Fitness Trackers: Are They Unhealthy?

If you’re a bit of a social media lover like me (no way Hannah, really?) then you’ve probably seen some negativity floating around on Instagram, Twitter and even blog posts. I won’t go into names or details as such but this is all I have to say: Everybody is entitled to their own opinion in life. However, the way you present your opinion shows a lot about you then it does the person/thing you’re judging. Use your words wisely and if you haven’t got anything nice to say then don’t say it all. There’s two ways to show your opinion. 1) being your honest self whilst minding the feelings and emotions of others and 2) being damn rude and quite frankly, a coward. Is a blog post really the way to diminish other people’s actions?

Amongst the recent negativity on social media this week, fitness trackers have been one of the prime subjects. Suddenly, and I’m not quite sure why, there is a growing hatred for the beloved tracker and the concern that they’re portraying a message of obsession and unhealthiness.

Now before I express my personal opinion on the subject I am aware that everybody is entitled to their own opinion however, the following is my personal view on the matter and by no means am I bashing anybody else’s opinion.

I’m aware that as the subject has slowly developed over the last week or so, it has done so because people have allowed themselves to become obsessed with their step count, calories burned and other data that a tracker displays. Personally, I believe that comes from the mindset of the individual  – not the watch.

A tracker is designed to help guide you towards your goals, motivate you and keep you on track. If your goal is to lose weight, reach a designated weight or to keep an eye on your activity levels, then I believe fitness trackers are an excellent gadget to have. However, if you find yourself obsessing over how many steps you’re getting in or how many calories you’re burning then I think you need to ask yourself whether your mindset is thinking in a healthy manner. When I say ‘obsessing’ I don’t say it very loosely, either. If you can’t find yourself going a day without cramming in some extra steps or worrying about how this could affect your progress levels then that to me, shouts an unhealthy mindset. Sure, every now and then I find myself getting in those extra steps because my watch is telling me to do so, however there are also other days when I think ‘Oh stuff that!’ and take my watch off for the rest of the evening. To me, that is healthy and 100% normal.

So why am I writing a blog post on the matter? Because it’s annoyed me. It’s annoyed me how suddenly everybody is moaning about every little thing in the fitness industry and are nick picking at everything possible. Do these gadgets really deserve the negativity that they’ve been recovering this past week based on the mindset of an individual? No, I don’t think so. Of course, not everybody likes fitness trackers for their own reasons, however this subject (I believe) is based on the individual rather than the watch itself.

Personally, I’ve been using a fitness tracker from the very beginning of my fitness journey (2 and a half years ago – roughly) and to this day I am still very much in love with mine (I use an Apple Sports watch) and I use it for absolutely everything!

Was there a time I became obsessed with the data? Absolutely! But not once did I blame the tracker itself. Instead, I took a short break from my watch, sorted my mindset out and once I got back into a normal routine of not counting my steps, calories burned etc I strapped the watch back on and since then I’ve used it as guidance and motivation. There’s nothing quite like a gentle nudge every now and then to remind me that I’m being a lazy sod. Time to get up and move Hannah!

If you’re somebody sitting on the fence about the subject then perhaps it’s time to distance yourself from your fitness tracker for a while. Learn to get back into a routine of normality and living a life without numbers. Trust me, it’s easy to get caught up in the silly things like counting steps and your heart rate and not realise just how much your obsessing over them.

Honestly, life is too short to live worrying about your steps, your calories burnt and just how much effort you put into that workout. Instead, learn a balance of being healthy but also sitting on your backside for a whole afternoon – wine in one hand, chocolate in the other.

What’s your thoughts on the subject?

,

x