On Computers » fitness

99 CENT PERSONAL TRAINER

Bob and Joy Schwabach — Thu, 07 Apr 2011 15:17:44 +0000

FitFu is an exercise motivator for the iPhone. Strap the phone to an arm or tuck it in a pocket and start exercising. The 99 cent app counts out loud, to keep track of how many repetitions you do, and nags you when its time to start moving again. We tried it with an iPad and it counted out Joy’s pushups, squats and crunches, then saved the info. It’s really for the iPhone and only worked on the iPad because Joy stuffed it into her waistband while she crunched, squatted or pushed-up. Find it at Apple’s app store.

FAB OVER FIFTY

Bob and Joy Schwabach — Sun, 16 May 2010 19:18:35 +0000

The website FabOverFifty.com launches next weekend when the “fabulous women of Miami” meet the site’s founder for a Lifetime channel taping aimed at 51 million women over 50 in the U.S.

The site, dubbed “FOF,” could also stand for “friends of friends.” It’s a place for women to hang out, get tips, share ideas, discover new restaurants, fashions, consumer electronics and travel ideas.

There are lots of subject tabs at the top of the screen. Examples:

“Facts of Life,” with tips for skin, body, mind and budget.
“Fab Faves,” where we learned about the tables “outside of Bubby’s” in the Tribeca area of New York City.
“Exclusives” for bargain hunters.

Our only complaint with the site is its search engine. We typed “Chicago restaurant” and nothing came up, though there are many Chicago restaurants reviewed here. We typed “George Clooney,” and got zero results, despite a page on the site offering to bring the author of the book “Marrying George Clooney” to your home or book group if you give a good reason for wanting to meet her. (The site offers a different author visit each month.)

In any event, this is a fun site where you can marvel over the many things women over 50 are doing these days.

EARLY-WARNING SYSTEM HELPS PREVENT HEAT STROKE IN ATHLETES

Bob and Joy Schwabach — Mon, 03 May 2010 22:27:16 +0000

More than 300 people die each year from exposure to heat, and heat stroke is the third leading cause of death for high school athletes.

Athletes may find the new “Body Temperature Alert Patch,” handy. It’s a single-use patch that changes from black to yellow if the person is in danger of over-heating.

You’ll see the Alert Patch, from ionX, in 550 retail outlets, such as Sports Authority, starting in mid-to-late June. More info at ionxalert.com.

INTERNUTS

Bob and Joy Schwabach — Sat, 15 Sep 2007 01:13:41 +0000

Accuweather.com/astronomy is a new feature with star charts and a sky photo of the day. Enter a U.S. location, and it gives you information on the night sky from there. You can also get free hour-by-hour weather forecasts for any U.S. location.
Body.AOL.com has tips on nutrition and fitness. Includes celebrity diets, memory exercises, a calorie burn calculator, etc.
MyPhotoAlbum.com offers a free Web site with templates for making photo albums. There are many sites like this, but since it’s free, there’s no harm in taking a look.

WOW WII

Bob and Joy Schwabach — Wed, 06 Jun 2007 03:28:57 +0000

We just bought a new game machine that hooks up to our TV set. It’s the Nintendo Wii (pronounced

“whee”). What’s different about it, as you may have read, is that the game machine has a motion-sensitive controller that reacts to your movements andallows you to get some exercise while you play a video game.

The game comes with five sports: tennis, golf, bowling, baseball and boxing. You move your remote controller as if it were a baseball bat, and you feel as though you are actually playing baseball. It becomes a tennis racket when you’re playing tennis. You hold two controllers when you box.

Joy felt her pulse race and got as sweaty as a jogger when she knocked out nine opponents in 30 minutes. She was finally decked by a dude from New Jersey. You can stand up or sit in a chair and still get a great upper-body workout. We found ours at Amazon.com for $354.