I’ve been playing around with a variety of tools in my quest to find the best to track my exercise, which is mostly centered around running and walking.

I started out using Nike+ with my iPod, and I continue to use it these days. I like the system for keeping track of runs, and it mostly syncs well, but their site is limited in terms of setting up challenges with friends and other social aspects.

DailyMile enables me to import Nike+ activity, and I like the interface better over there. They also import Garmin tracking (I got one of those, too, but didn’t like wearing the big tracking device on my wrist).

A nice thing about DailyMile is the ability to manually enter a variety of workout types.

My latest favorite is MapMyRun. I have an app for this on both my Blackberry and Android phones. It’s based on GPS, so it is neat to see the path taken each time, as well as elevation and other metrics.

But the site has too many options for my taste. There is an import option for Nike stats, but it often doesn’t work.

Also, I do some of my workouts on a treadmill, and I don’t think there is a way to track those with MapMyRun. They do have an option to manually enter workouts, like DailyMile, but I would prefer to avoid the extra steps.

Amy I missing any useful solutions?

I started running back in the early summer last year. It was partly out of being stubborn.

One day, I decided to go for a run. This was totally random, since I hadn’t run since 1993 or so.

So, I was running and felt like I was about to die after a half mile. That day I decided I needed to get in better shape, and I made plans to complete a 5k race about 6 weeks later.

Long story short – I’ve run three 5k races since then, and I just got to a new level on my Nike Running account. I’ve run over 150 miles now.

I am working on running longer and more often. Feel free to check out my progress at http://my.nike.com/affiliatetip and give me grief if I slack on it.

Today, I ran nearly 3 miles to bring my total to 100 miles since I started running in July.

My miles are tracked by a little Nike+ device in my shoe and my iPod Touch.

You can see my profile at Nike for my history of runs at http://my.nike.com/affiliatetip.

It’s exciting to see that milestone, since I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to stick with this.

Now, I just need to build up more stamina, lose weight, and run farther and longer.

Last week was Affiliate Summit East 2009, and despite my intentions to be a good food citizen, I feel victim to the evenings of bacchanalia.

Five days in New York City with lots of food and drink, combined with little amounts of sleep never turn up a good result.

So no scale check-in for the week. But since I returned home I’ve been running regularly.

I am on vacation with the family this week, so it limits my ability to go for runs, but I’ll make treadmill time if nothing else.

The thing that stinks there is that I like to track what I’m doing, average speed for miles, length run, etc. through my Nike+ device in my sneakers and my iPod Touch.

While it tracks well outside, there are only certain treadmills that work with the Nike+ device, so I’m out of luck.

So I’ll have some unmetered exercise this week. You can see my progress to date on my Nike+ account.

Since all of my runs are tracked, and I’ve been buying my shoes direct from Nike, I think it would be a great and logical move by them to tell me when it’s time for a new pair, based on the expected mileage a given pair have in them.

I am guessing the average person doesn’t get a fresh pair of shoes as often as they should, though I could be entirely wrong.

Anyhow, I’d love to know the right time to do it and whip out my credit card each time to Nike. Come on, guys – help me help you!

Starting weight: 225
Last week: 219
This week: not checking in Affiliate Summit aftermath

Video: I Wish Nike Would Tell Me When to Buy New Shoes