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News and Reviews

Road ID Interactive

With the gift season upon us, we at Walk About felt that this product was worth adding again this year as a stocking stuffer. The folks at Road ID now offer the Road ID Interactive for walkers, hikers, and runners that want the medical community to be updated with their medical history in case of an emergency. We walk with our dogs that always wear their identification. Most of us leave the house with no identification because we have no place to carry vital information. Information is limited on your driver‘s license.

Unlike the original Road ID, Road ID Interactive allows you to build a fully updateable, secure Emergency Response Profile (ERP) that is available to first responders 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. You can still customize the first two or three lines of an interactive ID (three lines on a FIXX ID, two lines on every other style). The last four lines, however, are reserved to provide instructions on how to access your ERP in an emergency situation. Your ERP can communicate to first responders your name, address, emergency contacts, health Insurance, medical Information, and more.

After purchasing an interactive ID, go to www.MyRoadID.com to create your secure, online Emergency Response Profile. Your ERP will be available to first responders when they go to www.MyRoadID.com or call 800-345-6335.

You have complete control of your ERP. You can update it whenever you like and supply as much or as little information as you deem appropriate. For more information visit www.MyRoadID.com.

Polar FT40 Training Computer

If you’re looking for a new technical gadget to give as a gift for this holiday season Walk About has found that gift. Polar has introduced the FT40 Training Computer. Never mind that you can barely program your sports watch; this user-friendly training computer makes it easier to reach weight loss or fitness goals.

The FT40 is designed for gym goers, joggers, walkers, and those who want to stay fit. The FT40 provides a new EnergyPointer feature that simplifies exercise by displaying a user‘s exertion in one of two zones — either fat burning or fitness improvement. This user-friendly approach makes it easier to reach weight loss or fitness goals. It determines the right training intensity for you for each training session, allowing you to enjoy your training and improve your overall fitness.

The FT40 offers clear training guidance and is good for cross training. The EnergyPointer calculates the point where the main effect of training is turning fat burning into fitness improvement, whereas the fitness test measures your aerobic fitness at rest in just five minutes and shows you the calories burned. The FT40 can be worn at work or play and is available in grey (men‘s), green or beige (women‘s). It has a suggested retail price of $179.95. For more information about the FT40 visit www.polarusa.com.

Going Green at the Gym

Photos by Cammie Toloui

Walking about the Alberta Arts neighborhood in Portland, OR, we stumbled upon a green gym. The Green Microgym is one of the only fitness facilities in the world running on some of its own power. The gym uses solar power as well as human-powered cycling and cardio machines to generate renewable energy.

Owner Adam Boesal, 37, opened his gym in August with the belief that he has designed an ideal energy-efficient gym that will appeal to healthy and environmentally conscious Portlanders.

Boesal invited us to try out his Human Dynamo prototype, an exercise machine consisting of four spin bikes attached to a small generator. As we pedaled one of the human powered bikes, a digital readout showed wattage being produced by this human effort. As many as four riders can propel this system, which can produce 200 to 600 watts of energy an hour.

The gym also features treadmills that use nearly one-third less energy than traditional treadmills because they have an energy-efficient, self-regulating, and brushless motor drive that runs cleaner than most traditional motors. Boesal‘s goal is to have the gym run solely on the energy it generates.
Boesal’s gym uses only energy-efficient lighting, ceiling fans, and televisions. Future plans include hooking up the five elliptical machines to generators. So far, about 100 people have signed up for membership at the Green Microgym. Most of them live in the neighborhood and either walk or bike to their workout.

For more information call 888-300-4015 or visit www.thegreenmicrogym.

Right Lib

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