CaloriScan - Assisting You in Your Weight Management Activities

For the past couple of weeks I have been trialling the Omron CaloriScan which is a professional weight management activity monitor. In sim...

For the past couple of weeks I have been trialling the Omron CaloriScan which is a professional weight management activity monitor. In simpler words it is essentially a pedometer which also calculates calories burnt from all your daily activities among other things. The CaloriScan has 3D sensors which detect each of your movement whether you are walking or sitting or running and precisely claims to calculate your calorie consumption 24/7.

The CaloriScan has the following features:
- Measurement of daily steps
- Calorie consumption measurement
- Distance counting
- Time and date display
- 7 days memory

Let me begin with the appearance and the setup process. The CaloriScan is sleek and quite flat and can be easily carried in a pocket or in the handbag. There is a small cord with a clip with which you can attach it to your clothes or bag. The CaloriScan comes in three different colours - gold, white and pink. As you can see from the pictures mine is pink in colour. In terms of appearance, the monitor gets full marks. The biggest hurdle I faced was the user manual. The manual features instructions in several different languages(at least 26) which I have no problem with. However the instructions in any given language should have been grouped into one section so that it is easy to run through all of them at one go. It was rather confusing to search for instructions in English which were spread across the book. But once I managed to get all the instructions in English noted, I was easily able to setup the CaloriScan.

There is a 'Set' button on the rear of the CaloriScan which had to be pressed with a sharp object to get the monitor working. The initial setup was easy. The CaloriScan asks you for personal information like your birthday, body weight, your height, gender, the current date and time and your stride length. Based on the height that you have entered, an initial stride length is automatically calculated and displayed. However you can edit it with your actual stride length based on your physique and how you walk. An accurate way to work out your stride length is to walk 10 steps and then measure the stride length from one step(toe to toe Or heel to heel). Once all this information is entered, it is collated and along with the daily activity assessment helps in estimation of your daily calorie usage.

Once the CaloriScan is put to use, it is easy to check the daily results. Just press the central 'Mode' button repeatedly and it will loop through the readings for the day which includes:

- Total calories burned(Resting metabolism + Activity calories)
- Activity calories(number of calories burned during physical activity like walking, office work etc and also the amount of fat burned)
- Steps(normal step count)
- Exercise steps
- Trip steps(in addition to normal step count, it also displays the total number of steps and the number of days)

You can use the 'Memory' button to check the stored readings. The CaloriScan can store readings for up to 7 days. You can at any time reset the weekly data by using the 'Mode' followed by 'Clear' button. If you wish to reset all, you need to use the 'Set' button in the rear. This is the same button we used to get the monitor powered on.

The CaloriScan has been my companion for the past 2 weeks and has helped me work out my daily activity levels. Whether it is gardening, walking or even while resting, I can now get a picture of how many calories are used up for each activity. On days when I am not very active the low readings on the CaloriScan act like a motivational trigger to get moving. It is like a friendly nudge to get me going. And the fact that it is compact and easy to use has ensured that I actually use it.

To sum it up, while the user manual can be made more easy to understand and user friendly, the setup process itself is quite straight forward. The gadget is compact, convenient to carry along and while it is not a complete weight management activity monitor, it does motivate you in keeping active and maintaining a more healthy lifestyle. I have now become more conscious of how much I walk every day, how many calories I am burning(you get a fairly accurate indication) and involuntarily check the CaloriScan many times during the day. Every new milestone makes me more motivated to keep active. Overall, an interesting and clever instrument that will help you in staying active.