In today’s world, it seems like every time we turn around there is a new piece of technology coming out. While it is hard to keep up with the latest gadgets, one you might want to consider in 2021 is a fitness tracker. There are numerous brands that supply fitness wearables and all of them now sync to various apps on your phone. If you already have a personal trainer, he or she has probably asked you to track your calories as well as your activity level. Your activity level can be hard to judge without a tracker. Without tracking your activity, it can be even more challenging to judge how many calories you should consume for that particular day. Incorporating a fitness tracking into your routine allows you to not only monitor your calorie expenditure, but also allows you to take part in fun workout challenges and reward yourself for your hard work to keep you consistent!
  1. Wearables such as Fitbits and Apple watches are great tools to monitor your intensity level during fitness classes, sports training, while you are working with your personal trainer or at home working out. Fitness trackers force you to be honest with yourself on how hard you are working. A major function of all wearables is heart rate monitoring. This allows you to see where your heart rate is at during an exercise or activity. Some fitness classes sync with your wearable so that you can see where you are in comparison to the rest of the class and see what “zone” you are in. Using a tracker consistently will allow you to become familiar with where your heart rate is at when you are pushing yourself while also becoming more aware of when you are slacking (we all do it from time to time).
  2. Monitoring your heart rate allows wearables to track your calorie expenditure. Calorie expenditure is monitored while you are working out in your fitness classes, with your personal trainer, etc. but also when you are not working out which is key. Oftentimes, people forget that activities of daily living account for calorie expenditure too. Doing household chores, taking dogs for walks, grocery shopping, and yard work are easy ways to increase the amount of calories you are burning each day. Without a tracker, it is hard to do much more than estimate your step count and activity level on a given day. Wearing a tracker consistently will allow you to become familiar with how many steps you take during a high activity day vs a low activity day. On days where you are burning a lot of calories you can allow yourself to consume a few more. Cheat days are a lot more rewarding when you are absolutely certain that you earned it!
  3. Fitness trackers keep a history of all of the workouts that you complete. This allows you to track progress and look back at the hard work you put in during your fitness classes or  sessions with your personal trainer. The longer you use a wearable, the apps that sync up with the device will start to show you trends. These trends will allow you to see improvement in your calorie expenditure, exercise time and intensity. On the other hand, it will make you aware of those months where you were not so active and force you analyze what was different and how to make adjustments in your schedule so that you can attend more fitness classes, sessions with your personal trainer or just make more time to get out and walk to increase your number of steps each day.
  4. The hardest part about sticking with a fitness routine is that the results are not instantaneous. You have to fall in love with the process to achieve overall health and wellness. One way to make that a little easier is by taking part in challenges and being rewarded for your hard work. All fitness trackers have monthly, daily and even holiday workout challenges. They also reward you for “closing your rings” each day. Wearables also allow you to take part in various challenges that might be held at your work such as step challenges. One way to ensure success when trying to get in shape is having a way to hold yourself accountable. Personal trainers, fitness classes, friends, family and coworkers are all great for accountability but wearables stay with you when those activities and people are not there. Fitness trackers remind you to stand, walk, and workout each day. Everything that is tracked gets improved, so why wouldn’t you track your fitness?!
man checking his fitness tracker on his fitness watch during a run

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