How to make your wearable work better for you

Not so long ago, the humble watch had a facelift, becoming a telephone, personal computer, radio, recipe book, and newspaper (among other things). With the flick of the wrist, you can read text messages, call your mum, pop on your favourite Cardi B track (again), or fire off a string of tweets about the state of the world.

But in our mind, the biggest benefit for wearable-wearers is the health stuff. The ability to track steps, log your runs and routes, monitor your heart rate, get a little nudge to stand up and move when you’ve been sitting still for too long, there’s even a prompt reminding you to breathe properly... All those things that motivate you to move more and, funnily enough, encourage more time away from technology.

Wearable technology is extremely popular. Last year, over 336 million wearable devices were shipped worldwide, increasing 89% from 2018 sales. So if you’re one of the many New Zealanders who’s splashed out on wearable tech, here’s how to make it work for you, particularly when it comes to fitness.

Most wearables come with built-in fitness trackers, that do just about everything you’d need them to do (step tracking, heart rate monitoring, etc), so you don’t really need to download anything extra (although the Zombies, Run! app is a great one if you need motivation to run like your life depends on it!).

Many fitness trackers allow you to set your own goals – like walk 10,000 steps per day, do a 45 minute yoga class, or burn X amount of calories – and will give you prompts to let you know how you’re going. Think of your smart watch as a friendly personal trainer on your wrist – one who doesn’t yell at you, that is.

To up the motivation stakes and stay accountable, you can connect with your friends for a competitive boost. You’ll receive notifications when they’ve finished a workout or reached their goals, which can be really inspiring to get you off the couch and down to the oval.

While your wearable encourages movement, it also offers rewards to keep you going. Many wearables have a gamified reward system, and will send you virtual trophies and stickers when you reach your daily goals or continue a fitness streak.

If you really want to stay in the zone, turn off notifications coming through to your watch. While the ability to read and reply to text messages from your watch might be useful, hearing a ‘ding’ every time you get an email, DM or Twitter mention probably won’t be.

If anything, your wearable will actually make you more mindful about how much you’re actually moving, be it an hour-long powerwalk around the park or how much incidental exercise you’re clocking up around the house. All movement is good for you, but understanding what’s right – and healthy – for you can be a great motivator.

We know how important it is to spend time away from our phones, particularly at night. Phones in the bedroom can interrupt sleep and inhibit the production of melatonin. If you use the excuse of ‘But what if someone calls?’ or ‘I need the alarm to wake up!’, set your watch to do that and leave your phone in another room.