Nike+ GPS Review

Nike just released Nike+ GPS, their new iPhone application. I love competition, so I took it for a few runs to compare it to Runmeter. Disclosure: I’m one of the developers of Runmeter, but I’m an engineer, and the truth is my goal. If you see anything incorrect here, please write to us at email hidden; JavaScript is required and I will update it.

Here is a competitive matrix, summarizing all the features of Runmeter and Nike+ GPS against other popular running apps.

To learn more about Nike+ GPS, I took four short runs.  You can see them all here on the Nike site, because I have switched their default privacy setting to be more open. (Props to Nike for a respectful privacy default. )

After launching Nike+ GPS, you see a screen with your overall distance total, plus other  overall stats.  In addition, there are three tabs: Home, History, and Settings.

To start a run, you choose “Start a Run”, then one of “Basic”, “Time”, or “Distance”, and then decide whether you’re doing the run indoors or outdoors. That unveils a strength of the app, the ability to measure running on a treadmill using the iPhone accelerometer. Then one more tap and you are off and running. A simple display shows distance, pace, and elapsed time, along with a stop/start button.

A small icon in the corner views a map. Oddly, when you tap Done after viewing the map, it stops the stopwatch. (Maybe they thought you were not running any longer.) The map is simple, it just shows your path, but I do like its ability to color the path with a green-to-red scale indicating your slowest to fastest pace.

Compared to Runmeter, though, Nike+ required a lot of tapping and choosing to get started. With Runmeter, you just launch the app and tap Start, rather than the four taps it takes to get going with Nike+ GPS. And more importantly, Runmeter has remote control ability, so you can use your earphone remote to start and stop the app while your iPhone is stowed away. With Nike+ GPS, I had to start it, then fumble with my iPhone for 10 seconds putting it into my running belt before I could run. At stop lights and at the finish, I had to go through the same fumbling to get it out of my belt so I could stop the app. With our new stop detection capability, you could even forget to stop and start at a stoplight, and Runmeter will not count that time.

Upon finishing, the voice of Lance Armstrong congratulated me on finishing my first run. (Thanks, Lance, but it was only 0.37 miles!) Paula Radcliffe congratulated me after another run, presumably nodding her approval.

I was especially interested in seeing how Nike+ helps you compete against yourself, because we had spent a lot of effort making this possible in Runmeter. The competition capabilities in Nike+ GPS are limited, and a little odd, too. One set of options allows you to compete against your very last run’s stats (distance, time, pace). Another option allows you to try to beat your record of farthest, longest, fastest 1k, or fastest 1 mile runs. Nothing more. While you are running, there is no way to get feedback to know if you are on track to beat your virtual competition. You only hear time, distance, and pace.

In Runmeter, by simply running a route multiple times, you automatically get your best, median, and worst runs for that route competing with you on a map, and also announced as a you run. If you run different routes, say one that is hilly, you can still compete against prior runs even for routes that are inherently slower. I always listen for the announcement to saying whether I’m faster than my median run for my hilly routes here in San Francisco, and it makes me run faster. You can’t do any of these things with Nike+ GPS.

Nike+ GPS doesn’t have a calendar. The history tab, shown to the right here, can’t even show 3 complete rows of runs, all just to display a distance and a couple of icons. I like the wet table visual style just like the next guy, but Nike+ GPS could be improved by considerably tightening up the user interface.

Syncing with the Nikeplus.com site was simple, I just signed up and it automatically synced when my runs finished. The Nikeplus.com site itself is beautiful, though a little slow to load, sometimes by design.
Graphs take five seconds to draw so a little running man animation is shown. It does not include a calendar, just a list of runs in your history. But Nikeplus.com’s goal setting and coaching plans are a big plus of the system.

