GPS Watches Help Monitor Five Areas While Training

GPS watches help individuals monitor several things at the push of a button. GPS watches can help an individuals monitor speed, distance, pace and calories burned while training.

Just a decade ago runners and walkers would time workouts and them have to figure out how far they ran/walked. If you didn't know the distance of workout you may have to get in your car, drive the loop and hope your car measured the distance accurately. 

Many don't realize that often cars are not calibrated accurately. This could mean the workout is actually longer or shorter than expected sometimes by a tenth or more per mile. This could significantly affect the result of the workout. 

The individual then would have to calculate their pace per mile by dividing the total time run/walked by the distance covered. If you wanted to see how many calories you burned during the workout once again you have to spend time calculating your weight, distance, speed into calories burned. The individual then had to keep track of all the data somehow. 

With a GPS running watch the individual simply turns the watch on and is off to start the workout. The GPS watch times your run while calculating your pace, distance covered and your calories burned all while you are running. This information is helpful in keeping the individual running at the pace they should be training at. The individual knows instantly if they are running too fast, how far they have run to the tenth of a mile and total calories burned. 

GPS watches are especially useful when you run in an area you are not familiar with. The GPS tracks your every turn in the city or woods during your workout. If you become confused just follow the plotted map back the way you came. 

GPS watches also store the data for future viewing. One can look back to see how far they ran on a certain day, week or month. The Garmin Forerunner Personal Trainer let you download recorded courses and compete against previous workouts. The GPS watches need to be recharged. The battery life of a GPS watches is usually between 10-13 hours. With a battery life this long it means you get several workouts in before you have to recharge the watch. The data stored in the GPS watch is not lost even if you let the battery die.

GPS watches help the individual monitor speed, distance, pace and calories burned during a workout so you can train smarter, more effectively and enjoy the feedback of the latest technology!

Damian@FitnHealthy

Does Your Heart Rate Really Matter?

 

  

How would you feel if I told you that I would give you $100, give or take $200?

For years, this is not unlike what we’ve done with heart-rate training. Measuring exercise intensity using heart rate has suffered from two major problems:

1. Using relatively inaccurate formulas to make specific exercise-intensity recommendations
2. Attaching discrete, seemingly all-or-nothing objectives to various heart-rate ranges

The overreaction to these problems has taken the form of proposing that heart-rate training doesn’t matter when it comes to measuring exercise intensity, especially with the rise in popularity of high-intensity interval training, where the directive is a straightforward “go as hard as you can.”

Not everyone needs to use heart rate to measure intensity, as their goals may not be that specific or their starting health status may not be questionable enough to warrant needing a definitive intensity range to ensure safety when starting an exercise program. However, most people will benefit from having some accurate gauge of exercise intensity to help direct exercise efforts.

Age Ain’t Nothing But a Number…Until It Becomes a Bad Number

Using any formula that starts with age is problematic and introduces huge error ranges that are potentially as large as the training zones we are using. Any formula including any version of 220 – Age for maximum heart rate calculation is going to be a mess for the same reason that selling a single shoe size to everyone is going to be a problem. Not every 50-year-old has the same fitness level, and maximum heart rate is determined by more than just the number of years you have been alive.

Today, instead of having to rely on formulas, we have field tests that measure specific points where the physiological response to exercise intensity shifts. A recent study illustrates the unacceptable level of error when using a formula now that we have the field tests. The formulas get it right for some people, but get it wrong for enough people that if a better option is available, it should be the preferred choice.

Out With the Inaccurate, In With the…More Accurate

The field tests directly measure two critical heart-rate points for each individual. The first ventilatory threshold (VT1) occurs when intensity reaches the point where the fuel for activity is coming in equal parts from carbohydrate and fat. The second ventilatory threshold (VT2) occurs when the rate of accumulation of lactate in the muscles begins to exceed the ability of the circulatory system to recycle it.

