PEDOMETERS – The New Fashion Accessory

Posted on December 10, 2012 by dsrpinkiesworld

The desire to track our fitness levels has evolved significantly over the years – it used to be ‘count your steps’ using a pedometer that sat on your hip…but with the advent of smartphones and technology… we wanted MORE.

Below are a number some of the new, trendy and different styles of ‘pedometer’ that can be used not only to count steps, but also track your running, swimming, cycling and other activites whilst linking to your social media and tracking your progress….and they look GOOD.

These are great tools for everyone – from elite athletes through to those of us who just enjoy to participate in active recreation. Why not try one out with your friends, family or sporting club and see what happens?

Thanks to Mashable, Springwise and other cool sites for finding this information.

The Shine

Small round disc that can be worn on your clothing, on your wrist or in your shoe and tracks your physical activity.

Small, trendy, disc-shaped fitness tracker that counts steps, swim strokes AND bike pedals! You can wear this device on your shoe, in your sports bra or anywhere you please…and wherever you wear it, it looks good.

Syncing this device is a breeze – just place it on your smartphone, and a sensor on the device automatically uploads all your data. Set your goals, follow your progress and share the infomration with your friends.

Created by Misfit Wearables.

The Fitbit Zip

The Fitbit has been one of the forerunners into technologically advanced pedometers – and it just keeps evolving.

The FitBit Zip and FitBit One are now equipped with Bluetooth and more social sharing features and runs on a battery that lasts from 4-6 months.

Make sure you check this one out.

Nike+ Fuel Band

The FuelBand tracks a persons fitness so that they can compare a game of basketball to a dance class, for example. Nike believes this will provide more precise measurement than simply tracking steps, and allow it to account for the differences across various sports (the device also tracks steps, calories, and time, however).

FuelBand uses red, yellow, or green coloring to let users know how they’re doing toward their goal and helps to motivate people to eercie longer, stronger and harder.

The Fuel Band has integration with Twitter and Facebook, and users can upload their data directly to their PC.

Want more information or inspiration? Then check out these great innovations:

Facebook app lets runners pay with km’s completed

Posted on July 12, 2012 by dsrpinkiesworld

Although it is potentially rewarding people in the wrong areas (a marathon runner would accumulate far more km’s than a regular runner during one week) this concept is actually a great idea!

Thanks to Springwise for this great find!

“Created by Nike Mexico, the Subasta de Kilometros translates runners’ distances into currency in auction.

Runners can already get reward points for their exercise minutes through the Nexercise app, which gamifies physical activity. Now sportswear company Nike Mexico has introduced its own twist on this concept with the Subasta de Kilometros, which translates runners’ distances into currency in auction.

Participants must first download the Running+ app – which monitors the details of exercise, such as pace, distance and time – or buy one of the Nike+ training products, which track similar data. The Facebook app then gives users the chance to bid on the ‘Subasta de la Semana’ – the Auction of the Week – using the amount of kilometers they have tallied by using the app in the last seven days. Each auction has a suggested price tag in kilometers and a finishing date. Runners must achieve the minimum price tag to bid, and the bidder with the longest distance wins the product. Items available include Nike apparel from Nike+ equipment to footwear. The following video explains the concept in more detail:

http://youtu.be/KRIdLjs37n0 ”

The idea or rewarding people for physical activity is not a new one, but the evolution of technology is ensuring that the way activities are tracked and people are compensated is constantly changing.

PINK PAGES – Vol 1, May 2012

Posted on May 24, 2012 by dsrpinkiesworld

SETTING AN ATHLETE/COACH SOCIAL MEDIA POLICY

Laws in America are now being passed that prohibits teachers/coaches from contacting students and athletes via private social media.

This means that Facebook, SMS and direct messaging is not allowed – however they can communicate via a public forum. So, although social media is a great way to communicate information to members, sporting clubs should be careful.

