Most fitness trackers resemble watches or wristbands. They can be used to keep tabs on your activity levels, heart rate, steps taken, calories burned, and other metrics. Contemporary fitness trackers are utilized together with smart phones for making and receiving calls, sending and receiving texts and emails, and keeping track of appointments, etc.
They supply space for archiving data ahead of time for use in analysis. The use of fitness trackers has recently become popular in the health and fitness sector. But before you decide to join the bandwagon, you should weigh the pros and downsides of investing in a fitness tracker.
Advantages of Fitness trackers
1. Track workout activities
A fitness tracker’s primary benefit is that it simplifies the process of keeping track of your exercise routine. Manufacturers incorporate numerous sensors into fitness trackers to automatically record data on a wide range of activities.
A common type of sensor seen in fitness trackers is a three-axis accelerometer, which can detect both forward and reverse motion. It can detect your body’s orientation and measure acceleration and gravity.
Optical, altimeter, gyroscope, and temperature sensors are also widely used. Together, they monitor your every waking and sleeping moment, as well as your core temperature, pulse, and other vitals. To get the most out of your fitness tracker, you should familiarize yourself with its features.
2. Helps in tracking progress
It can help if you’re attempting to get in shape but have no idea how far along you actually are. Most are compatible with smartphone apps that let you monitor your progress toward fitness objectives by recording your workouts.
Whether its weight loss, increased stamina, or enhanced strength, everyone has some sort of fitness objective. A fitness tracker might be your best friend in making sure you’re making steady progress toward your goals. Keeping tabs on your progress may be a huge inspiration even if you’re just trying to get more sleep or walk a specific number of steps every day.
3. Helps in training effectively
More efficient exercise is another benefit of using a fitness tracker. Having access to extensive wellness as well as workout data might help you identify what works and what doesn’t if you haven’t achieved your goals in a while.
You can figure out what has the most effect and put more effort into that, while reducing the time spent on things that produce less. That’s one approach to apply the 80/20 rule, claiming that only 20% of your effort has to yield 80% of your results.
4. Keep record of overall health
A fitness tracker can measure your heart rate, oxygen levels in the blood, and other vitals. With the click of a button on your wrist, fitness trackers deliver a wealth of health information. Wearing your fitness tracker is the only real commitment required.
Focus on your physical activity while the fitness tracker keeps tabs on your progress. In general, the more expensive fitness trackers are, the more accurate its readings will be and the more health information it will deliver.
5. Motivates the wearer
A fitness tracker is a great way to keep tabs on your daily achievements and improvement. Keeping track of your improvement over time can serve as a powerful source of motivation.
6. Tracks sleep
A fitness tracker can record details about your sleep, such as how many hours you slept, how deep you went, how often you woke up, and how often. Understanding your sleep habits can help you get a restful night’s sleep and boost your disposition the following day.
7. Stay connected
Some of today’s best fitness trackers also connect via Bluetooth and Wi-Fi. You can now receive calls, texts, and emails without ever having to check your phone. It’s a convenient method of maintaining contact when you can’t access your mobile device.
Other benefits
- Tracking your workouts at home or in the gym has never been easier than with the data provided by a fitness tracker.
- In addition, it stores data from the days before so that you may look back and see where you were. The result is a heightened desire to exercise on a regular basis.
- Using a fitness tracker consistently has a positive effect on your health.
- The big OLED display panel seen on most modern devices makes them a breeze to use.
Disadvantages of Fitness trackers
1. Cost
In comparison to more advanced fitness trackers, smart watches tend to be less expensive. However, that initial investment is still a factor. If you’re relatively new to the realm of fitness technology, you should realize that a smartwatch & a fitness tracker are not the same thing. The cost of a fitness tracker might vary widely. You could have bought something more practical with that money if you hadn’t wasted it.
2. Cybersecurity concerns
Location, identification data, food consumed, and health status are just some of the private details that fitness trackers record. This is a major security issue, especially if the tracking device or the fitness app it syncs with been compromised. You should think carefully about this possibility before deciding to use a fitness tracker.
3. Unhealthy obsession
Keeping track of your progress in a fitness journal is a great method to keep yourself accountable and inspired. Some people, however, may develop obsessive-compulsive disorders as a result of them. The use of fitness trackers comes with the potential of becoming obsessive about one’s stats to the point that one’s health and fitness become secondary concerns. Avoid increasing the probability of injury and mental exhaustion by disregarding your body’s signals.
4. Inaccurate readings
While fitness trackers serve as a great aid, it’s important to remember that their accuracy is not guaranteed. When it comes to measuring your calories and sleep, these numbers can be very deceiving if you take them at face value.
Conclusion
Although fitness trackers are helpful tools, they should be used sparingly. You should weigh the benefits and drawbacks of your potential purchase thoroughly before making a final decision.
Long-term success with your fitness objectives is greatly enhanced by using a fitness tracker. If you’re serious about your health and fitness, a fitness tracker may be worth the investment if you don’t mind the price tag.
