Hannah holds an honours degree in Human Biology and has a passion for writing about diet, health, wellness and the environment. She’s working her way to being fully plant-based and is a keen home cook and fair weather runner.
I have an addiction, and I’m here to talk about it.
Readers, I’m addicted to my iWatch.
At first, even I was sceptical about getting one. Why would I need something electronic attached to my wrist? Especially when a watch can only do a few of the things the electronic gumf permanently in my hand/on my desk/in my bag already do!
But that scepticism was before. Before I got one, all shiny and lovely, a few years ago. And before I realised how much a my iWatch fitness tracker would care for me…
Letting My iWatch Take Over
Easy way to view your daily activity
I’ll be clear. I don’t use my iWatch to take or make calls, text or play music. I do all that with my iPhone and to be honest, the iWatch isn’t great at any of those things. No, I use it as my fitness tracker.
The activity app that comes as standard does three things. It monitors movement (and calories burned), minutes of exercise and how long you stand (or don’t stand) for each waking hour.
A few years ago, this would’ve sounded a bit creepy. Very creepy in fact. Something that knows how much, or how little, you’re moving around, and you choose to wear it?
But oh, how things move on. It’s part of every day life to be tracked and monitored, whatever our views on Big Brother watching us.
Of these three things, my favourite is the standing monitor. If you’ve been sitting for 50 minutes in each hour, it will bleep and vibrate on your wrist to remind you to stand.
Annoying? Not at all. Science tells us we shouldn’t sit for too long. Sitting for extended periods – and that includes sitting on the train and behind a desk all day, as well as being slumped on the sofa – can put us at risk of obesity, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure and even some cancers. Adjustable height desks that allow us to work standing up are a big deal for a reason.
So you see? It cares about me.
The iWatch encourages standing for a minute in every hour, for 12 hours a day. Assuming you get up at 7am, you’re free to sit as long as you like after dinner and the bleep is unlikely to interrupt you mid-Netflix session.
Minutes of Exercise and Calories Burned
The iWatch activity app is set at 30 minutes of exercise per day. Something the British NHS says we should all be aiming for. It will automatically pick up a raised pulse which is handy if briskly walking to the train station is the only exercise you manage to squeeze in. You can also use the in-built workout app to track walks, runs, cycles, HIIT workouts and even yoga. It’ll tell you calories burned, distance, pace and time at a glance, ideal midway through any exercise.
It’ll also track the number of calories burned, as a percentage of the number you set out to burn each day. Burn 150 calories of a 200-calorie daily target, and you’ve reached 75% of your goal. Burn 400 and you’ve doubled your goal.
Meet all three daily targets and you’ll get a virtual medal; and who doesn’t love a medal, right? OK, its not one you can hang on your door or show your mum, but it sure does get addictive. And remember, its all because it cares…
My iWatch addiction extends to the plethora of fitness apps that pair with it too.
Skimble Workouts, Nike+ Running Club, Human, 7 Minute Workout Challenge and Map My Run to name a few.
So if you’re looking for something that keeps you on track for fitness and health, and that cares about you, you won’t go far wrong with the Apple iWatch!
We could all do with a little boost at times, and something that reminds you to stand, move around and get active can’t be a bad thing, can it? And with a medal at the end of each day in reach, we can all be winners!
