Are you addicted to your smart watch?

Recently I purchased a smart watch for the first time. The fruity one, rhymes with chapel. And, very quickly it became an addiction!

Don’t get me wrong, it is a great tool for tracking steps and activity levels etc, although the accuracy can be questioned. But it is consistent, even if consistently inaccurate, it is still a useful tool to help.

However, it was so addictive! I found myself constantly checking my watch! How many calories have I burned today? How many hours have I stood? How much exercise have I done? This is a big one. Having a job where I am standing and walking a lot, my watch may register that as exercise even though I do not.

This got me thinking. What if someone relied solely on their smart watch. Would this stop them going to the gym on a day where they walked an extra few miles? All because they have ‘hit’ their exercise goal?

Or, maybe go out for a run or cycle on a rest day because they couldn’t help stressing about the fact that they hadn’t hit their exercise goal or calorie target for that day?

Well this last one was me!

I got suckered into believing that I had to keep my move streak going. What a joke huh!? I was at 59 days before I realised what I was doing. Some of you may be thinking, well that’s great! You have hit your targets 59 days in a row! What is the issue with that?

Well the reality is that when I should have been spending time at home, with friends or family, or on other things like work or planning, I was out running or cycling. All because I wanted to hit a calorie or exercise goal, and keep my streak going!

One time, I went for a cycle. I made the excuse that I needed to get some provisions for the week ahead, but really I was worried about not hitting my ‘goals’ that day. I forgot to log the activity on the watch and because I was keeping it quite casual it wasn’t registered as exercise. The calories were also lower because of this (if you tell your watch your exercising it burns more calories automatically; why?). So, I ended up cycling a lot further than the shop I needed so go to, and then a lot further away than home so I could burn more calories. This is laughable, but its true. I did this! All because a watch told me to!

Don’t get me wrong, this isn’t a rant about smart watches. I think they are a brilliant and helpful tool when used correctly. It is more a warning to not let them consume you. If you are having a rest day then rest. If you planned to go to the gym, then go. Let smart watches help you make smarter choices. Walk more, take the stairs. Maybe go for a cycle with a friend. But don’t let them consume you.

Believe it or not, you don’t have to keep your watch happy.

Be smart,

Joe