We have Tried them all... List your Best Fit Finds

my garmin 305 with hrm and footpod - it has transformed my running/training

MFP! no explanation necessary lol

mapmyrun & strava for planning runs and logging runs

honey and peanut butter booster bars.... homemade perfect for during and after training

pinterest for the motivational fitness stuff


uuummm I'm sure there's more but thatis what springs to mind straight away

I use Nike+ and I really like it. I have used it for a few years and I find that it is accurate and a great way to track my progress. I think it's a good option if you're not willing or unable to spend a few hundred bucks on a Garmin (which I desperately want but am on a budget =( )

I thought more people would want to share

You can just say "bumping my own thread"; we understand.

I love Nike+ as well! It's really motivational and I love the feedback on your time, etc...

Barbell training, conditioning, rest, balanced diet.

FitBit
Polar HRM
Dr. John McDougall's books, and his & wife Mary McDougall's cookbooks
Dr. Neil Barnard's books & recipes
My trainer/physical therapist
Euflexxa for my bone-on-bone knee

Those little eggie things that you are supposed to use to make shell-free boiled eggs - horrible waste of time and money. I bought them because my kid thought they were cute.

My new favorite toy is a Sabatier slicer I bought at Sam's club. It comes with different inserts, apple core/slicer, french fry, and regular slices. I love it for home made fries (baked not fried), and I can prepare a bunch of veggie slices for the whole week.

Items I've wasted my money on:

*Exercise videos. I don't actually do the exercises. Besides, there are a ton of exercise videos available for free on YouTube and Hulu.com.
*Protein shakes and bars. I've found some nasty tasting ones in the past that went into the garbage eventually.
*Diet and fitness magazine subscriptions. They just made me feel bad about myself after looking at all the perfect 18 year old models that are featured.
*Weight loss supplements. With the possible exception of HydroxyCuts back in the 1990's when it still contained ephedrine, none of those supplements did anything. I'm sure I did some damage to my system thanks to HydroxyCuts. Around the gym it was know as "legal crack."
*Status Health Club membership. Yeah, I signed up for the $250 a month hoity-toity health and fitness club. You know the kind, usually attached to a golf course, have a day care center, multiple Jacuzzis and racquetball courts and a day spa. I'd use the weight room, and then go home. What a waste of money.

My Best fitness investments/finds:

*MyFitnessPal (duh!)-- especially the mobile app. I'm never without information about my program and can easily stay on track.
*Kettlebells. They are expensive, but boy-oh-boy do they get the job done! Totally worth the investment!
*Old Navy fitness clothing. Good quality, reasonable prices. Stands up well to regular use and machine washing/drying.
*My bicycle. It cost me $600 up front, plus another $300 for accessories (helmet, lights, new saddle, luggage rack and panniers), however, I also sold an old gas guzzling pick-up truck and use the bike for local commuting and errands. I was putting $600 A MONTH in fuel into the truck. Now I share a Toyota Corolla with my husband and we have more expendable income to spend on things like organic foods.
*Eatingwell.com-- Lots of great low calorie recipes. Some are pretty advanced as far as cooking technique goes, but they also have a large selection of quick weeknight meals and the like.
*Reasonably priced personal trainers. If you can find someone for $25-30 an hour, they can impart some pretty good information about how to use weight room equipment, as well as helping you mix up your routine when you hit a plateau. I've spent $125+ an hour for elite trainers, and it really felt like a waste of both of our time. I'm not an elite athlete, so I didn't need an elite trainer.

Edited to add:

*My blender! Smoothies are the best when trying to eat healthier.
*Endomondo mobile app. I paid $1 for the app on sale, but I use it nearly every day, and love to see my training history. It's made mostly for outdoor enthusiasts, so it isn't for everyone.

I hated protein bars until i found think thin.
doesnt taste like chocolate cardboard.

I love my ipod and I am thinking of getting Nike + Ipod if you have it tell me how you like it

Share your fav fit finds and also tell me what to avoid

I love the Nike+ Running app for my ipod. My shoes are Nikes and they have a built in place for the sensor to fit.

I recommend it!

MFP....duhhhh
Fitbit.....works with MFP and I don't have to track exercise
Spinbike with integrated HRM strap that enables me to maintain optimum fat burning throughout my whole ride.
And don't laugh, but my Totalflex resistance band weight bench...allows me to weightlift on the road without lugging a ton of equipment.

Chalene Johnson & Tony Horton.

Muscle Milk Light Cafe Latte. Oh. My. Gosh. Is that stuff good! Had a Dunkin Donuts coffee coolatta today for 210 calories, and the Muscle Milk over ice for 100 calories and lots of vitamins and minerals is just as good!

Sara Lee 45 calorie Wheat or Multi Grain bread. Just as good as any other bread!

Viactive milk chocolate multi vitamins. 20 calories and just like having a small tootsie roll.

Just had to add 1 more:
16 - discovering the formula to determine the actual calories burned for any work out based on average heart rate during the workout, age, weight & length of the workout. Didn't know that the heavier you are the more calories you can burn than a skinny person doing the same exercise!

MFP and my friends on it
Fitbit Ultra
Heart rate monitor
Blood sugar checker
Thermometer (for me not the food)
My slow cooker (for yummy slow cooked fatless recipes)
My Wok (for fast cooked yummie recipes)
Plain whey protein powder (for thickening sauces etc, and as a base for ice cream)
Low cal jelly (i make sweets with it)
Zero fat greek yogurt
Quinoa (filling power) and wild rice (not a rice at all)
Adding beans to almost every meal (4 hr body)
Biggest loser and on UK TV Secret eaters
Skimmed milk
Cocoa powder (no sugar- for that chocolate taste
Tinned tomato (to make low cal soup)
Eggs (filling power and vits)
Ginger Tea, Green Tea
English Soda Water (water and CO2)
Giving up alcohol
Orthotics (for inserting in my trainers and correcting my stances)
Gel seats (for my cycle) and gel shorts (for my comfort)
wipes (for equipment at the gym)
Dumbells and kettle ball
Ipad and mediamonkey for creating mp3 lists
Bio oil for my skin
B12 patches (for deficiency)
high 5 to make isotonic drinks cheaply
Gillian M vids ripped to my ipad
photographic evidence of every meal on evernote food on (of course) my ipad
My confidence

Just had to add 1 more:
16 - discovering the formula to determine the actual calories burned for any work out based on average heart rate during the workout, age, weight & length of the workout. Didn't know that the heavier you are the more calories you can burn than a skinny person doing the same exercise!

Studies show that age is largely irrelevant (fortunately): there is only ususally a positive correlation with calories burned and age because of loss of muscle mass because of lack of exercise. It is muscle mass that counts, an older person with good muscles will burn more calories than a younger one of the same sex who is a dedicated couch potato. Body composition all the way.
Otherwise I would second this wholeheartedly.

Jasmin