Any time an individual works above resting heart rate, he or she is improving fitness (if deconditioned), and at least maintaining fitness (if already well-conditioned.) Beyond that, the two intensity shifts at VT1 and VT2 can help define more personalized training progressions because they are based on field tests of the individual’s response and not formulas. (Details of the field tests and expanded details surrounding VT1 and VT2 can be found in the ACE Personal Trainer Manual, 5^th edition.)

Are You In the Zone?

Now for the second problem: Using heart ranges to define narrow training objectives like the “fat-burning zone,” or the “cardio training zone,” as if in one zone all you are doing is using fat exclusively and the other zone is the only place you find cardiovascular improvements.

Working above resting levels but below VT1 will improve fitness in deconditioned individuals and maintain it in those with an average baseline level of fitness. Working between VT1 and VT2 will maximize both caloric quality and caloric efficiency (explained in the next paragraph) in the interest of prioritizing a metabolic response during the exercise session. Working above VT2 will maximize increases in the ability to perform at a high level and prioritizes a metabolic response after the exercise session.

As many people now realize, the big problem with the fat-burning zone idea is that it emphasizes lower intensities because a higher proportion of the calories burned come from fat. But high-er doesn’t necessarily equal high. A large portion of a small number is still a small number. Working between VT1 and VT2 (which will be higher than the old fat-burning zones) maximizes caloric efficiency through intensity that is high enough to burn a relatively high number of calories, yet low enough to allow caloric quality, meaning a significant portion of calories come from fat. (Note: At VT1, the carb-fat mix for the fuel of activity is equal.) What does this mean? A significant amount of fat is burned during the exercise session and significant improvements in cardiovascular fitness are achieved.

Working above VT2 will generally result in shorter-duration workouts for those pursuing general fitness goals, as well as a higher portion of carbohydrates burned as the fuel source for exercise. However, at this intensity, the “after burn” effects begin to manifest and metabolism gets a slight boost while at rest, which is when the body shifts to using a higher portion of fat. Note that training above VT2 also requires a high degree of psychological commitment as well.

Surrounded by Fat-Burning Zones

As a result, both of these zones are really “fat-burning zones.” Between VT1 and VT2, you burn more fat during the exercise session. Above VT2, you burn more fat after the exercise session. Shortly after I first learned of these methods from an ACE exercise physiologist several years ago, I began using them with my clients and it enhanced my clients’ results by delivering more precise training-intensity recommendations, which yielded better results without an excessive investment of time for the clients.

Gone are the days where you need to know someone’s age to recommend heart-rate training intensities. This evolution of cardiovascular training intensity is a natural phenomenon in any field, as methods are altered as understanding grows.

 

Source Jonathan Ross | ACE 

Does the Fitbit Work ?

Does the Fitbit Work and Why to Buy One!

There are loads of reviews out there that you can Google but does the Fitbit work? Well that really depends 100% on you. Sometimes you have to make an investment in order to get the benefit, and this is the case with the Fitbit. Surprising gadgets that can help improve our lifestyle arrive every day due to the constant advances in technology...and so along the way some of these can help our frugal ideals.

 

So what is the Fitbit? The device was first launched in 2008 and then later there was an improved version in 2011. In short it is a wireless device that tracks your activity metrics and sleep patterns. How exactly does the Fitbit work, well it contains a 3D motion sensor similar to a Wii remote. A wireless USB docking station automatically uploads your data to the Fitbit website. Daily progress can be checked at any time either via the display on the device or by logging onto the website. In addition there are also apps for the iPAD and Smart Phones so you have no excuse for not having the latest data at your fingertips. The Fitbit is small and discrete and you just clip it onto your belt or shirt. At night it slips into a soft wrist band. Start using it and you will be amazed at what it can show you about your lifestyle and activity levels.

 Does the Fitbit work, well the device only provides you with data in a consistent way each day. However, even if the data is not 100% accurate you can measure your progress since it is always measured in the same way. After that it is really up to you to unlock the potential....no device can actually magically make you fit without any effort!

