Could you please tell me with unbiased opinion what would be the best pedometer for the money? We are looking to spend about $15 for each
one. Is that a good amount or do we need to look at more expensive?
Also, could you refer us to a couple of "good" brands and models to look for?
Based on the research of exercise researcher and pedometer expert Dr. David Bassett Jr. (University of Tennessee), I'd recommend the SW-200 DIGI-WALKER pedometer.
It has an extremely durable internal sensor mechanism. Montana State University has been testing it, and after millions of steps it just keeps on going and doing so with great accuracy. The grad students commented to me that the study wasn't much fun, because the DIGI-WALKER pedometer just wouldn't quit.
PREVENTION magazine published a pedometer review in August 2006. They used the SW-200 DIGI-WALKER as the gold standard by which to compare all of the others. They also rated the NEW-LIFESTYLES NL-2000 very highly.
There have also been several pedometer validation studies published in MEDICINE AND SCIENCE IN SPORTS AND EXERCISE. I'll include some information about them here.
In 2004, three pedometer validation studies were done--one on a treadmill at set speeds--the easiest test to pass, one on a 400-meter walk at self-selected speeds around an outdoor track--slightly harder to pass because the speeds are subject-selected, and one over the course of a whole day, i.e., during free-living activity--the hardest one to pass because subjects speeds and terrain change throughout the day.
In the treadmill study, six pedometers passed the easiest test--the Skeletone, the Omron, the Digi-Walker, the New-Lifestyles NL-2000 and Lifecorder, and the Walk for life. The Digi-Walker was found to be the most accurate at predicting steps, distance, and gross kilocalories for walking.
In the 400-meter study the Digi-Walker, the New-Lifestyles NL-2000 and Lifecorder were the only pedometers accurate to within +/-3% of actual steps taken, 95% of the time. Their reliability was also very high (>0.99).
In the third study, which is probably the most important study since it tested pedometers in the way that we actually use them--in a free-living environment, the Digi-Walker SW-200 was used as the gold standard or criterion pedometer, that which the others were compared. The pedometers that yielded mean values that were not significantly different from the criterion were the Digi-Walker SW-200 and SW-701, the New-Lifestyles NL-2000 and Lifecorder and the Sportline 330. The authors cautioned, however, that the Sportline 330 was shown to be unreliable in the first study--the treadmill study, and therefore, could not recommend it
--Teresa Vollenweider, Fitness & Pedometer Expert
NEW LIFESTYLES, INC.
References
Crouter, Scott. E., P. L. Schneider, M. Karabulut, and D. R. Bassett, Jr. (2003). Validity of 10 Electronic Pedometers for Measuring Steps, Distance, and Energy Cost. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 35 (8), 1455–1460.
Schneider, Patrick L., S. E. Crouter, O. Lukajic, and D. R. Bassett, Jr. (2003). Accuracy and Reliability of 10 Pedometers for Measuring Steps over a 400-m Walk. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 35 (10), 1779–1784.
Schneider, Patrick L., S. E. Crouter, and D. R. Bassett, Jr. (2004). Pedometer Measures of Free-Living Physical Activity: Comparison of 13 Models. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 36 (2), 331-335.
Melanson, Ed, J. R. Knoll, M. L. Bell, W. T. Donahoo, J.O. Hill, et. al. (2004) Commercially available pedometers: considerations for accurate step counting. Preventive Medicine, 39, 361–368.
