In college I had an old Chevy pickup truck that was cursed. For starters the rear bumper had a way of removing itself from the truck’s frame – once I clipped a wall and pulled it off, once a mechanic did the same, twice my brother did it (helping a friend move and pulling another friend off the outer beach in Chatham, Cape Cod at 4am in the morning).
Another problem I had with the truck revolved around the fact that on average, a college student moves (dorm, apartment, flophouse) 130 times and with a pickup you’re everyone’s best friend.
By far the biggest issue with that truck was never knowing how much gasoline i had left in the tank. The warning/idiot light would sometimes illuminate with gallons of gas remaining and sometimes with maybe a teaspoon.
With exercise, proper hydration is a priority. While not equipped with an idiot light, most people know when they’re thirsty. For those of you who are prone to misjudge hydration, there is help in the HydraCoach, a USD $30.00 water bottle with a built-in computer that measures what you drink and calculates when you should take another sip.
Sportline, the maker of the HydraCoach, calls it “a revolutionary new water bottle that calculates an individual’s daily hydration needs and coaches proper water consumption to ensure optimal hydration.”
For some, this product may serve it’s purpose well. For me it’s still “light pee-good pee, dark pee-thirst-ee.” I have a ritual for how much I drink before, during and after a workout depending on weather, expected exertion and distance (I guess I’ll call this the WEED principal, developed by yours truly).
In college I had a few teammates who were ‘HydraCoaches’ – just a bunch of drunk lacrosse players yelling ‘Drink! Drink! Drink!’ If you find yourself constantly dehydrated and don’t have the benefit of a keg, yard and unchecked testosterone, consider the HydraCoach.
The Nike Speed+ can supplant the iPod as the device used to relay run data. This is useful for people who don’t like to run with an iPod, but for most an additional piece of equipment wouldn’t be necessary.
