and have gifts shipped right to your door. And then during the holidays chances are walking wasn’t high on the list.
Now with a New Year hours away it is time to get the legs moving. To help keep track of the distance you put in, Omron Healthcare has now released a new pedometer that utilizes dual-accelerometer technology. The Omron HJ-112 Pocket Pedometer can accurately count steps. The small device can be place vertically or horizontally on the hip, or even stashed in a pocket or in a bag.
“At Omron, we want to empower Americans to achieve and maintain personal fitness goals by providing easy-to-use and accurate fitness products,” says Jill Person, product manager. “The fresh start of a new year serves as the perfect time to set goals, start tracking steps and stay motivated with the HJ-112 so you can achieve your personal best.”
The Omron HJ-112 GOsmart Pocket Pedometer can track steps, time and distance, as well as calories and fat grams burned. It even stores the last seven days of data so you can track a full week’s worth of your exercise. It is available now for $34.99 from Omron, as well as Amazon.com. So click away with your fingers, but get out and get walking.
Omron Healthcare Official Website
Tags: Jill Person, Omron, Omron HJ-112 GOsmart Pocket Pedometer, walking
Posted in Equipment, Exercise, Gadget | No Comments »
Written by KineticShift on 30 December 2010
Two fitness challenges will push the health agenda at CES 2011 for health insurance agency UnitedHealth Group. Participants will compete for an iPad and Xbox 360 with Kinect over the course of the conference running from January 6-9. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: CES, Consumer Electronics Show, healthcare, mobile apps, pedometer, walking
Posted in Consumer Electronics Show, Mobile Phone, nutrition | No Comments »
Written by Enid Burns on 17 December 2010
Whatever mode you plan for your outdoor workout, iMapMy apps tracks it. MapMyFitness apps include iMapMyRun, iMapMyRide and iMapMyWalk. The iPhone programs are part of a partnership between MapMyFitness and Wahoo Fitness. The free apps work with the Fisica ANT+30 pin Sensor Key to track heart rate, which translates into other data. The app uses the GPS technology of the iPhone to record and chart workout route, pace, time, calories burned and heart rate, then saves the data to the MapMyFitness websites, whichever matches your mode of exercise. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Cycling, Heart Rate, iPhone app, Running, walking
Posted in Cycling, Mobile Phone | No Comments »
Written by KineticShift on 05 November 2010
This week bicycle component Sram announced its continued support for the League of American Bicyclists and the Alliance for Biking & Walking. This is part of a new, three-year campaign to double federal funding for bicycling and walking by 2013. SRAM is backing this Advocacy Advance initiative by awarding up to $1.2 million to the League and Alliance over the next three years to unite active transportation advocates across the nation, and to give them tools and resources to secure even greater increased funding from existing federal transportation programs for crucial bike and pedestrian projects. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Alliance for Biking & Walking, Andy Clarke, Biking, Cycling, Jeffrey Miller, League of American Bicyclists, Stan Day, walking
Posted in Cycling, Low Tech, Outdoors | No Comments »