USAGymnastics Magazine has provided a number of simple tips for developing a social media policy for clubs. These tips include:

Communication is public and used for specific purposes such as schedule changes and announcements
Coaches should ensure parents are aware that they have access to their child’s online profile
Policies need to be clearly outlined to team members AND staff
Enforcement and consequences for violations of the policy must b discussed and transparent

Social media is here to stay – and it’s only going to get bigger. Clubs need to educate staff, volunteers, athletes, supporters and parents about how to safely use and deal with this form of communication.

Local Links:

PinkeDSR Comments: “Social media is a great tool for sport and recreation clubs to use – as long as they are aware of the pros and cons of the tool, ways of using it effectively and how to deal with any negative use of the tool by their staff, members, supporters or other.

The Department of Sport and Recreation in Western Australia is constantly looking at ways of improving the presence of clubs online – so make sure you check out the hot links above and see what amazing things are happening in the land of social media, around our state.”

‘AEROBIC’ VIDEO GAMES: THE NEXT INFOMERCIAL?

Research has shown that playing active video games can positively affect the body shape of overweight children through an increase in aerobic capacity.

A controlled trial of the PlayStation EyeToy showed that there was a change in the Body Mass Index of the players after 24 weeks.

Participants (children aged 10-14 years) were allowed to play as little, or as much active video games as they wanted. These games included football, boxing, dancing and martial arts.

Results showed:

Active video games play was sustained at higher levels than baseline at both 12 and 24 week measures
Children were meeting the recommended 60 minutes of physical activity per day
Future trials should examine other mediators related to this type of intervention including attitudes or preference for physical activity, or changes in sedentary behaviour

PinkeDSR Comments:

“The question to ask is, will we next see these games being advertised as the ‘new ab-roller’? Will morning TV shows offer games as the way to wash-board abs? Is this actually a BAD thing, as long as it motivates people to move?”

TRUE OR FALSE: OLDER PEOPLE AREN’T ACTIVE ONLINE?

FALSE! A recent report shows that the number of people aged 65+ has almost doubled between 2007 and 2011.

COTA Victoria and Ellis Jones found that 85% of the Victorian over 55’s who answered the survey, are actively using the internet. The number of users over 65 has increased from 29.8% to 56.7% in only four years, whilst those aged 50-64 has grown by 22.3% during the same period.

The report also confirms that older people use the internet to stay in touch with their family and friends; to seek out help from government services and to get involved in conversations that they might not be able to access otherwise:

Almost two-thirds of survey respondents admitted they were happy to leave comments and feedback online, with 71% saying that they felt ‘acknowledged’ because of this opportunity to engage with other people.

The biggest barrier faced by older users is the lack of knowledge and understanding about the level of security on internet sites – although online banking and travel bookings are their main reason for using the internet!
Although they are actively shopping and banking online, almost half (40%) also have Facebook profiles and 20% enjoy searching and watching videos on YouTube. Far less are using Twitter and LinkedIn – but then these tools aren’t targeted at retirees.

A key finding of the report is that “Respondents believe having access to the internet makes them feel more informed, more engaged and more empowered – and they like the idea of governments engaging with them online” because of this!

Local Links:

PinkeDSR Comments: “Our population is ageing, and as this occurs our seniors groups consist of people who are increasingly savvy users of the internet and technology.

It is important that the sport and recreation industry embraces this shift in demographics, and uses these tools to continue to support, encourage, motivate and engage people in sport and active recreation activities.”

EVERYBODY NEEDS GOOD (ONLINE) NEIGHBOURS

Nextdoor.com is an online meeting place that makes it easy for people to connect with their neighbours – even borderline recluses are welcome.

“There’s a common misreading that technology inevitably leads to the decline of the local community. I don’t believe that. Technology can be harnessed to facilitate local interactions.” Professor Robert J. Sampson.

And so, Nextdoor.com was born. According to the chief executive of Nextdoor, Nirav Tolia, as we get holder, the community that becomes most valuable to us is the one we live in, and so this site provides a ‘map’ of neighbours in your area who are members – creating another way of interacting and bonding.

