Exercise Equipment

I see lots of ads for so-called exercise devices that use electric charges to work muscles. My mother used a similar product for several decades with no benefits. What's your take? CHUCK A., Santa Monica -- The products: All of our actions -- blinks, hand waves, stomach crunches -- start with electrical signals from the brain. If you can't stand the thought of stomach crunches, you can always bypass your brain and strap on some electrodes.

As Adam Boesel pedals an exercise bike, he sends power to a generator that converts his workout calories into electricity. Across the room in his small eco-friendly gym are half a dozen energy-efficient treadmills. On the roof, solar arrays gather more natural energy. In Boesel's new gym, people will not only slim their waistlines, they will also shrink their carbon footprint. Welcome to people-powered exercise for a small planet.

A new class appears on your health club's schedule, and it promises to sculpt your thighs, flatten your abs and make your gluteus maximus a lot more minimus, all with the use of a new contraption that looks like it may have had its roots at Home Depot. Chances are this latest offering wasn't incubated in a corporate boardroom.

Golfers can measure their progress in strokes. Marathoners can map out their improvement in minutes. And weightlifters can track their strength in pounds. But what's a bicyclist to do? Elite and weekend riders alike used to record their workouts by monitoring average speed, heart rate and perceived exertion.

"Barefoot running shoe" is not an oxymoron. It's a shoe designed to give you the feeling -- and substantial benefits -- of running barefoot. Long used as a common foot-strengthening drill by Olympic running coaches, barefoot running forces you to make a soft landing on the forefoot (not the heel) that helps eliminate many knee and ankle injuries. But many runners -- leery of wayward pebbles and splinters -- are not quite ready to go completely barefoot.

Even as we flop on the couch, the potato in all of us is grabbed by promises of quick and easy fitness advertised by hard bodies selling workout equipment on TV and in magazines. "Better toning than 45 minutes of aerobics!" "The intelligent sit-up!" "Just five minutes, twice a day!" "The world's best aerobic exerciser!" The claims are hard to ignore. They make fitness sound so painless, so enjoyable, so simple.

Visiting the gym every day isn't easy; when you're on the road, it's almost impossible. For a fitness buff, that makes travel -- business or leisure -- more stressful than it needs to be. What to do? Some people stay only at hotels that have fitness facilities; others map walking, hiking or running routes (hotel concierges can usually help); still others pack compact workout equipment to help them maintain their fitness routine within the confines of their hotel room.

I looked at the rowing machine before me. I looked at the 14 other people sitting down to their rowers. I looked up front at the instructor who promised to take us on a strenuous 50-minute rowing workout that he said would "change the way we think about fitness." And I suddenly became very afraid. I wasn't afraid I couldn't hack it. I was afraid my back couldn't hack it.

ROSIE O'DONNELL hangs upside down to treat depression. "The Da Vinci Code" author Dan Brown does it for a creative burst. And runner Marc Swerdlow of Highland Park, Ill., swears it alleviates back pain. Should you shake up your life with inversions, a concept traditionally embraced by yogis, children, gymnasts and bats? As with all activities that promise better health, it depends on your fitness level, preexisting conditions and expectations.

As the woman began pedaling her stationary bike, her console came to life with a video game called "The Maze." She pedaled faster as the ladybug on the screen methodically gobbled up rows of little dots; when she slowed down, so did the bug, which eventually got annihilated by an animated spider. This is exercise-related technology, circa 2003, as fitness equipment manufacturers and gyms look for new ways to get people moving. At the recent International Health, Racquet & Sportsclub Assn.

It's common for people to do a double take when they enter Ernest Debs Park in Bell. Children frolic on the grass field, teenagers play pickup basketball and people chat on benches. Then there is the cluster of treadmills, rowing machines and air walkers at the front of the park. City officials didn't know what to expect a year ago when they opened a free outdoor gym. But it's become a big success, drawing droves of residents in the working-class town who cannot afford gym memberships.

As Adam Boesel pedals an exercise bike, he sends power to a generator that converts his workout calories into electricity. Across the room in his small eco-friendly gym are half a dozen energy-efficient treadmills. On the roof, solar arrays gather more natural energy. In Boesel's new gym, people will not only slim their waistlines, they will also shrink their carbon footprint. Welcome to people-powered exercise for a small planet.

Retired Huntington Beach firefighter Robert LaFever, 61, and his wife, Gaye, 57, a retired dental hygienist, wanted to stay fit with daily swimming and water running, but didn't like the heavily chlorinated water at the gym and didn't have the budget and backyard space for their own full-size pool. The solution? Last year they got a swim spa -- essentially an elongated hot tub with a current emanating from one end.

Rucksack, knapsack, packsack, haversack. Whatever you want to call it, the backpack is better than ever. With highly engineered back ventilation, quick-access zippered hip pockets, built-in hydration-system compatibility and more, the new packs help keep you cool, well-fed and well-hydrated. Here are four standout models that'll cover your back on five-hour adventure races, all-day and overnight hikes and multi-day adventures.

"Use it or lose it" goes for most things in life, including balance. Athletes use it to stick a landing, dodge a would-be tackler and score 9s on "Dancing With the Stars." When de-conditioned folks lose it, they feel shaky on a bike, walk stiffly and slowly, and risk falling and breaking their hip while vacuuming the floor. Fortunately, balance comes back when you work the quick-reaction core muscles that coordinate a body in motion, traditionally with the assistance of stability products such as wobble boards and Swiss balls.

Nike and Apple are making the iPod compatible with gym equipment. The companies say they are working with manufacturers and the health clubs 24-Hour Fitness and Virgin Athletic Health Clubs to allow members to plug their iPod Nanos into cardio equipment. They can then track workouts, set goals and upload the information to a Nike website. The technology, which is set to roll out to more than 500 gyms worldwide this summer, is another partnership for Nike Inc. and Apple Inc., which created the Nike+ system more than a year ago. The wireless system allows Nike running shoes embedded with a sensor to communicate with the Nano.

The gig: As "America's Personal Trainer," Little runs a fitness empire that includes exercise equipment, videos, apparel and nutritional products. The former bodybuilder's infomercials are aired in 81 countries, and his products -- such as the Gazelle -- have grossed more than $3 billion. He is also known for his catchphrase, "You can do it!" Education: Graduated from Dixie M. Hollins High School in St. Petersburg, Fla., in 1975.

One day, the world would see the light. Dr. James Levine was convinced of it. For years, the Mayo Clinic endocrinologist has been a man on a mission. Firmly believing that everyone should be more active, he cobbled together a treadmill and computer station for his office. The contraption lets him work and walk at the same time and, in doing so, he created a new antidote for a typical office-bound, sedentary lifestyle. At least one company has gone toward the light.

There's some new buzz on vibrating exercise platforms. The machines, which are cropping up with increasing frequency in gyms and exercise rooms, are used during workouts. They're based on the theory that vibrating the body like a giant tuning fork will strengthen muscles, increase flexibility and build bone.

Visiting the gym every day isn't easy; when you're on the road, it's almost impossible. For a fitness buff, that makes travel -- business or leisure -- more stressful than it needs to be. What to do? Some people stay only at hotels that have fitness facilities; others map walking, hiking or running routes (hotel concierges can usually help); still others pack compact workout equipment to help them maintain their fitness routine within the confines of their hotel room.