While the competitive matrix gives the fine grain detail, here are the top 10 biggest missing items from Nike+ GPS:

1. Ability to stop and start using the earphone remote.
2. Automatic stop detection.
3. A calendar and model that keeps all your runs on the device.
4. Ghost running against previous runs, not just your very last run.
5. Configurable announcements.
6. Sending Twitter, Facebook, and Email announcements on the beginning of runs, including a link to map so your friends and family can know where you are.
7. Export capabilities of ANY kind. (You can check in any time you want, but you may never leave.)
8. Ability to edit any of the data you put into nikeplus.com. (You can only delete, or change notes, or feeling or weather icons.)
9. Real-time feedback about whether you are exceeding (or not exceeding) your goals or virtual competition while you are a running.
10. Ability to support any other activity besides running.  (Triathletes beware.)

My bottom line: Nike+ GPS is a well-designed entry-level running application, likely intended by Nike to drive more users to the Nikeplus.com site, where they will see promotions for Nike products. If you are a serious runner or triathlete, a more powerful application like Runmeter would be a better investment of your money and more importantly, your time.

Lastly, one word of caution: The inability of NikePlus.com to export any of your data means that when you start with their system, you are committed forever. We believe your data should belong to you, and that is why Runmeter supports both summary and detailed exports of your data, in standard GPX, KML, and CSV formats.

September 7, 2010 at 10:14 pm | Uncategorized

Our 4.1 Update!

Apple released iOS 4 within a few days of our 4.0 release. Now we’re about to release our 4.1 version, and wouldn’t you know, Apple plans to ship the iOS 4.1 release later this week. If anybody wants to know when iOS 5 will come out, we’ll consult our development calendar and let you know.

We’re pleased to announce that the latest update (version 4.1) of Cyclemeter, Runmeter, and Walkmeter, which have been in development for about four months now. What’s new:

• Automatic Stop Detection senses when you have stopped moving and attributes time automatically to stopped time, so that your elapsed time and other statistics cover only when you are moving. Elapsed time will continue to increase until the stop is detected, and then will roll back to when the stop started. Note: Off by default, turn on in Settings.
• Calendar Sharing synchronizes your workouts to your iPhone Calendar when you tap the Done button in the Stopwatch view, and when a workout is edited. This is useful because the iPhone Calendar may be shared with iCal or Outlook, and with external calendars, such as Google Calendar or Microsoft Exchange.

Click the links above to learn more. The update is free, just use iTunes or the App Store application on your iPhone.

September 7, 2010 at 7:19 am | Cycling, Running, Walking

Automatic Stop Detection

We love a good technical challenge. Whether it is how to race against yourself (showing your best, median, and worst runs on a map in real time), how to tap into the earphone remote so you can stop and start our app while the iPhone stays safely in your pocket, or how to dynamically filter errors out of GPS data, we love hard problems.

This is why we had a blast coding our newest feature, automatic stop detection. Just tap More, then Settings, and turn on Stop Detection. And it just works. Whenever you stop, our app analyzes the incoming GPS data, and then rolls back your elapsed time to when the stop started, and attributes the time you are stopped to the stopped time display.

While you are underway, stopped time is shown underneath your elapsed time. And then after your workout is done, you can see the summary in your detailed workout data. You can even edit the workout and turn off stop detection to see what the time would have been otherwise.

Because GPS accuracy varies, using Stop and Start or our remote control will provide the most accurate results possible. But we’ve been testing and refining it for months now, and we’re quite happy with the results. We hope you are, too!

Thanks to the hundreds of people who wrote to us requesting this feature, your input raised automatic stop detection to the top of the list.

On to the next big technical challenge!

September 7, 2010 at 7:15 am | Cycling, Running, Walking

Calendar Sharing

September 7, 2010 at 7:11 am | Cycling, Running, Walking

Cyclemeter Story: Roger Bailey

Five friends and I just completed a cycling adventure in which we travelled the whole length of the UK from John O’Groats in Scotland to Lands End in Cornwall!!

I used your Cyclemeter application to keep all of my friends, family and work colleagues up to date on our progress and I have to say it worked perfectly! Everyone was amazed at the updates that Cyclemeter provided and how it kept people interested in our progress as we travelled across the country.

We all raised money for different charities amounting to more than £10,000!!

