Sunday Q&A: Talking With Jesse Kropelnicki on the QT2

Getting ready to do a triathlon? Jesse Kropelnicki can offer some tips on going the distance. He is an elite/pro level triathlon coach who founded QT2 Systems, LLC, a leading provider of personal triathlon coaching; TriathlonCalculator.com; TheCoreDiet.com, a leading provider of sports nutrition; and Your 26.2 a marathon training company.

He is the triathlon coach of professional athletes Caitlin Snow, Ethan Brown, and Pedro Gomes among others. His interests lie in coaching professional triathletes using quantitative training and nutrition protocols. You can track his other coaching comments/ideas via his blog.

Jesse talked to KineticShift about technology and training. Interview with Jesse after the jump

Made in America: Apex Armor iPhone and iPod Cases

Apex Armor Generation 3 iPhone 4/4S Cases... checkout the tiny screws!

“Designed by Apple in California, Assembled in China” – flip over any iPod or iPhone and this statement appears on the back. The popularity of these personal electronics from Apple has spawned an enormous accessories market that too has followed suit with regards to manufacturing and followed Apple’s lead of producing their products outside of America. But that is not the case with every company. Apex Armor of Milpitas, California is bucking the trend with their line of aluminum cases for the current generation iPod Nanos and iPhone. Video after the jump

QT2 Systems Triathlon Calculator Predicts Finish Time in App

QT2 Systems has released an app for the iPhone and iPod Touch that works as a calculator to project an individual’s triathlon race performance. In turn, the app helps create personalized training ranges.

Race outcomes are based on seven key inputs from training. The tool then estimates race distance and course types. The app also gives you race pacing and training zone recommendations to get you to reach your goals.

“Triathletes put a great deal of time and focus into their race preparations, and should always be well aware of where they stand, with regard to their racing goals,” said Jesse Kropelnicki, founder and developer of QT2 Systems.

The app was developed in cooperation with Triessential.com to help convert proprietary algorithms developed over 10 years of coaching. The formulas were then worked into an iPhone app.

The QT2 Calculator is available on iTunes for the iPhoen and iPod Touch for $1.99.

QT2 Systems Official Website
Triessential.com Official Website
QT2 Calculator on iTunes
QT2 Systems Triathlon Calculator

Strava and GU Challenge Runners This Spring

Get your running gear ready. Srava has a new running app, and has partnered with GU Energy Labs to create a challenge for spring. Between March 9 and April 9 there is but one goal. Run. The GU 100,000 Mile Challenge encourages participants to run as many miles as they can in 31 days. Continue reading Strava and GU Challenge Runners This Spring

The Boombox Returns: Eco Terra

Sometimes outdoor time requires blaring music, and headphones don’t apply. For those occasions you might want to secure your smartphone, iPhone or mp3 player in a waterproof case to be sure the elements don’t get into those sensitive areas. For times like this, Grace Digital just released the Eco Terra Boombox, a 100 percent waterproof dock and speakers that you can fully submerge under water.

Continue reading The Boombox Returns: Eco Terra

Clean Bottle Races in With The Runner

A few years ago Clean Bottle hit the scene with a sports water bottle that unscrewed on both the top and bottom to make it easier to clean. Since then we’ve seen the bottle in water bottle cages on bikes, but not quite as often seen in runner’s hands.

Continue reading Clean Bottle Races in With The Runner

Felt Makes Bike Shopping Easier

A majority of bike shop are owned and staffed by knowledgeable and honest people, but have you ever walked into a bike shop and felt that you were being steered towards a particular bike or size that didn’t seem to fit right? Were you told that a certain model was not available in another color? If you have run into this before at a bike shop, the best option is to either walk out or find another sales person, but what do you do if that shop is the only one in town that is an authorized dealer for the brand of bike that you want? Another option is to arm yourself with knowledge, and Felt Bicycles is helping you do that – at least for its brand.

Continue reading Felt Makes Bike Shopping Easier

Yamaha Delivers Audio Anywhere You Go

If your day outdoors involves a solo activity like running the trails than an iPod is a good companion, but if you have an actual human companion and are hiking, camping, or just taking in the great outdoors you either have to listen to the sounds of nature or figure out a way to share the tunes. Now Yamaha has a solution that lets you share the music with its rugged PDX-11 portable player dock.

