Tag: Running »

The darkness is coming. It won't give up. Ever. The only option is to run. Dodge obstacles, plan ahead and only resort to direct conflict when there's absolutely no other choice. But most importantly: Never. Stop. Running.

InterWave Studios, in collaboration with EVENT Interactive, is bringing one of the best indie runners this side of Canabalt to iOS. rComplex is a beautifully stylized runner with a story. One that will only fully reveal itself to those with the fortitude and reflexes to brave all seven of the world's environments. Players control a nameless "running man" as he jumps, ducks, dodges and sprints from his seemingly omniscient pursuer.

Aside from looking super-awesome (no, really, look at those screens!) it also offers up a bit more variety than a standard runner. Each level involves running of a sort, certainly, but some use close-quarters to up the tension while others utilize lane-changing motorcycle chases. Plus there's that story I mentioned that can be uncovered through a combination of progress and item/secret discovery.

There's no official price announcement yet, but rComplex is due out at the end of February. All things considered, I don't think I mind having to wait another month to get some hands-on time. I'm fairly certain it'll be worth it.

The Nike+ GPS app is not only one of my favorite running partners, but its predecessor Nike+ was crucial in getting me across the finish line of my first marathon. For first-time and veteran runners, Nike+ GPS is a great addition to their workout as it features a simple interface, tracks all the good stuff such as calories, distance and pace as well as includes various half and full marathon training guides on its companion site.

As for my first 26.2 mile adventure, I finished the 2007 Chicago Marathon with a heat index of 92 degrees and the only thing that got me through to the finish line was my playlist and my running tracker, the original Nike+ that had the sensor in the shoe and one connected to my now old school iPod Nano.

These days, I use the Nike+ GPS app and if I pull the app dashboard up it has a total of 801.2 miles, 9'43" average pace, 129:43:19 duration, 110,245 calories burned in a total of 226 runs. That doesn't include a lot of the other runs I have on other apps or 2007-2008, but still shows how much I've used it. I also finished the Phoenix Marathon in 2010.

Why I choose to use the Nike+ GPS app is mainly due to being able to get slaps on the back by famous athletes such as Lance Armstrong and others via the in-app feedback function. I remember way back in the day when I ran my fastest mile and Lance came over my headphones and said congratulations. I was hooked.

A few updates later and now it features a slew of other voices as well as one of the coolest features I've seen in an app: the ability to challenge friends. My nephew (who is in the Air Force) and I use it quite a bit. Even better, it offers a blind challenge option where the challenger can create the challenge with or without the other person being able to see how far or fast the other person ran.

The reason why Nike+ GPS is a great marathon training partner is that it is very easy to track weekly runs, check that my pace was on track during and after my runs as well as set goals for myself be it running farther, longer or fast. And again, the elite athletes giving a verbal pat on the back is pretty sweet. Pair the app with its companion site Nike+ and the runner can also take advantage of training programs for 5K, half marathon and full marathon among others.

The app and the site are an essential part of my running training schedule. I give all credit to it for the two marathons and half marathons I've run and continue to use it to challenge my nephew on a regular basis. I highly recommend it as a running partner and or coach.

The award-winning Scosche MyTrek Pulse Monitor is an arm band that communicates wirelessly with the free myTREK health and fitness app. The app displays real-time pulse, target training zone, calories burned, distance and speed of run, total workout time and provides voice prompts during the workout. At $129.99, the pulse monitor works exlusively with the above mentioned app and seems to greatly reduce the bulkiness of the many chest and watch combinations.

With accurate pulse monitoring, the user can easily assess the intensity of their workout and adjust which training zone they're in by using the five color coded options to quickly identify the desired intensity level. Based on personal health information, each workout zone is represented in a different color, including Resting Zone (White), Weight Loss Zone (Green), Fitness Zone (Yellow), Performance Zone (Orange) and Red Line Zone (Red). Each training session can be customized by adjusting the type of activity, target training zone and type of workout all within the app. It also includes motivational voice prompts to get the user to the finish line as well as makes it easy to control music via the integrated buttons on the Scosche myTREK Wireless Pulse Monitor.

