Fitness Trackers : Why ?

Don’t get me wrong. I like gadgets. And this week I was thinking of buying a smartwatch/ fitness tracker device. But I didn’t. In my hand I had a Samsung gear 2 and every function was there which I wanted. GPS, sleep tracker, heart monitoring etc. Then I found out that the GPS didn’t do elevation. Suddenly I didn’t see the purpose of the watch anymore. When I walk or run I also want to see the elevation although Holland is pretty flat. 😉 This did start me thinking about the usage of a Fitness Tracker.

Fitness tracker / wearable of Samsung

At the airport I saw a man looking at his phone which displayed how much he walked. And he was proud because he did manage to pass his daily goal. When I was looking at him the only thing I could think was : Man, you are cheating on yourself ! Yes you had enough steps according the app but that’s no excuse to had a large pizza again. This man was obese. I don’t mind how you look like or how you’re living, but don’t trick yourself with gadgets. I do have diabetes and I learn how to life with it. A fitness tracker doesn’t do the trick. I still have to eat healthy and exercise enough.

Several years ago I had a Bitfit. Just wanted to see how many I walked. But because I also drove motorcycle to work, which is sometimes shaky, I always passed the x amount of miles each days. I was fooling myself.
Yes, wearables and fitness trackers can help you with your training, but use it accordingly. Set real goals and use them only when you exercise.
Even when you have an app, tracker or what device, you still have to walk, run, train hard and eat smart to be healthy. A device doesn’t make you healthier. Its changing your life stile and a device can be a measurement tool for that.