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| Fitness gadgets: help or hinder? |
She quickly
pointed out it wasn’t just a bracelet; it doubled as her latest fitness device
that tracked precisely how many calories she burned, how many steps she took,
and whether or not she needed to reapply her lipstick.
OK, I might
be slightly exaggerating about that last part, but it certainly seemed to do
everything else.
While I
fully support optimizing health and getting in better shape, sometimes these
gadgets bring with them, a certain
level of neuroticism that can actually derail your best fitness efforts.
level of neuroticism that can actually derail your best fitness efforts.
The answer
lies in finding the balance and what works for you. Don’t spend more time
looking at charts and graphs than you sweat and lift.
Should I Track?
We’ve been
tracking workouts for eons. No, hieroglyphics on cave walls didn’t necessarily
depict how many gallons of water we consumed daily, yet fitness enthusiasts
have long maintained data from their workouts. Whereas even a decade ago we
used pen and paper, wearing a cool gadget on your wrist provides a more modern
way to track movement, sleep, calories, and all sorts of other fitness-focused
monitoring.
With today’s
tracking devices, paying attention to whatever information you chose to,
becomes far easier. You can monitor the usual suspects like steps per day and
calories burned as well as sleep quality and
post-workout recovery.
Now, can we
get that gadget that makes breakfast for you and removes the gazillion
stressors that permeate our morning frustrations?
What it
comes down to is, do you need a fancy gadget to track everything? What if we
just had our coffee, maybe a protein shake, and got on with our day? Tracking
brings out the OCD in some people and massive neuroticism in others.
Can tracking
devices help you? A big emphatic…maybe. Like I’ve said before, if you can track responsibly, and
not become neurotic and miserable – then, go for it.
If you spend
all your time obsessing about your steps walked, calories burned, and lattes
avoided, it might become more of a drawback than an asset.
At the same
time, as my friend JJ Virgin always says, what you track, you can improve.
So
ultimately you’ve got to decide if a tracking device could make your fitness
goals more attainable or if it just becomes a pretty gadget that complicates
things.
Regardless
of route, remember tracking your progress is the goal, not becoming overwhelmed
or neurotic.
OK, I Want a Gadget… What’s the Best
One?
So you’ve
decided a device won’t overwhelm your life with useless data and you’re going
to utilize it mindfully. How do you determine the best choice?
Do your
homework and figure your budget. ($100 seems to be the average gadget budget.)
I spent an
afternoon looking at the latest devices. Based on that research, here are the
Jinifit-approved devices. Keep in mind these would also make fantastic gifts!
Note: I am not affiliated with any of
these manufacturers and simply recommend these because they’re top-rated,
affordable, and address my audience needs.
This fab
device tracks my sleep and movements throughout the day. Better yet, it
connects to my heart-rate monitor and tracks my workouts. It tracks not only
the steps but also the quality of my workouts. At about $100, it offers quality
at a reasonable price.
Sleek and
sexy, the Vivoactive also syncs to my phone so I can decide whether or not I
want to stop my workout to answer my
phone or a text. The touch screen is so easy to use and records my daily
activities. Besides counting your steps, it also buzzes to remind you to get
moving, which is great if you tend to stay seated at your desk too long! At
around 200 bucks, it still comes under the Apple watch price-wise.
After an
hour of inactivity on this sleek device, a red bar lights up across the top to
visually cue you’ve been inactive. Additional bars light up after that every 15
minutes of continued inactivity. Simply getting up and walking around for a
couple of minutes resets this feature. A steal at $50 this does a great job of
monitoring your activity and keeping you active.
This is the
one that my friend wore recently at lunch whose sleek look I loved. It does all
the things you would want a fitness tracker to do and looks stylish! Available in
several colors, it provides a stylish and functional device at only about $80.
Turn Your Smartphone into a Tracking
Device
Not ready to
take the leap into triple-digit fitness gadgets or fear they might overpower
your workout? These are among my favorite (FREE!) apps to get your feet wet
without taking the full-gadget plunge.
Spring Moves Good upbeat music to work out to
guarantees we push ourselves harder. And Spring Moves guarantee DJ-curated
playlists with similar beats per minute to keep you moving and discover some
new favorite tunes.
My Fitness Pal
Logging your food has never been easier! You can log most meals in under
a minute by searching their extensive database of brand name foods. If you make
something from scratch, you can input the recipe, and the app will estimate its
nutritional information for you.
Headspace
An app for meditation skeptics. Get in the habit with the Headspace free
10-day challenge where the app’s founder (and Greatist expert) British-accented
Andy Puddicombe guides you through 10-minute meditations. The accent’s sexy,
but the app's awesome animations and engaging community also become selling
points (even if they’re free).
Your Turn
Fitness
devices change rapidly and I’ve only hit the tip of the iceberg. What device
would YOU add to this list? Share your thoughts below or on my Facebook page
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Fitness expert and strength coach Jini Cicero, CSCS, teaches intermediate exercisers how to blast through plateaus to create incredible transformations. Are you ready to take your fitness to a whole new level? Find out now! www.Jinifit.com.
© 2015 Jinifit, Inc.
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If you use the article you are required to activate any links found in the article and the by-line. Please do not use this article in any publication that is not opt-in (spam).
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