RECREATION

For the fitness junkie on your list: Gear, gadgets and guidance

Heart rate monitors, DVDs, water bottles for the fit-minded

By Pamela LeBlanc
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STFF
Friday, December 05, 2008

Athletes (and the rest of us) love to get faster, stronger and more powerful. To do that, we need the right stuff.

Gadgets, gear and guidance, books, bottles and blinkies: It?s all part of our never-ending quest to improve performance.

Got a fitness junkie on your holiday gift list? Listen up.

We?ve rounded up some of our favorite products, from basics such as water bottles and blinking lights to exotics, like a top-of-the-line heart rate monitor and a stylin? pair of sunglasses.

Polar FT60 Training Computer

$239.95 ($349.95 with GPS sensor; plus $54.95 for FlowLink data transfer unit)

Austin Tri-Cyclist, Jack and Adam?s

It swims, it cycles, it runs. And then it tells you exactly how hard you worked, how far you went, and how many calories you burned in the process. The Polar FT60 comes with a watch for your wrist and a WearLink that straps around your chest. A separate GPS unit slips onto your upper arm. Together, they tell you your maximum and average heart rates, plus how much time you spent in each of three intensity levels — light, moderate or hard. The system even lets you set weekly goals and gives guidance on how to improve your fitness. Holds 100 workout files and 16 weekly training summaries, which are easily downloaded onto your computer with the separate FlowLink. There, you can track your progress at www.PolarPersonalTrainer.com.

NightLife magnetic LED light

$15

RunTex

Shorter days mean you?re likely to find yourself exercising in the dark this winter. This magnetic light, the size of a small bar of soap, has four bright red flashing dots against a reflective base. It attaches to just about any shirt, jacket or pack and stays put even over rugged terrain. Really.

Lean Mode Color Code Food Diary

$20

www.colorcodemode.com

Streaming Colors introduced its exercise journals in 2004 and we were instantly addicted to the color-it-in-as-you-exercise system. Now comes the Lean Mode food diary, for people who need to home in on their eating habits. Studies show that people who track what they eat every day lose more weight than those who don?t. This fun-to-use diary keeps you honest.

SIGG water bottle

$24.99 for 1-liter version

Whole Foods, REI, Whole Earth Provision Co.

A rugged, modern-day version of the canteen, this sleek, leak-proof aluminum bottle comes in several styles and sizes. All feature a special interior coating that is taste-neutral and hygienic. These Swiss-made bottles work as well with carbonated drinks, wine or fruit juice as they do with water. Completely recyclable. Don?t freeze or microwave.

ToughGirl running skirt

$90

Bettysport, Rogue Equipment, Bicycle Sport Shop

Running skirts are all the rage these days. The latest version by SkirtSports features an attached pair of slightly boot-cut tights that will keep your legs snuggly warm when the temperatures drop. A pocket under the skirt even holds an iPod. The company bills the ToughGirl as the perfect transitional piece to go from the gym to the office, but we don?t quite buy that, even on Casual Fridays. We do like it for actually running.

NekFIT

$33.95

www.nekfit.com, www.amazon.com

Tired of getting tangled in your iPod cords when you run? Pop your music maker into a nekFIT, slide it onto the back of your neck and tuck away those dangling wires. Now you can run, cycle, garden or lift weights with real freedom of movement — and still change songs with the tap of a finger. Adjustable neck size; fits all iPod Nano and Shuffle models.

Exercise DVDs

$14.98-$16.98

Barnes & Noble, www.amazon.com

For the exerciser who?d rather work up a lather in front of the TV comes an array of new exercise videos from Lionsgate. Two of our favorites get their inspiration from TV or movies: ?Dirty Dancing Official Dance Workout? ($16.98) teaches you to move like Baby and Johnny to sound track favorites. As Penny says, ?God wouldn?t have given you the maracas if he didn?t want you to shake ?em!? In ?American Gladiators Ultimate Workout? ($16.98), stars with intimidating names like Jet, Titan and Wolf lead you through the power-pumping moves that landed them on the TV reality show. Survive them and try to tackle the bonus Glute Gauntlet, Ab Quake and Arm Assault routines.

Oakley Ravishing sunglasses

$145

Oakley Store, Barton Creek Mall

Finally, sports performance eyewear designed specifically for women. And this pair, part of the Gretchen Bleiler signature series for Oakley, is sporty, edgy and a little girly, all at once. Bleiler is a top snowboarder, but these shades will work on the bike, boat or beach. They?re lightweight, comfortable, filter out all those nasty sun rays, and we really like that purple swirly design on the side. Impact resistant, too. No wonder they call them Ravishing.

Triathlon Revolution: Training, Technique and Inspiration?

(The Mountaineers Books)

$19.95

www.amazon.com

Austin has a thing for triathlons. That?s obvious each June, when some 3,000 athletes sign up for the Danskin Women?s Triathlon. Endurance athlete and trainer Terri Schneider, who has completed 22 Ironman Triathlons, shares tips on everything from how to work training into your daily life to shucking off a wet suit during a race to nutrition, strength training and mental strategies in this 288-page book.