In an article at the Chicago Tribune about medgadgets, we read about Walk4Life pedometers and their uses. According to the Tribune “modem-ready, easy-to-wear pedometers are used in school, college and university physical education programs around the world.”
Walk4Life, the manufacturer, describes positive results from a recent scientific study of its pedometers:
In the first study to assess the accuracy of pedometer activity time, researchers from Oregon State University found that the activity time feature of the Walk4Life 2505 (Duo) 2-function pedometer was a more accurate way of measuring true activity levels in children. Published in the March issue of the official journal of the American College of Sports Medicine, the study confirmed that across all speeds and between units, the Walk4Life activity time did not vary more than 5.3 seconds from actual time. The study also confirmed the step count accuracy of Walk4Life pedometers, one of several validation studies in the last several years.
Reporting their results in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, Vol., 37, No. 3, researchers Michael W. Beets, Megan M. Patton and Stacey Edwards of the Department of Public Health at Oregon State University in Corvallis, said “we found that pedometer time (Walk4Life 2505) was accurate independent of step count accuracy or speed of walking. While the steps may or may not be an exact representation of the amount of activity one is accruing, pedometer time is.”
To be frank, I am not really sure what all this means. The bottom line is that pedometers are also getting better and better over time, thanks to the innovative pedometer companies.
If you would like to learn more about Walk4Life pedometers, go here. Otherwise I am totally clueless about these gadgets.