The iPod/iPhone dock features an octagonal horn-shaped design with a perforated steel grill that is tough enough for an on-the-go lifestyle, and it includes a “grab it and go” roll bar chrome handle. The PDX-11 is available in four colors including white, dark blue, green and black, and can run on battery or AC power. With six AA batteries you’ll get about eight hours of a soundtrack for the outdoor life. Continue reading Yamaha Delivers Audio Anywhere You Go

Hold onto your iPhone or iPod with the iCat

“It just slipped out of my hand.” Most of us have heard this line after watching someone drop their iPhone or iPod. Usually the results are the same, a cracked screen and a very sad owner, especially if they did not purchase the insurance. A replacement iPhone or iPod can be expensive and dealing with a cracked screen can be annoying or even dangerous. EK Ekcessories of Logan, Utah has a product to help you avoid even dropping your iPhone or iPod – the iCat.

Continue reading Hold onto your iPhone or iPod with the iCat

Get Up and GoTality

Performance Designed Products (PDP) has made it easier to get up and go, and to turn your iPod or iPhone into a fitness monitoring device. The GoTality is a cardio fitness kit that is compatible for all models of the iPhone as well as iPhone, and the complete package, which is available now for $59.99, includes a clip-on heart rate monitor and reflective exercise armband that keeps the device snug while you’re off on the go.

The GoTality app essentially works with an ear clip that can track the distance a user runs or steps taken, while also tracking biometric data including heart rate, basal metabolic rate and even Body Mass Index (BMI). Of course what’s a heart rate monitor that can’t keep track of calories burned? This one will do that can even calculate fitness zone and help users determine the ideal work out levels.

Users can set fitness goals, and exercise programs that are tailored to specific needs, and with an iPhone there is even GPS provided to complement the built-in pedometer so you can see where you went and track your progress on a map. Did we say it is time to get GoTality?

GoTality Official Website

H2O Audio Introduces iPod Headphones That Aren’t Wet

Swimmers and triathletes don’t obviously spend a lot of time in the water, and H20 has just announced its latest generation of its Interval Headphones System, the Interval 4G. These high-performance headphones are waterproof and sweatproof and designed to get wet and wild, and are submersible to 12ft/3.6m underwater. Designed to work with the 4th generation iPod Shuffle, these headphones feature the latest Surge 2G headphone technology and attach directly to the goggles – while also being compatible with an Interval hat or visor for use out of the pool.

Whether you’re swimming, cycling or running, these headphones promise to deliver excellent audio quality along with unmatched comfort and fit.

The latest waterproof technology delivers improved bass quality, while sound-isolating, watertight earplugs provide warm sound and dynamic bass response powered by Surge 2G’s waterproof 8mm neodymium drivers. The headphones are available now for $99.99 (MSRP).

H2O Audio Official Website

 

CES Recap: Panasonic Gets in the Game

At the Consumer Electronics Show Panasonic had many things to highlight, but missing from the buzz was their new line of in-the-ear clip earphones with remote controller and microphone. The new RP-HSC200 headphones are compatible with the latest iPod products as well as the iPhone. Best of all these ‘phones are water resistant for active workouts. These include soft, comfort fit elastomer hanger to ensure that the earphones stay in place so you can do your thing without the worry that these will fall out. Ear pieces are also included in small, medium and large sizes to help you get a snug fit.

These sports headphones give users the ability to control the volume and music, including play/pause/forward and ability to skip tracks, from the cord of the right earpiece. The remote also includes a built-in microphone when used with the iPhone. The earphones feature side mounted 12.4mm speakers and boast a frequency response of 10Hz – 22kHz. The RP-HSC200 sports earphones will be available in March for $59.99.

Panasonic Official Website

Burn it Up With Your iPad

The holidays are a time for many things, including seeing family, visiting with friends, eating too much and basically blowing off exercise. That’s probably why come January 2 many people vow to “do it right” and pledge to turn over a new leaf. Maybe one way to start the New Year off right is by better managing your food intake.

One problem say experts is that you can easily shed pounds by reducing intake, but as soon as you go back to old habits – which die hard and quickly – you’re likely to regain the weight. Additionally, people who reportedly lose weight more slowly while increasing the exercise tend to keep the pounds off.

Brian Young realized this, and he’s worked to develop an app that helps you track and burn, hence the Tracknburn app for the iPod and iPhone. It incorporates the BMI formula that “is accurate as it gets,” says Young, who further notes that one of the most popular ways to determine how many calories are needed to sustain the same body weight is to use the body mass index (BMI) and current activity level. Subtract 250 calories a day to lose 1/2 pound per week.

Sounds simple, but Young notes that this formula also changes as you lose weight, making it hard to track over time. The Tracknburn essentially picks up on this, and does the weight loss math for you. This app takes a users individual profile, along with weight goal and helps make responsible choices. It can be used a food log with more than 140,000 common foods to choose from, and by tracking what you can eat, you can more easily lose at the same time. Now that sounds like a winning solution.

Tracknburn Official Website