Martin: I think the digital exercise room is well suited to those who prefer to spend their time in front of a TV. We’ve all tried the Wii and got a bit out of breath while boxing or playing tennis, but that isn’t really exercise. Like most most games Wii Sport and Wii fit will have a limited life before you want to try something different or not bother at all.
For me part of exercising is about getting outside in the fresh air. I like Mountain Biking, Running, Hiking and Power Kiting amongst other things. Looking to the past, the last 50 years of technology have done a lot to help make those sports more enjoyable. Gore Tex means you can go out and be comfortable in any weather. Carbon Fibre has made bikes lighter and stiffer and stronger. Nike+ means you can mix Apple fanboyism with running. The list is endless, it shows just how much technology we really put into our leisure activities. I bet there is a whole lot more science goes into what you wear to do sport than what you are wearing now. Much of this technology has been developed elsewhere and applied to sports in the last 50 years. I would imagine that the application of technologies to sports equipment will continue allowing us to go faster and endure more.
I think the main thing we will see is the integration of more electronics into our sporting equipment. I have already mentioned Nike+ which acts like a pedometer that integrates with your Nike trainers and an iPod. I think we will see more uses of GPS to track ourselves while we are out training, things like that can be a great motivator as you start to set yourself more targets, like covering a particular distance each week or attaining a certain speed on your bike. All the time you are doing more and getting fitter.
One particular application of electronics in sports that interests me is the Shimano Di2 electronic shifter system for bikes. Anyone who has been riding bikes as long as I have must be fed up with replacing cables after a wet winter and having to adjust derailleurs for smooth shifting, only for them to need re-adjusting a few rides later. I can’t wait until they make an affordable version of this system for MTB’s. That’s if they don’t make a belt driven hub gear system first.
So, in summary I hope that technology continues to make exercise more fun but I don’t want to replace my Sunday morning bike ride with 10 minutes of Wii Tennis. It may be OK for some people but not for me. How about you? How do you think technology can help you get fit?
Thomas: I’m a bit like you, I do the exercise primarily to get out doors and into the fresh air and the weather. Replacing my running and biking isn’t going to be an option for me (unlike the our future Olympic athletes!) but you’ve given me a few ideas on how technology can be used to augment what I do. At the moment I time some of my runs on a stop watch, when I get home I’ll get a bit of paper and a pencil out and calculate my average pace. With a carefully selected iPhone app, maybe even a Nike+ but that means new trainers, I could get a much more accurate pace, and even compare it to a GPS trace of gradient to get a real feel for how I’m running. The same would apply to mountain biking, I just might need to invest in a nice waterproof and shock resistant case for those times when I I have to get off my bike in a hurry.
Now I think about it, advances in technology probably affect me when exercising more than I realise. When Roger Banister ran the first sub four minute mile he had what amount to leather sandals on his feet, I run in the finest lightweight, precision balanced, air-cushioned trainers! According to some thinkers, I should maybe save my money and spend it on iPhone apps! Maybe that’s the real answer. Technology can be used to motivate and enhance exercise, but ultimately natural selection has spent thousands of years making your body integrate perfectly with nature without any need for GPS of LCD displays.
![[del.icio.us]](http://images.del.icio.us/static/img/delicious.small.gif){kind=small}