Here are the final brief stats from our ride as follows:

Journey Time – 12 Days
Distance Travelled – 931 miles
Elevation climbed – 33,000 feet – higher than Mt Everest!!
Calories burnt – 49,000

I would just like to thank all the people who helped develop this great application. I tested Cyclemeter out in some pretty severe rain and wind, yet it never faltered once!!

September 4, 2010 at 6:37 pm | Cycling, Stories

Runmeter Story: Quynn Morehouse

I love the Runmeter application for iPhone! I’ve been running with a Garmin GPS watch for years and this app is so much better. The GPS on the iPhone and Runmeter is so much more accurate than my Garmin. The app is fantastic. The way you can see your splits, see your route in a map format, look at prior runs and compare progress is awesome. I just started training for my 5th marathon and I hope to qualify for the Boston Marathon. Since using Runmeter, my runs have been getting faster and faster. Prior to using Runmeter, I wouldn’t have a sense as to how much faster I was running unless I did the calculation manually. It’s great to have feedback while you’re running so you know when you’re slower or faster than your average pace. I haven’t qualified for Boston yet, but when I do Runmeter will be the one to thank. This application is by far the best one I have on my iPhone. Thanks!!!

September 4, 2010 at 6:36 pm | Running, Stories

Cyclemeter Story: Barry Grabowski

I, and some fellow riders, recently completed the BC Cancer Foundation Ride to Conquer Cancer. This was a 250 kilometer ride from Vancouver, BC to Seattle, Washington, which took place over two days. It supports fundraising for the BC Cancer Agency, a leading research centre in Canada. We have been training for the ride since early March 2010. One of the first apps I installed on my iPhone was Cyclemeter, and I’ve been using it ever since to track our training rides so we could see our progress as the distance of our rides increased. Just being able to visualize our rides on a map made it easier for us to appreciate our gains and give us continued confidence to go farther and ride longer.

At one of our fundraisers, we had supporters guess our accumulated training mileage and Cyclemeter was a cool way to verify to everyone how much we had accomplished.

I think the app is great and I’m looking forward to the next upgrade to Cyclemeter.

September 4, 2010 at 6:34 pm | Cycling, Stories

Walkmeter Story: David Gary Henry

Thanks so much for creating Walkmeter. I’ve tried several other GPS-related fitness apps and they just didn’t suit me.  A little more than a year ago, both of my knees were so bad I could no longer do the outdoor activities I’ve been doing all my life.  So, At 66 years young I decided to have both knees replaced. I had the left one done last May and the right one done in December 2010. Now I’m back walking, biking, hiking and swimming and can walk stairs again with no pain.  A couple of month ago a friend told me to try Walkmeter and now I’m using it daily for walking, hiking, biking. It’s great! The app sends me an email when I’m done and I can log my progress to a spreadsheet. It puts the notes directly on Facebook and my friends’ replies to my status updates keep me motivated. I love that fact you can see your results on Google Maps and can do some sets over again to keep improving.  Great Job, and thanks for the very prompt update to 4.0.

September 4, 2010 at 6:30 pm | Stories, Walking

Cyclemeter Story: QJ Henderson

I’d like to share a recent experience I had using your Cyclemeter app. A friend and I recently tackled the challenge of riding across Kansas in an organized ride called ‘Bike Across Kansas.’ (http://www.bak.org/) It was the 36th year for the ride, which had more than 800 riders. It’s a 475 mile journey taking 8 days and 7 nights. About a month before the ride, I started looking for bike computers that I could take along on the ride. I have an iPhone so decided to look for appropriate apps too. I was impressed with the description of Cyclemeter, but the user ratings were what convinced me to download it. I tested the app for several weeks. My wife and family really liked its ability to email them a link to a map that would allow them to track my progress across Kansas. So, instead of spending $300 on a high-end cycle computer, I chose to go with Cyclemeter. I loaded up email addresses for our immediate family members as they were looking forward to tracking our progress, in real time, each day of the trip. So many people wanted these updates I ended up with 40-50 people on my email list! I’m really excited to see the continued updates to the app. I will end by saying that the Cyclemeter app is a 5-star application that I look forward to using for a long time. Congratulations to your team on an excellent job.