Nextdoor.com currently has more than 2,000 American households (each containing approximately 500-750 households)
A house-by-house map of neighbours – although you can choose not to have your name attached
A forum for posting items of interest, sharing recipes and events, classifieds for buying and selling or even giving things away; and a database of user-recommended local services
New members must prove they actually live at their claimed address
Pages are all private – only fellow members can see who else is online – and none of the information appears on search engine results
Updates and posts can be viewed online, via email posts or through SMS
The service is free, however they plan to enlist local businesses to give members special offers
Nextdoor.com has created something Facebook no longer is: an online network defined by real life proximity.

Local Links

ActiveSmart

PinkeDSR Comments: “Creating community through the use of technology and online ‘social sites’ in the real world – what a challenge! But it seems that we are slowly overcoming our fear of the unknown, the virtual world, and embracing the opportunities that it presents.

Online dating is seen as one of the preferred ways that people meet their life-partner – so why not create a space that brings neighbours together as well?

There is plenty of opportunity for sport and recreation to get on board here – whether it is through the Nextddor.com site OR in its own specially designed online world.”

DEALING WITH DEPRESSION IN A VIRTUAL WORLD

3D fantasy worlds are giving young people the tools and confidence to deal with mental health issues.

A 3D fantasy game has been developed by the University of Auckland, to teach young people with mental health issues, skills to help build their confidence.

SPARX (Smart, Positive, Active & Realistic X-Factor thoughts) has gamified the real world to change mundane tasks and lessons into fun, interactive tasks – but it is the provision of health benefits that is ensuring gamification is here to stay (as proven by Cambridge Consultants T-Haler project).

Players choose their own ‘avatar’ which they manoeuvre through a number of ‘provinces’ that relate to various problems they may experience when dealing with mental health issues.
Examples include the Volcano Province which deals with disruptive emotions, whilst on other levels they fight GNATS (Gloomy Negative Automatic Thoughts).
The pilot has been tested on 187 youth with vary degrees of depression. Half of the participants were given typical treatment and the other half played the game.
Although both groups experienced reduced anxiety levels, the game players experienced higher levels of remission rates.

Local Links:

PinkeDSR Comments: “Gamification is a tool that can be used as a positive driver of physical activity. Take geocaching for example. Kids and adults can use their smart phones to get outside, do a worldwide treasure hunt and enjoy/explore the area – wherever they are.

There is also a large amount of research taking place that shows the use of exergaming (using consoles such as the Kinect and WiiFit) is a positive influencer of peoples involvement in physical activity and increases social interaction and mental alertness.

This is definitely something that can be used successfully within the sport and recreation environment – what sort of ideas do you have for its use!?”

ALTERNATIVE TRANSPORT: WHEN THE TRAINS AREN’T RUNNING, IT DOESN’T MEAN YOU CAN’T RUN!

London leads the way with organised group runs that operate at the end of each working day and follow popular bus and train routes.

Overcrowded public transport and increasing obesity issues – two factors which affect our quality of life, but could possibly be alleviated through the new, innovative and simple ‘group running’ idea Home Run.

We are constantly told that using public transport is of great benefit not only to our personal wellbeing, but also to the environment and so London has introduced guided group runs that allow people to get home powered by their own two legs.

Group guided runs offer a number of benefits including:

Safety in numbers
Guided and popular routes – most run along the same popular route that their bus or train may have taken anyway
Support crew to carry your clothing and work bags – no more carrying heavy backpacks (cargo bicycles)
Social interaction with other people – building new relationships, and
Reduced congestion on public transport.

Local Links:

PinkeDSR Comments: “Western Australia is a great place for this type of idea – our climate, roads, scenery and love of sport and physical activity means that this is something that could work well – not only in the metro area, but also within regional towns.

How about speaking to your local government, workplace health coordinator or colleagues about getting something up and ‘running’ in your area? Are there any programs or ideas that you think might work in your community/workplace?”

A few bite size bits to chew over :)

Posted on April 12, 2012 by dsrpinkiesworld

A few short, sweet and thought-provoking pieces of research that we’ve uncovered during the past week. Enjoy at your leisure, or click on the links provided to find out more information!

