POSTMEDIA NEWS Your personal health and fitness monitor: Don’t leave home without it. It could be an app, a watch, a smartphone, glasses, a pocket gadget, a tag on your shoe or a combination of software and wirelessly connected devices. No longer is it enough to just get up off the couch and step on a scale to see if your fitness efforts are burning off the pounds or building muscle. There’s a gadget and an app for every activity. (Prices are approximate.)
HAPITRACK, HAPIFORK $49 US, $99 Here’s a company that understands tracking your activity has to extend to dinner. The tracker clips to a belt or you can tuck it in a pocket to measure your steps, distance, workout times and the calories burned. And...
MIO ALPHA $199 The Mio Alpha links via Bluetooth wirelessly to your smartphone and will work with a number of apps including RunKeeper, mapmyride and others. Wear it like a watch and it provides continuous heart rate monitoring, with heart rate zones...
RECON JET $600 A Vancouver company’s wearable computer in the form of smart sunglasses is for athletes who want to have all sorts of monitoring information — right in front of their eye as they bike, run or otherwise get their exercise. Orders ship in...
FITBIT FLEX $99 Fitbit started out as a little gadget that you’d clip on, but it’s now available as a bracelet — the Flex. There are three versions, two of which track activity plus sleep and even wake you up in the morning. Fitbit.com
BASIS FITNESS AND SLEEP WATCH $199 Available only in the U.S. now, the Basis monitors everything from your heart rate to perspiration, skin temperature and sleep. It even got the nod from Deepak Chopra, who thinks the watch is also a good stress...
NIKE+ FUELBAND $150 This pioneer in wearable fitness tracking devices measures the steps taken and the energy expended. You set targets, and that can be a great incentive to walk, run or take the stairs instead of taking the couch potato route. It...
JAWBONE UP $130 From the makers of Jawbone Bluetooth wireless headsets and speakers, this fitness tracking wristband and app system give you a monitor tailored to your needs. It works with Apple and Android apps. Jawbone.com
MISFIT SHINE $120 Misfit Shine tracks activity, calories burned and even sleep. The Shine itself is the size of a coin and comes with a strap, so you can wear it on your wrist. For formal occasions, you can wear it on a necklace pendant, although that...