September 4, 2010 at 6:20 pm | Cycling, Stories

Walkmeter Story: Michael Allen

As a postal delivery officer in Sydney, I was missing quite a few deadlines until I bought the Walkmeter app. I use Walkmeter to track my position during my postal route. It has helped me to stay motivated by monitoring how fast I’m walking compared to previous routes and whether I’m going faster or slower compared to my deadline time. Walkmeter also tracks how many kilometers I walk each day and over a week’s time. I have used many GPS fitness tracking applications and Walkmeter is the most accurate and energy-efficient application I’ve used yet. I recommend Walkmeter to any postal delivery officer who has an iPhone. It does the job!

September 4, 2010 at 5:48 pm | Stories, Walking

Cyclemeter Story: Sean Overend

I just completed the annual 300km ride around Lake Vattern in Sweden along with 21,000 other riders. I used Cyclemeter for the entire ride and for me, the highlight was that it allowed me to send out email messages to my friends and family every hour, throughout the ride, entirely automatically. My son in Newbury, my daughter in Istanbul and local Swedish recipients all knew precisely how the ride was going and were able to send messages back to me via SMS (which I could see on the screen without stopping the app), or email or by way of Facebook. I’m so glad to see that the latest version of Cyclemeter can run in the background, thanks to the new iPhone operating system that allows multitasking.

September 4, 2010 at 5:42 pm | Cycling, Stories

A Great Week: iOS 4 and iPhone 4 Support

It’s been a great week!

• Monday: iOS 4 available.
• Wednesday: Apple approves version 4.0 of Runmeter, Walkmeter, and Cyclemeter.
• Thursday: Received my new iPhone 4.
• Friday: Took my first run  the iPhone 4.

Here’s a video about our support of multitasking and iOS 4.

Thanks to all of our customers who wrote to us, and for the all the encouragement for our apps and iOS 4!

June 25, 2010 at 6:03 pm | Cycling, Running, Walking

3.0.3 Released

Version 3.0.3 of Cyclemeter, Runmeter, and Walkmeter is now available in the App Store. Here’s what’s new:

• We added a setting to announcements that gives you two options for how our announcements interact with iPod audio.  In the past, the default had been to interrupt the iPod audio.  Many of our customers said they’d rather have the iPod audio “duck” (lower in volume) while the announcement is play, so we made it an option.  If Interrupt iPod Audio is On, then the iPod will be interrupted during announcements.  If off, the iPod volume will be lowered.  This also helped with an issue in which an announcement would happen, and iPod audio would stay off.
• We added a setting called Power Off Remote After that helps save battery life.  If you lock your iPhone, this setting controls how long the app will keep listening for you to use the earphone remote to start and stop.
• Settings for “Run Shows” and “Walk Shows” was added, which controls whether those activities show speed (distance / time) or pace (time / distance) measurements.  This is also available if you edit the Run or Walk activities, but we wanted to make this easier for folks to find and change.
• By popular demand, we added “Day” and “All” summaries to the calendar.  Now the app can summarize by day, week, month, year, and overall.
• We added more distance intervals for announcements.
• We improved calorie calculations for cycling.
• We also improved performance, especially for generating KML files and and drawing large routes.

We work continuously to improve our apps, and we answer all of our support requests personally, and quickly.  Our 3.0.3 version is the 17th update we’ve done this year, all providing more functionality, improved quality, and enhanced performance.  We hope you like it.

May 23, 2010 at 7:37 am | Cycling, Running, Walking

Announcing 3.0!

We’re very pleased to announce availability of the 3.0 versions of Runmeter, Cyclemeter, and Walkmeter. Lots of great features, from best-in-class Facebook support, including text-to-speech announcement of comments, to the very practical Offline Mode (for our European friends who want to avoid roaming charges), and intense exporting of all of your running data. And finally, email updates so your friends, family, and coaches know where when you head out, and where you are.

