Group “Personal” Training — Personal fitness trainers can command $100 or more per hour for one-on-one instruction. But at many health clubs, the economic downturn is taking the “personal” out of personal training. Ranked No. 5 on the American College of Sports Medicine’s 2010 “Worldwide Survey of Fitness Trends,” a growing option at health clubs gives exercisers the benefits of a private instructor at a reduced rate. Dr. Walter Thompson, author of the survey, says personal trainers more and more now allow small groups to sign up for a session and split the costs. “For the consumer, it is a great deal,” says Thompson. “Plus, they can exercise with a friend.”
Weird Two-Wheelers — Minnesota inventor Scott Olson, a founder of Rollerblade Inc., can take credit for popularizing a new class of bike. Olson’s Rowbike ($1,188, www.rowbike.com), which melds a bicycle with a rowing machine, came out a few years back. Today, several small companies sell bikes that trade platform pedals for exercise-machine features. The Street Strider ($1,995, www.streetstrider.com) has three wheels and elliptical-machine-like foot pads. Revolutionary Rocket’s semi-recumbent bike ($2,300, www.revolutionaryrocket.com) gives a full-body workout with regular pedals plus a pumpable handlebar that adds power to the drivetrain. Most odd, the Treadmill Bike ($2,000, www.bikeforest.com) puts a mini treadmill platform atop a bike frame, letting riders run in place to move two wheels forward on the road.
Weight Loss for Money — “Lose the weight or lose your money!” That’s the headline at www.loseitorloseit.com, a new type of weight-loss company that essentially holds your money hostage until you lose a set amount of weight. Users log on and commit money toward a weight-loss goal — from $5 to $100 per pound. You get your money back only if you drop pounds and meet your marks. Randy Schmidt, the Lansdale, Pa., creator of the site, told the Associated Press that he initially made the project for himself. “I needed something where I would be punished if I didn’t lose weight,” he said.
—Stephen Regenold writes about fitness and the outdoors at www.gearjunkie.com.