Get More Sleep:
Without doubt most of us really have no idea just how much sleep we are getting or how well we really slept during the night. Does the Fitbit work to help you get more sleep? It can't make you sleep but it does act as an eyeopener to see the graph of how many times you woke up during the night. For example the second time I used it it showed that I had woken 11 times when I thought that I had only woken up once! By tracking the actual hours you sleep you can then make sure that you get to bed on time, have a nap during the day or use the weekend to catch up on your sleep deficit.

5 Good Reasons to Buy a Fitbit:
Lets look at how the Fitbit can potentially improve your lifestyle and perhaps save you money at the same time:

* Better Sleep: It tracks your sleep and makes you aware of your sleep patterns. You can learn from this and make sure you get enough sleep. The immediate impact is that you will have more energy and be more efficient€¦longer term your health should improve since many conditions are related to sleep deficit.

* Higher Activity Level: The more active you are the more calories you burn, the fitter you get and you are more likely to be able to keep your weight under control and within healthy limits. The more energy you have the more things you can fit into the day!

* Improved Fitness: The Fitbit makes you aware of your activity level so you automatically start moving around more€¦and this will improve you general level of fitness. And with improved fitness there is normally an improvement in overall health€¦providing you are also eating and sleeping correctly. So really you can see why this is a lifestyle choice.

* Awareness: By being aware of your activity level you can make the choice do something about it. You can sit at your desk all day at work or you can make sure that you get up and walk around. Stand up when you are on the phone€¦.go and see that person in accounts and talk face to face€¦start using the toilet on the next floor so that you can walk further!

* Save Money: And the bottom line is that if you are fitter you will tend to adopt a more healthy lifestyle which will save money on food. Can you ditch the gym membership as well? That depends on your level of motivation€¦it is really difficult to keep up a regular exercise routine on your own without going to a gym€¦and this is where the Fitbit could just tip the balance.

Does the Fitbit work and can it help you achieve your objectives? It does what it says on the box and the rest is up to you!

Source Richard Shield |Go

Will The Popular Running Apps Get You Ready to Run?

With the new partnership between ACE and the Women’s Running Series, it is a good time to review and comment on some of the more popular and well-known running apps. It seems that I get an email every month from a fitness technology company touting a new running app. So, what do I look for in a running app? Are they really all that different? Most share the standard features and have millions of dedicated users. Check out my thoughts below, then tweet me your favorite running app and why.

RunKeeper – Free (with paid upgrade available)

RunKeeper is a popular Boston-based running app available in eight different languages. One of the first running apps, RunKeeper has a dedicated following of more than 20 million users. The app has an easy user interface that tracks stats like pace, distance and time. Add a sensor and monitor heart rate as well. It also comes with a goal-setting option and, if you need that extra motivation, a coach in your headphone with built-in audio cues. One of the features of the paid app provides live tracking, but use with caution. While your friends can track and see where you are on a map, so can others.

MapMyRun – Free (with paid upgrade available)

With the tag line “You pound the pavement, we provide the motivation. Plan each stride and learn from every route,” how can you not want to at least try MapMyRun. By using the built-in GPS on your mobile phone, MapMyRun will track your duration, distance, space, speed, elevation, route and calories burned (if you preset your body weight) on an interactive online map. On a business trip in Cleveland and looking for a place to run? Check out the thousands of training maps created by users just like you. (By the way, Cleveland has 5,382 routes and 350 courses.) You can even find a local running group with which to tag along. The paid MVP in app purchase is even smart enough to plan your route; you just tell the app how far you want to run and it finds the route for you.

Nike+ - Free

You don’t need to run in a pair of Nikes to use their app (but I am sure they’d like you to). Gone are the days of the sensor in your shoe—now all you need is your mobile phone and the Nike+ app. In addition to the standard tracking features of time, distance and pace, the app converts your runs into a Nike Fuel score, so you can challenge your non-running training partners to keep up with your pace. One of my favorite features of Nike+ is the live cheering option. Have you ever been on a 10K and needed just a little extra push? Use this app, share your run to Facebook or Path and when anyone likes your mile postings, you will hear a cheer in your headphones. My brother ran the DC marathon a few years ago, and I tracked his progress and cheered along the way, even though I was 5,000 miles away. Same caution of live sharing as mentioned in RunKeeper.