For more detail, see our press release, or better yet, take a product tour of Runmeter, Cyclemeter, or Walkmeter.

April 19, 2010 at 10:02 pm | Cycling, Running, Walking

Buzz

In the past month our applications have been increasingly catching the attention of the media, and we are truly grateful for the kind words written about us. We’re thankful for inspiring customers and the wonderful iPhone platform. Here is a sample of what has been written about us. To see a full list, visit our Press page.

Runmeter and Cyclemeter for iPhone Review

in Macworld by Matthew Honan
also in Businessweek as Runmeter and Cyclemeter for iPhone

At one point in the very near past, if you wanted to track your speed and distance over a bike ride or run, calculate your calories burned, listen to music, share exercise data with friends, and view your route afterward, you’d need a cyclometer, a calculator, an iPod, an e-mail program, and, of course, a map. Today, however, all of these functions have been rolled into one device, the iPhone, thanks to great fitness tracking applications like Runmeter and Cyclemeter from Abvio.

Abvio Runmeter: The new King of iPhone fitness apps?

in PhoneDog by Noah Kravitz

For months now, RunKeeper Pro for iPhone has been my favorite running app. That all changed when I went to MacWorld this past January and met the folks from Abvio. Abvio’s Runmeter 2.0 is a seriously great GPS-based fitness app for iPhone.

Best of Macworld: Abvio Runmeter, Cyclemeter, Walkmeter

by Beatweek (formerly iProng)

Are you a fitness enthusiast? If you enjoy running, cycling, or going for a walk, try out Abvio’s new line of fitness apps — Runmeter, Cyclemeter, and Walkmeter. These exercise apps use the iPhone’s GPS to track and visualize exercise activities as well as help improve athletic performance and health. Each of these apps are similar to one another except for the fact that they come pre-customized to suit the needs of its user — the walker, runner, or cyclist.

This is just the beginning. We have big plans in store for the product, and we’re always glad to hear from our customers.

March 16, 2010 at 5:01 pm | Cycling, Running, Walking

Best of Show!

We’re proud to let you know that the good folks at Beatweek Magazine just chose Runmeter, Walkmeter, and Cyclemeter as Best of Show at Macworld 2010!   Today’s the last day of Macworld, and we’re having a blast demoing the product to hundreds and hundreds of people.

 

February 13, 2010 at 10:27 am | Cycling, Running, Walking

See us at Macworld 2010!

Abvio Demonstrates Innovative iPhone 3G/3GS Fitness Applications for Running, Cycling and Walking at Macworld 2010

San Francisco – (February 9, 2010) — Abvio demonstrates the latest release of their iPhone 3G/3GS GPS-based fitness applications, Runmeter, Cyclemeter and Walkmeter, at Macworld 2010. All three are among the top 100 paid applications in iTunes’ Healthcare & Fitness category, and Runmeter was recently featured by Apple in “What’s Hot” on the App Store.

WHAT: Abvio executives, including founders Steve Kusmer and Kevin Wallace, will be on hand to show the applications and discuss how rapid innovation has contributed to the success of Runmeter, Cyclemeter and Walkmeter. Application “firsts” include the ability to use the Apple earphone remote to start and stop the app; Twitter text-to-speech for voiced Twitter replies and direct Google Maps sharing via Twitter and email.

WHERE: Macworld 2010, Mobile Applications Showcase, Booth 1366, Station 67, at Moscone Convention Center in San Francisco, California.

WHEN: February 11-14, 2010

About Abvio
Abvio LLC is a privately held, San Francisco-based iPhone application developer devoted entirely to building comprehensive, easy-to-use iPhone applications for fitness. Please visit www.abvio.com to find out more.

Press Contact: Lori Scribner, 619-993-1784 or email hidden; JavaScript is required

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All company and product names are trademarks of their respective owners.

February 9, 2010 at 10:13 am | Cycling, Running, Walking

AppStoreWeek Review of Walkmeter 2.0

Jack Latham at AppStoreWeek wrote a review of Walkmeter 2.0:

http://appstoreweek.com/2010/01/03/walkmeter-gps-for-fitness-weight-loss-iphone-app-review/

Thanks so much for the thoughtful review, Jack!