VOLUNTEERING Encouraging Involvement in Big Society – Cultural and Sporting Perspectives

The ‘Big Society’ was the flagship policy idea of the 2012 UK Conservative Party’s election manifesto which aims to “create a climate that empowers local people and communities, building a big society that will take the ‘power away from politicians’ and give it to the people”. One of its’ key priorities is to “Encourage people to take an active role in their communities (volunteerism).”

A survey conducted in 2011, provided a detailed demographic profile of those contributing to the Big Society from the sport and culture sectors:

87% of population is engaged in some way in culture and sport.
7.3% of population volunteers.
10% of 16-24 year olds volunteer. 7.3% is the average across all ages.
7% of 45-64 year olds volunteers.
67.2% of volunteers are employed and are more likely to be ‘wealthy achievers’ than non volunteers.
Almost two-thirds of volunteers, volunteer in the sport industry.

How do these figures relate to YOUR club or sport? For more information, visit TNS UK Limited to read the entire report.

DIGITAL KIDS Teen-only gym: Virtual reality, real sweat

Mountain View, California opened its first teen-only gym called ‘Overtime’ in 2006. It was age restricted to 13-18 year olds and was designed to appeal to the children of parents who lived and worked in the hometown of ‘Google’.

The gym uses technology and video games – combined with traditional gym machines – to encourage kids to workout and is designed to bridge the gap between traditional arcade and health-club operators and present exergaming as a legitimate tool for encouraging physical activities in children!

Something to consider as an additional tool in your training programs?

BEHAVIOUR CHANGE TOOLS When will we see gamification in government?

Gamification is the practice of using achievement-based rewards for non-game activities. For example completing a project or mission at work sees the awarding of a ‘completion badge (letter, award, and medal) and it is now being recommended as an effective behavior modification tool.

Rapid gratification for small and ongoing achievements means behavior patterns are reinforced at a deeper level and result in increased likelihood of the behavior being repeated or becoming ongoing.

Is there potential for gamification to be used in government, with staff rewarded for increasing skill levels, completing ministerial responses in a timely fashion, or writing briefs?

For more information, please visit: Craig Thromler, eGov AU, www.egovau.blogspot.com.au January 27, 2012

MENTAL HEALTH The Reciprocal Relationship Between Physical Activity and Depression in Older Adults.

The link between physical activity levels and depression was studied over a 2-year period with a total of 17,593 men and women involved in the study ranging in age between 50 and 102 years. Testing showed there were some differences for age, but not for gender.

Measures included affective suffering and motivational depression, and used self-reported frequency of moderate and vigorous physical activity with results indicating that higher levels of physical activity were associated with lower levels of depression both at baseline, and two years later.

Although physical activity could reduce depressive symptoms in older adulthood, it can also act as a barrier to engaging in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity behaviours and so deserves to be studied further within this area.

Reference: Lindwall, M., Larsman, P., & Hagger, M.S (2011) Health Psychology Magazine 30 – 453-462

Any comments, questions or recommendations are all greatly appreciated! As is your recommendation of DSRPinkiesWorld to your friends, family and colleagues.

Run, Run, I Do Run, Run

Posted on April 2, 2012 by dsrpinkiesworld

No longer is the saying ‘I’m going for a jog’ heard only by those in the near vicinity as you grunt and groan to tie shoelaces, ensure your clothes are comfy and loudly declare your fitness intentions.

Oh no – now the whole world can see, hear, comment and cheer you on as you take those steps towards becoming a happier, healthier, safer and stronger you.

The number of fitness applications (apps) available for use on smartphones is growing by the day. Not only do these apps link you to other like minded-people, they can combine all of your social media tools and allow friends and family members from all around the world watch you progress and achieve your goals.

But not only are apps infiltrating the world of traditional sport and recreation activities. People are turning towards variations of fun runs and sporting events that promote the collaboration of sports with art and culture, or those that focus on making people feel HAPPY….

Below are a few of our favourite apps and events - some of which cost, many of which are free – but all of which offer positive ways for technology and social interaction to support physical activity.

If you know of any others, please get in touch as we’d love to share them around!

