Tech Gadgets to Keep You Fit

Pant...pant...gulp...gulp... I just burned 150 calories discoing during the workout mode of the newest Dance Dance Revolution on the PS2. As I stood on my special dance mat, following the footsteps of some on-screen dancer, working up a sweat of my own, I thought to myself: Never thought I'd see the day when computer technology and burning calories went hand-in-hand. Must be some sort of backlash against years of sitting on our behinds staring at the screen. (Now we'll stand when we stare.)

But computer fitness is no longer an oxymoron. This year's gadgets will figure more heavily than ever into a healthy lifestyle. A couple of favorites, old and new:

Nike and iPod reinvented running with the Nike+iPod Sports Kit. Basically it's a special Nike sneaker with a sensor that wirelessly transmits information about your run to your iPod. When you're not checking out your stats you're running to your favorite playlists.

Ratcheting it up a notch, the new Nike Amp+ Sports Watch  is an add-on to the original Sports Kit. It looks like a cool watch, but it's also a remote control for your iPod and gives you voice feedback about your workout. Your iPod will report back to you detailing your time, distance, calories, and pace. The Amp+ is available in a variety of color combinations (including a Halloween-friendly orange-and-green), and is available now for $79. The Nike+iPod Sport Kit runs $29. (iPod nano not included.)

Nintendo's Wii Fit is the most anticipated product of the tech fitness crowd. It's scheduled to hit the store shelves later this year. The game uses a pressure-sensing balance board that looks sort of like a bathroom scale. It'll read movements and let you play virtual sports such as soccer and ski jumping, as well as training staples such as yoga and aerobics. According to Toy Wishes magazine it'll sell for $99.

If it takes more than a playlist to help you keep your stride, look at Yamaha's BODiBeat. The beat of the music adjusts to your running pace. The music player uses an accelerometer and an ear-clip pulse monitor to select songs based on your heartbeat/workout pace.

Garmin, maker of one of the most popular GPS, is also in the fitness game with the Garmin Forerunner 50 watch. It's not a GPS; it's a watch that accepts data transmission from a footpod that tracks your movement by sensing the impact of your footsteps. Or, if you prefer, there's a heart rate monitor as well. The data is transferred to your PC via a USB and then analyzed ($106).

For mobile phone users, Motorola teamed up with Bones in Motion to create a location-based application that runs on a number of phones to help runners train more efficiently.

You download BiM's software ($9.95 per month) onto any supported phone and the phone can serve as your music player , training coach, GPS and oh yeah... phone.  BiM software will keep your data, offer audible alerts as your run, and report on running speed, elevation, and even calories burned.

Some lower cost favorites? Keep track of time while you're walking or talking with Sony Ericsson's music-ready phone with a built-in pedometer, the W580 phone. One of my favorite ideas is Myfoodphone.com. You use your camera phone to take a picture of what you're eating and send it off to their nutritionist who can chide you or give you a pep talk or explain just how many calories you're consuming. (Not exercise, but waist-shaping nonetheless.)

On the cheap you can try audio and video workouts from the web. Web sites like Podfitness, iTrain, and iAmplify have a variety of personal training workouts for a fraction of the in-person, in-gym price.