January 20, 2010 at 3:27 pm | Walking

Announcing Cyclemeter 2.0

Cyclemeter 2.0 Transforms the iPhone 3G/3GS into a Powerful Cycling Computer with Google Map Sharing, Twitter Text-to-Speech and More

iTunes’ best selling cycling app Cyclemeter makes training easy with control via Apple earphone remote and motivational support from Twitter community

San Francisco – January 20, 2010 – iPhone fitness application developer Abvio LLC today added Cyclemeter 2.0 to its list of health and fitness offerings for the iPhone 3G/3GS. Already an iTunes best seller for cyclists, version 2.0 adds new features to turn the iPhone into a powerful GPS stopwatch, giving cyclists the feedback and motivation to ride faster, go farther, burn more calories and become healthier. Cyclemeter 2.0 also offers built-in Twitter text-to-speech so cyclists can hear Twitter replies during rides from coaches, fellow riders and family. Cyclemeter 2.0 further improves ease-of-use and safety with voice announcements and the ability to use the Apple earphone remote to start/stop the app.

“I have tried a few of the other bike apps out there and nothing compares to Cyclemeter. I had been using another iPhone app, not designed for cycling, but so much of the ride information was uploaded to a Web site and not kept on my phone,” said Rick Savage, Cyclemeter user. “I absolutely love the voice announcements, which allows me to train harder during my daily 20 mile route to and from work.”

The new Google Maps feature in Cyclemeter 2.0 lets riders send links to maps of rides and routes via email or Twitter. Cyclemeter continually records ride time, location, distance, elevation and pace and allows riders to see results on maps, graphs and a calendar organized by routes and activities. Cyclemeter 2.0 is battery-friendly, unlike many GPS applications for the iPhone, so cyclists can train for up to six hours without recharging, or for many days using battery extenders. For training and sharing purposes, cyclists can export the ride data from their iPhone in GPX and KML or in CSV directly to a spreadsheet.

“Cyclists want first-rate equipment, and we built Cyclemeter with their expectations and needs in mind,” said Steve Kusmer, co-founder and CEO of Abvio. “We are grateful that our customers have made us the top selling iPhone application for cycling, and we are continuing to improve Cyclemeter at break-neck speed.”

Cyclemeter 2.0 is entirely iPhone-centric. It requires no Web site login or monthly subscription and is completely ad-free. Cyclemeter 2.0 is available now on the Apple iTunes App Store (www.abvio.com/getcyclemeter) for $4.99 (US). For a product tour, please go to www.cyclemeter.com.

About Abvio LLC
Abvio LLC is a privately held, San Francisco-based iPhone application developer devoted entirely to building comprehensive, easy-to-use iPhone applications for fitness. Please visit www.abvio.com to find out more.

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Media Contact:
Lori Scribner
Abvio Public Relations Representative
Phone: 619.993.1784
email hidden; JavaScript is required

All company and product names are trademarks of their respective owners.

January 20, 2010 at 7:00 am | Cycling

Announcing Runmeter 2.0

Runmeter 2.0 for iPhone 3G/3GS Powers Your Training with First Text-to-Speech Tweets and Google Map Sharing

Apple earphone remote start/stop and other groundbreaking capabilities make Runmeter the most usable and powerful running application available

San Francisco – December 16, 2009 – iPhone fitness application developer Abvio LLC today announced Runmeter 2.0, the most comprehensive running application for the iPhone 3G/3GS. Runmeter turns your phone into a powerful GPS stopwatch, giving runners feedback to run faster and increase endurance. Runmeter 2.0 is the first iPhone application to offer built-in Twitter text-to-speech, so runners can hear Twitter replies during training from their coaches, friends and family.

“Runmeter is very easy to use, and it has more power than any other application and sports watch I’ve tried. I’ve logged over 250 miles using Runmeter,” said George Ayoub, a runner and Runmeter user.