Zombie Run - $1.99 and up

What if you could make a game out of your runs? Now you can with Zombie Run.
Thousands of runners experience an “epic adventure” during their run that motivates them to run faster and farther than ever before. I know I’d run faster to avoid being eaten by a zombie. New to running and want to train for that upcoming 5K in a few months? They have a sister app with an eight-week training program. Zombie Run takes your own music and combines it with an action-packed game while you burn those calories. (And there is no truth to the rumor that Zombies don’t like McDonalds and that if you stop for a snack, they will track you down.)

Strava – Free (with paid upgrade available)

Designed originally for athletes, Strava takes social fitness to a new level. What if your training partner can’t sneak away from the office at lunch for your team run? Or perhaps you’ve moved to a new city? Use Strava and get back that sense of camaraderie and friendly competition that drove you to achieve your best when training with others. The free version allows for unlimited activities per month with detailed maps and activity analysis. You can challenge friends through virtual challenges and watch their progress. The premium version for $59 a year includes progress and performance goals, leaderboards and additional analysis features.
People use running apps for all sorts of reasons. Some use the app to track milestones, others to brag to their friends about their personal best. No matter the reason, if you get that extra motivation to exercise from technology, it gets two thumbs up in my book. So the next time you run around the block, consider trying one of the many running apps. Like I say “… an app a day keeps the doctor away.”

Note: Extended use of GPS available in many running apps will drain your battery.

Source : Ted Vickey, M.S., is the Senior Consultant - Fitness Technology for ACE

10 Fitness Trends to Look Out For in 2015

 

One of the most elusive traits coveted by humankind is the ability to predict the future. Based on the study of past events we can develop a hypothesis about what might occur, but there is no way to know for sure what can happen in the coming days, weeks or years.

This is especially true in the fitness industry. It is almost impossible to predict what new trend will encourage the masses to get up and start sweating. A specific piece of equipment, workout program or exercise technique may become popular because it helps people achieve results or because it’s just a fun way to exercise and creates an enjoyable experience. CrossFit is an example of a trend that exploded in popularity because the high-intensity exercises and varied programming of the Workouts of the Day (WOD) produce results. Plus, the group component of CrossFit, the competition-based programming and its Spartan setting creates a unique experience that is completely different than the traditional big box gym, which has helped elevate it to a fitness lifestyle.

As we begin the process of closing out 2014, it’s time to identify the programs or products that could become the next CrossFit and shape the fitness landscape in 2015. As a fitness educator and consultant who works with certification organizations, equipment manufacturers, apparel companies and health clubs, I’m in a unique position to be able to identify upcoming fitness trends. In an effort to pinpoint the trends that we will see in the coming year, I reached out to a number of other educators and industry thought leaders to develop a list of what is in store for 2015.

1. More people will utilize wearable technology to monitor and record biometric data.

Heart-rate monitors have been worn for years to monitor exercise intensity during a workout, but in the past few years a number of wearable devices have been introduced that help us track calorie burning all day long, while also monitoring our sleep habits at night. The New Year will see the release of the Apple iWatch, which is ushering in a whole new category of wearable technology that can help us develop a greater understanding of how our bodies function. The most interesting feature is that Apple’s new mobile operating system (iOS 8) will create a dashboard on your phone that can be used to monitor and record a variety of important health data that can help you live your life to the fullest.

2. Online video-on-demand workout programs will become increasingly common.

From television shows to VHS tapes to DVDs, people have long used video technology to follow a home-based workout led by an experienced instructor. Video-on-demand services have been growing in popularity and the coming year will see an explosion of online, video-on-demand workout programs developed specifically for mobile devices that will allow fitness consumers to enjoy an instructor-led workout anywhere they choose.

