Since the invention of wearable technology, fitness trackers like Apple Watches and Fitbits have risen in popularity and are used by approximately one in five Americans. Many use fitness trackers to promote a healthier lifestyle.
Dr. Jim Taylor specializes in the psychology of sports performance and has worked with professional athletes.
“[Trackers] can be useful tools to educate people about their fitness habits,” Taylor said. “The data tells people about their activity, sleep, calories, etc.”
Sophomore Anelise Ostrowski needed a way to track her sleep cycles for her middle school science fair project. Her solution was a Fitbit.
“I used it to check my sleep and if my sleep patterns changed or if I got less sleep, depending on how much I [used] my phone,” Ostrowski said.
Although Ostrowski did not originally plan to use a fitness tracker outside of her project, she continued tracking her daily habits even after finishing her project.
However, there is a common misconception surrounding fitness trackers: that wearing one automatically leads to a healthier life.
“Data isn’t enough,” Taylor said. “Education, programming and motivation must be included to produce meaningful health behavior change.”
Moreover, to see lasting health benefits, the data collected by fitness trackers needs to be used appropriately.
“Fitness trackers only have long-term health benefits if the data is used to develop health programs and change habits,” Taylor said.
Despite that, wearing a fitness tracker seems to prompt people to make healthy lifestyle changes. While some may use it to track steps and others to burn calories, at their root, fitness trackers are a source of motivation.
Senior Zachary Low is a member of Aragon’s cross country team and runs six times a week. Low primarily uses an app on his phone, Run Tracker, to log the distances of his runs.
“If I was trying to hit five miles, I would just keep running until I would hit that,” Low said. “[The fitness trackers] would just motivate me to run more.”
Ostrowski also felt partially driven by her Fitbit.
“[After losing my Fitbit], I wasn’t as motivated,” Ostrowski said. “[I used it to] check my steps and also look at the time.”
Sophomore Maya Yoo, a former Apple Watch user, also thought wearing a fitness tracker encouraged her to work out more.
“I could see my progress [and] growth,” Yoo said. “That motivated me to keep on going and trying to get better as an athlete.”
Even with her positive experience using the Apple Watch, Yoo has her reasons for stopping.
“It got in the way when playing basketball and I didn’t want to track anything anymore,” Yoo said.
Despite the lure of these advanced wearable technologies, some question if the certain brands’ expensiveness is justified. The retail price of Fitbits can be more than $100 and the Apple Watch Series 7, the newest model released in 2021, has a starting retail price of $399.
“I do think buying one was worth it because I got a lot out of it,” Ostrowski said. “Some of them are a little bit too expensive, [especially] if you aren’t going to use it a lot or you lose it.”
Although the statistics displayed might serve to motivate some, for others, this quantification of their life may become unhealthy.
“[When I did not see myself reach a certain goal], I felt disappointed but also motivated to try harder,” Ostrowski said.
All three students had overall positive experiences with wearable fitness trackers, unanimously agreeing that they would recommend one. However, Yoo cautioned against growing too dependent on such trackers and encouraged being mindful of their intended purpose.
“It really depends on what people want to get a fitness tracker for,” Yoo said. “If it’s to motivate [people] and to benefit their health, I would say yes. But, if it’s to focus on … calories or how much [to] exercise, [then] I would say no.”
The use of fitness trackers is seen within the Aragon community and may continue to grow. Overall, the effectiveness of such technologies depends on the user’s goals and mindset.
