How Fitness Wearables Improve Your Results
Smart watches and fitness wearables are so popular these days - it seems like almost everyone is wearing one. And they are for so much more than just taking phone calls on your wrist or giving you directions so you don’t get lost on your run.
A huge benefit of fitness wearables is their ability to track your biometrics. This data lets you know what areas of your health and wellness need more of your attention and which areas you are already doing well. The three most popular fitness trackers are the FitBit, the health functions within the Apple Watch, and the Oura ring.
Lisa and Priest just started wearing Oura rings. The Oura ring tracks over 20 biometrics that impact your overall wellbeing, including measuring your heart rate, body temperature, blood oxygen levels, and tracking your sleep.
Lisa loves her ring because she likes to check her steps, exercise, and her sleep. She also wears an Apple watch to track overall movement, standing every hour, and exercising, since it gives different formats for tracking.
She likes the EKG feature on the Apple watch. Since she has had open heart surgery (for a congenital issue), she shares that she has an underlying fear that something could happen again with her heart again. So periodically when she feels something out of the ordinary, she can check her rhythms on the watch. She has also shared the information with her cardiologist. It’s not like wearing an actual cardiac monitor, but he appreciated her having the information, and it brings her peace of mind.
For sleep, Lisa likes to look at her deep sleep and REM sleep and daily readiness. It often explains why even after sleeping 7 to 8 hours, she can still be tired. The last feature she looks at is stress/resilience. It shows her physical response to stress. It helps her to realize how she feels and when she needs to be more mindful and to take a break or do a breath practice.
Priest enjoys that sleek, lightweight design of the Oura ring makes it easy to wear, and its insights are simple yet powerful. The readiness score gives him a personalized check-in each morning, helping him know whether to push or rest. He loves how the Oura tracks sleep quality, revealing the deeper rhythms of his nights and heart rate. It helps him to recognize how stress, workouts, and choices affect recovery.
The activity tracking motivates intentional movement, whether martial arts, yoga, or walking the dog. The Oura ring is valuable because it offers suggestions and helps him to adjust his routines, find balance, and stay connected with his body’s rhythms. It’s an insightful tool for living with intention.
As we mentioned, many fitness wearables now have options to share your data directly with your doctor or other health professional. You can share your data with your fitness trainer too! More information is always helpful when it comes to determining the best workout and fitness plan for you.
In addition to sharing your data with coaches, trainers, and health professionals, there are many ways your fitness wearable can support your health and wellness goals every day.
Here are a few of our favorites:
Count your steps. Studies suggest people who track their steps end up walking more than those who don’t. Although no watch or app will count your steps perfectly, they are close enough to keep you motivated to keep moving. A study shows that for the optimal reduction in all-cause mortality and cardiovascular risk, you should walk around 9,000 and 7,000 steps daily.
Monitor your heart. Fitness wearables automatically track your heart rate. This can let you know if your resting heart rate has lowered now that you are adding more walking to your fitness routine. The watch may also be able to alert you if your heart rate is unusually high or low or has a sudden change.
Stay active. Some wearables can remind you to stand up every hour or let you know if you are close to meeting your movement goals for the day. Some apps also let you connect with others and engaging in some friendly competition can help you get moving.
Manage stress. Wearables often have a built in app that guides you through a breathing exercise to help you calm down and focus. You can use it as needed or be reminded to breathe throughout the day.
Protect your hearing. Your watch can let you know if you are in a crowd and the sound levels are getting high enough to cause hearing damage. Some will even connect to your headphones and warn you if the volume is dangerously high.
Help if you fall. Some watches can contact emergency services if they detect a fall. They often also are an easy way to notify help if you have an accident and can’t reach your phone.