3. Online personal training goes mainstream.

When it was first introduced, online personal training was been considered a poor substitute for working with a real live trainer. From video conferencing to wearable devices used to record activity levels, technology has recently made it more feasible to offer personalized fitness coaching services via an online or mobile platform. The next year will see further growth in this segment as personal trainers become more comfortable using technology to offer virtual coaching services. The primary difference between video-on-demand workout programs and online personal training is that the former offers workouts for general goals while the latter delivers specific, progressively challenging programs to achieve well-defined fitness outcomes.

4. “Functional training” will recede from our lexicon and the concept of loaded movement training will become more popular.

Traditional free-weight resistance training features curvilinear movement patterns that move the resistance directly against the downward force of gravity. On the other hand, loaded movement training (LMT) is defined as the process of moving a mass through gravity (the definition of the term shifting) in a task-based, multiplanar movement pattern. LMT is the progression of functional training, which has become an overused term to describe a variety of activities more suited for a circus performance than a weight room.

5. Group-based training programs will be personalized to each individual participating in the workout.

In the past, taking a group exercise class meant moving the same way at the same time and same speed as everyone else in the room. Technology to track intensity and work-rate (via heart-rate monitors) on a screen in the front of a studio allows an instructor to provide a group workout that allows each participant to work at his or her own comfort level. While this technology itself is not new, 2015 will see a rapid growth in personalized group workout programs.

6. Participation in one-on-one personal training will decline at large health clubs in favor of small group or semi-private training programs.

Small-group training programs will continue to grow in popularity and more health clubs will feature fee-based small-group programs as the primary way to deliver an instructor-led workout experience to their members. This may be the year we see revenue from small-group programming surpass revenue generated by one-on-one personal training.

7. Workout programs will move away from pure High-intensity Interval Training (HIIT) and start featuring more intelligent program design that allows for proper recovery from the stresses of exercise.

Recovery is the component of the workout program that is most often overlooked, even though the body becomes stronger in the time period after workout, not during the workout itself. HIIT is popular because it produces results, but performing too much high-intensity training too frequently could lead to overtraining or soft-tissue injury. It also could be a reason why participants stop exercising. This is starting to change as educated fitness professionals are beginning to recognize that recovery is key for their clients’ success.

8. Trainers and clients will begin to use biomarkers to track progress from an exercise program.

For years, researchers have used hormone levels and metabolic markers in the bloodstream to study how exercise affects human physiology. As the costs of blood tests drop, 2015 will see personal trainers starting to use blood testing to help assess a client’s fitness level and physiological status. Don’t worry—personal trainers won’t be taking blood from their clients. Clients will use a dedicated collection sight to withdraw blood, which will then be sent to a lab for processing. Personal trainers will not diagnose any health issues, but instead will watch markers such as testosterone or cortisol to identify whether a client is in an optimal anabolic (muscle building) state or is experiencing a period of stress, which could elevate levels of cortisol and be an indicator of overtraining.

9. Competitive formats like American Ninja Warrior, parkour, Spartan Race and obstacle course races will continue to grow in popularity.

Thanks in part to the success of Kacy Catanzaro in the American Ninja Warrior challenge, the fact that NBC Sports is now televising Spartan Races, and the emergence of gyms designed specifically for parkour or free-running, this category of extreme bodyweight training will continue to experience exponential growth over the coming year.

10. Old-school group-exercise programs and full-service health clubs will make a comeback.

This is my long-shot, against-the-grain prediction, but I do think that 2015 may become the year for the retro workout craze as many group exercise programs that have faded from the mainstream will make a resurgence. We may see a return of programs like dance aerobics, instructor-led treadmill and stair climber-based workouts and group kickboxing classes. In addition, while small studios have turned the industry on its head over the past five years, in 2015 we will begin to see fitness enthusiasts gravitate back to multipurpose health clubs that can offer a variety of different workout experiences under a single roof.

There is no easy way to tell which of these trends could become the next CrossFit, but this list should give you an idea of what we’ll see in the fitness industry in 2015. You can use this information to plan your continuing education so you can be up-to-date on the latest trends before they become popular.
Source : By Pete McCall, MS  McCall has an MS in Exercise Science and Health Promotion. In addition, he is an ACE-certified Personal Trainer (ACE-CPT)