The Color Run is billed as the ‘happiest 5km’ run. It’s a run that is more about fun than achieving times and distances and is something that people of all ages and abilities can take part in. Participants begin the run in white shirts and as they make their way through each kilometre, they are pelted with different coloured ‘dust’ which results in – to quote the website - ‘starting like a brand new pristine coloring book, and ending looking like they fell into a Willy Wonka… tie dyed… vat of colored goodness.’

Nike+ GPS is a fantastic little tool ($1.99AUD). Not only does this app track your runs, give you voice feedback through your headphones when you reach certain milestones, provide options for timed or distance runs….but it also allows your friends and family members to ‘cheer’ for you by pressing ‘like’ button on Facebook!

There’s nothing better than hitting that wall during a run, and suddenly a cheer breaks through the music and lifts your spirits… ..and since they released the app without the requirement for an ‘in-shoe’ sensor, it has become even more popular.

Track your runs, comment on the weather and how you were feeling, share your run maps and even race a friend….there is plenty to explore and do through this application.

FigureRunning allows the worlds of art and exercise to merge into one. As you head off on your route, you become the pencil. Your track is traced, colours used and of course, interesting art works created and later, shared online with friends.

There are a multitude of other apps and activities out there….but some of our favourites include:

Zombies, Run! - Run around your local neighbourhood whilst being chased by zombies!! Don’t slow down….you DO NOT want to get caught!
RunKeeper - tracks yours workouts, making them fun, social and easy to understand.
Fitocracy - an online game and social network that aims to use gamification to
help users improve their fitness.
iTreadmill - for those times when you can’t get outside..and running on a treadmill is your only choice.
Nexercise – According to the Huffington Post, this is a “true fitness app for lazy people. It was made with the express purpose of making exercising more fun, like a game.”

Tell us more please!

Will the FUN ever stop? We hope not!

Posted on January 17, 2012 by dsrpinkiesworld

As we become more and more reliant (and expectant) on technology such as tablets and smartphones in our daily lives, developers are increasingly using the theory of ‘fun’ to replace everyday, mundane activity.

‘Gamification’ has been mentioned in Pinkie’s World before, but now more than ever we are seeing it transposed into traditional activities such as data collection forms, finalising a work task or being the Breakfast Champion of the day.

Take Tonic Health for example. This company believes that switching from paper forms to and interactive gamelike iPad interface is ‘more enjoyable for patients and therefore enables greater response rates to surveys.’ It makes filling in forms easy for the elderly and those with low-education, enables the user to select their preferred language for use, is intuitive and can be fun.

Think about the benefits for sport and recreation clubs:

Greater inclusion opportunities for people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, people with disabilities and the elderly.
Data is instantly saved, which lessens time required on admin tasks for over-worked volunteers, and
Ability to make data collection fun.

Fun and games online and via portable technology devices are also a great way of encouraging and increasing activity amongst traditionally sedentary people – as well as increasing the competition between those who are that way inclined!

Below is a list of apps that Pinkie’s World has discovered which utilise gaming aspects to increase, measure and motivate physical activity in people of all ages, abilities and other….so why not check a couple out today, share with your friends and then let us know how it goes!

Leap – mobile app that allows users to create a social game and challenges.
Onefeat - online game using Facebook or Twitter that rewards users for performing offline activities.
Foodzy – site uses gaming to reward healthy eating.
Endomondo – Track your workouts, Challenge your friends and Analyse your training on your phone.
Pledgehammer - make your resolutions public and stick to them – or make a ‘donation’ to charity!
Nike+ GPS – free app for iPhone that links to Facebook and allows people to ‘cheer’ you on when you exercise.
Swimtag - wristband that monitors swimmers progress and shares info online.
Striiv - portable fitness device for adults that motivates users into action through games and personal challenges.
NexGym – interactive classes in sports, dance, karate, hip hop, yoga and more http://nexgym.eu/info/birthdayvideo.wmv
Nexercise - iPhone app that brings a dose of gamification to the world of fitness, with medals, discounts and even free merchandise offered as rewards for physical activity.

Go and play!

dsrpinkiesworld

Pinkie’s World wades through all the interesting, wacky, weird and exciting information from around the world, to identify innovative ideas that – in some small way – help people to participate in sport and active recreation… and then we share this information with you!

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