Ama-Hina falls squarely into the "endless runner" category of iOS games. The core experience involves running to the right at an increasingly speedy pace while avoiding obstacles. Don't trip-up, keep moving, go for the high score. With a couple of modifiers. For some reason, the city (Tokyo? Kyoto? Some other Japanese urban center?) is under siege from a large number of reanimated corpses. For some other reason, the only citizens willing and possibly able to do anything are a couple of schoolgirls. Super hero-like schoolgirls.

One of them makes zombies evaporate with her punches and kicks while the other slices the festering aggressors to bits with a sword. Choice is limited to the brawler for the initial playthrough, but once all of the levels have been cleared players are free to choose between either of the uniformed duo. Plus a third special character. Gameplay is still limited to tapping the left side of the screen to jump, the right to attack and swiping to use a special, but each characters' timing and range is a little different.

Like most runners, Ama-Hina is great for short bursts of play that typically result in more time lost than was expected. Stringing attacks together, deftly clearing an old distance record and timing those jumps juuuust right kept me coming back time and time again. Having three different levels ranging in difficulty, speed and enemy selection didn't hurt either. Plus there's just something incredibly satisfying about beating the snot out of zombies with a tough-as-nails high school girl.

Ama-Hina has a bit of an ugly side, though. Not the graphics, those are great in their own way, but the controls. They're functional enough, but there's a disconnect. Oftentimes the action moves along so fast that I might jump to avoid an obstacle only to land right on top of a zombie that appeared after I'd left the ground. Depending on the distance and speed a well-timed kick could take care of it, but there were several instances where the zombie lay just out of range but still close enough to do some damage. I've also had similar problems with regular attacks when things really get moving. The faster the character is moving, the greater the chance to knock back an enemy. Problem is they tend to get knocked back too far, so repeated attacks fall just out of range so I end up punching or slashing the air and wasting precious time.

Ama-Hina is still an entertaining action runner when things run smoothly. It's just that when they don't it can get rather frustrating. That shouldn't deter the curious from giving it a look, though. Sure there are plenty of other titles in the genre out there, but how many of them involve re-killing zombies anime-style as a schoolgirl? Not many.

Want a one stop solution for transforming an iOS device into an all-in-one fitness training partner? Then why not consider Wahoo Fitness's Wahoo Run/Gym Pack?

For $119.99, it offers everything an exercise fan could want. Using ANT+ technology, the pack combines GPS, heart rate, music playing and phone facilities all into one package. Connect an iOS device up to heart rate monitors, foot pods and other fitness sensors all through this piece of kit.

As CEO of Wahoo Fitness, Chip Hawkins, puts it: "You no longer have to purchase a designated fitness watch. You’re already carrying your iPhone or iPod Touch with you for music and safety; might as well have it track your workout too.”

The Wahoo Run/Gym Pack includes a Wahoo Soft Heart Rate Strap and Wahoo Key which links the iOS device to the most popular heart rate monitors and other ANT+ sensors. It's all compatible with over 100 of the most popular fitness apps like RunKeeper, MapMyRun+ and more, with the kit coming bundled with Wahoo Fitness' own app.

The Wahoo Run/Gym Pack is available now for $129.99 at Best Buy stores across the country as well as on the Wahoo website.

Quite a few of my friends are much fitter than I am and have successfully completed 5k runs and even the odd marathon too. Cheering them on as they proceed is great but it's not always very easy to keep up with them! Plus sometimes I just can't make it to the event but would love to keep track of their progress. A pretty cool app could well change that, at least for New York City Marathon goers.

An app by the name of the ING New York City Marathon Spectator app is set to be released in time for the event in November. It's from the team behind MapMyRun and iMapMyRide and looks set to revolutionize things. GPS technology will allow users to keep track of competitors in real time and it works with RFID chip timings.

Participants can also set the app to tweet and update their Facebook status in accordance to how they're performing. Text, email and mobile push notifications can also be arranged.

It looks set to be a pretty cool tool for race participants with additional features aimed at the specific race such as an official map listing where first and hydration stations are located. Hopefully it's something that will spread to other marathons in the near future.

The ING New York City Marathon Spectator App will be released by October 28, 2011. We'll be sure to keep track of this app's progress.