Pros and Cons of Fitness Trackers

 Apple watches and Fitbits and Garmins, oh my!

It appears that everyone and their mother are wearing some sort of fitness tracking device these days. The idea of tracking your activity seems like a solid idea– there is a lot of insight that can be gained from utilizing a fitness tracker, such as:

• Accountability

• A fitness tracking device can be an incredible accountability tool, especially when the motivation is lacking and your gym buddy is on vacation. Your tracker will always have your back (or should I say wrist, hehe).

• Motivation

  • It can be encouraging to visualize your accomplishments. Seeing your rings close, reaching 10,000 steps, or whatever your target goal might be… it feels good when you see when you’ve met your day's quota of physical activity you set out for yourself. 

• Knowledge

  • Tracking your activity level can give great general insight into what it actually takes to accomplish certain things. Depending on the type of lifestyle you live, you might not know what an appropriate amount of physical activity looks or feels like until utilizing a tracking device.

Although wearing a fitness tracker can be beneficial, it is not always necessary. To be honest… I am kind of sick of them. Here’s why:

• Fixation

• Tracking physical activity can lead to obsessive behavior, negatively impacting mental health. Repeat after me: “your self worth is not dictated by the stats on your screen.” Also, your workout still counts even if you forget your watch.

• Inaccuracy

  • Try to take the information your tracker gives you with a grain of salt. The metrics shown on your tracker are not always 100% accurate. This is especially important to note if you utilize your tracker for tracking calories.

• Distraction

  • Trackers can take you away from the present moment. One of my biggest pet peeves is when someone checks their watch in the middle of a conversation. But I don’t blame them… it’s human nature to check your wrist when it vibrates!

  If you are an avid smart watch user, I challenge you to go bare wristed at least one day a week going forward (extra points if you do this on a day you plan to exercise). You will see that the world will continue to operate the same way it does when you are not wearing your watch and I guarantee this realization will ease your mental load.

 If you are debating on purchasing a fitness tracker, the answer is: it depends. Weigh the pros and cons according to your goals and personality traits to help navigate your decision.

Remember: 

• You can still achieve your fitness goals without a tracking device. 

• There are regular watches out there that will give you the time of day without all the new, fancy, information overloaded technology.