Weddingbee boards

I love to exercise and I love gadgets....so when something comes along that involves both- I'm all over it!

(photo borrowed from here)

I got one of these cool little Nike+ things a couple years ago and I really like working out with it!  It helped me to stay on track with my exercise goals.

To explain it simply, it's a fancy pedometer.  It does a lot more than any pedometer though.  It tells you your pace, distance, and an estimate of calories burned, all through your iPod headphones while you listen to your workout music.

Here's the good and the bad on this little gadget:

Good:
*It works with either the iTouch, iPhone, or iPod Nano
*Regardless of what Nike tells you, you don't NEED their special shoes to use this.  I just slipped mine under the arch of the sole of my shoe and it worked perfectly and I couldn't feel it under my foot.  There's also a slew of devices you can find online to make this work with your favorite running shoes.
*When you sync it to your computer, it tracks all of your running progress for you, and you can set goals for yourself and monitor your progress
*My favorite feature: I love being able to step outside and just start running without having to pre-plan my route to know how long it is.  With this gadget, I could just run through the neighborhood until I hit the distance I wanted to get to!

(a sample screen shot of how the Nike+ tracks your workout when you sync your iPod to your computer.  Borrowed from here)

Bad:
*It doesn't work with some video iPods
*I had to replace mine because the battery in the sensor died- about 4 months later my new one died.  You can't just replace the battery, you have to buy a whole new kit (the kit is $30- not awful, but not good for this bargain girl!)

I have to admit that my battery dying may strongly have something to do with the fact that I didn't put it in 'sleep' mode when I wasn't using it.  An acquaintance of mine always puts hers in sleep mode and hers has kept going strong for a couple years.

Overall, I really like this little gadget :)

Do you use any kind of gadget or website to help you stay on track with your workouts?

I have a Nike+ too!! It's so much fun, I use it to track my neighborhood walks. Like White Wedding Girl said, you definitely don't need Nike shoes to use this (I bought a little pouch for it that you weave into your shoelaces; works great). The only downside I've found is that it's not as accurate on treadmills.. it has something to do with the fact that both feet are in perpetual motion on a treadmill, which isn't the case when walking/running on solid ground.

So i wouldn't be able to use the nike + on elipticals ?