It also is the first iPhone application with the ability to start or stop the application from Apple’s earphone remote, and is the first iPhone fitness application to allow direct Google Maps sharing via email or Twitter. Runners can now easily share running routes with friends, coaches, running partners and their entire community of Twitter followers. And, unlike many GPS-based applications, Runmeter 2.0 is battery-friendly — runners can train for up to six hours without recharging or using a battery extender.

“Runmeter 2.0 is the first running app that you can control and use while your iPhone is sleeping and secure in your pocket or armband,” said Steve Kusmer, co-founder and CEO of Abvio. “We are an extremely customer-centric, innovation-driven company and use the products ourselves. These influences drove the creation of Runmeter, and will continue to drive us forward and benefit our customers.”

Runmeter 2.0 gives you all of the tools and data you need to help meet fitness and running goals, whether that goal is to complete your first 5k race or train for a full marathon. It includes maps, a complete calendar of all your runs, graphs of elevation and pace, spoken announcements of your statistics as you run, and much more.

Runmeter 2.0 is entirely iPhone-centric. It requires no Web site login or monthly subscription and is completely ad-free. Runmeter 2.0 is available now from the Apple iTunes Store for $4.99 (US). For a complete product tour, please visit: www.runmeter.com.

About Abvio LLC

Abvio LLC is a privately held, San Francisco-based iPhone application developer devoted entirely to building comprehensive, easy-to-use iPhone applications for fitness. Please visit www.abvio.com to find out more.

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Media Contact:
Lori Scribner
Abvio Public Relations Representative
Phone: 619.993.1784
email hidden; JavaScript is required

All company and product names are trademarks of their respective owners.

December 16, 2009 at 10:06 am | Running

Good For Your Knees

In my prior blog post Live Longer, I wrote about the study that shows that running extends your active life up to 16 years.

Well, there’s more good news. In the NY Times article Phys Ed: Can Running Actually Help Your Knees? another study is cited that shows that running may actually help prevent your knees from becoming arthritic:

Instead, recent evidence suggests that running may actually shield somewhat against arthritis, in part because the knee develops a kind of motion groove. A group of engineers and doctors at Stanford published a study in the February issue of The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery that showed that by moving and loading your knee joint, as you do when walking or running, you “condition” your cartilage to the load. It grows accustomed to those particular movements. You can run for miles, decades, a lifetime, without harming it. But if this exquisite balance is disturbed, usually by an injury, the loading mechanisms shift, the moving parts of the knee are no longer in their accustomed alignment and a “degenerative pathway” seems to open. The cartilage, like an unbalanced tire, wears away. Pain, tissue disintegration and, eventually, arthritis can follow.

NYTimes.com:  Phys Ed: Can Running Actually Help Your Knees?

August 12, 2009 at 9:04 am | Running

Walking Your Way To Running Marathons

The New York TImes has an article about the benefits of incorporating walking into your running training regimen. This approach was popularized by distance coach Jeff Galloway, a member of the 1972 Olympic Team, and could be your key to completing a marathon.

NYT: Better Running Through Walking

June 3, 2009 at 7:03 am | Running, Walking

Live Longer

Why do you run? Is it for the runner’s high? For feeling healthy? For maintaining a healthy weight? Do you do it for competition? For community?

How about this reason: running will add 16 years to your active life.

A study by Stanford University researchers in the Journal of the American Medical Association’s Archive of Internal Medicine tracked 538 older runners for 21 years. Major findings of this study:

• The first disability for runners occurred on average 16 years later than that of a control group.
• Not only does running delay cardiovascular mortality, it also delays deaths due to cancer, neurological disease, infections, and other causes
• Running does not increase rates of osteoarthritis.  Runners do not require more total knee replacements.

For further reading, see Running slows the aging clock, a news release from the Stanford School of Medicine.  For the study itself, see Reduced Disability and Mortality Among Aging Runners from the Archives of Internal Medicine, the Journal of the American Medicine Association.

And get back out on the road, the trail, the treadmill, your skis, or on your bike.

March 8, 2009 at 10:03 pm | Running, Walking