The Benefits of Fitness Monitors: Track Your Steps to a Healthier Life
Exercise is so important for a balance and healthy life. Some individuals like to keep track of their exercise routines, track their progress with monitors and fitness trackers that help them to see improvements in performance, build endurance, and to make sure that they can reach their goals. If you need help to make sure your on the right path to a healthier, stronger, and fit body please read on to learn about the many benefits of fitness trackers so you can make right choice for your lifestyle.
Wearable fitness monitors have grown into a $1.15 billion industry, according to Scientific American. They come in many forms, ranging from wrist bands that are used for measuring your steps to smartwatches with built-in health-tracking software.
Fitness trackers are generally used to keep track of how many steps you’ve taken, how many calories you’ve burned, your heart rate, how much oxygen is in your blood and your sleep patterns. They are a means of activity quantification — a method that allows you to closely monitor and track health related data. This technology does not claim to make its users instantly healthier, but it does stimulate greater awareness of your health. The tracker allows you to set health goals and serves as a form of motivation. Since you can constantly see it, fitness trackers help keep you on track health top of mind. Research has shown that habits are best formed when you can monitor progress and see measurable results.
Fitness trackers also have a social element, which lends to their motivational quality. With a Fitbit, you can connect your tracker to your friend’s or spouse’s. It allows you to create a buddy system, where you have a partner who motivates you to reach your fitness goals and holds you accountable. Your tracked results are shared online, which encourages a higher level of performance. You can also share your fitness data on social media sites or fitness forums.
A chief concern among users and critics is the accuracy of the watches and trackers. The threat of incorrect data can be dismissed, though, if you properly set your tracker on a regular basis.
Here are some tips that will keep your fitness tracker readings more accurate:
Wear
Wear your wrist tracker on your non-dominant wrist because it moves less than your dominant wrist. This gives you a more accurate read for steps taken. If your tracker calls for it, identify which wrist the tracker is on when you set up your program.
Strides
It is important to calibrate your strides before you put on your fitness tracker because a 6-foot male and 5-foot female have vastly different strides. Your stride lengths also vary if you are engaged in running versus walking. Trackers are generally able to create an accurate measure of your strides based on your height and gender, although a manual setup is encouraged.
It is recommended to visit a track, where you can measure the distance of your strides. Count your strides and divide the length of feet you traveled by the number of steps you took. Then, repeat this measurement activity for a running and walking pace. You can adjust the measurements in your app’s settings to reflect your accurate measurements, so you get the most out of your tracker and be sure your exercise is ensuring a healthy life.
Activities
Newer models of fitness trackers can detect what sort of activity you’re engaged in, but older models need to be set manually. Trackers let you change settings to identify if you are running, walking, hiking, biking or swimming. If your tracker is set for the right activity, your calorie read is more accurate. Just remember to change the activity mode again once your workout is complete. Remember your goal is to be living a healthy life and the proper exercise is a major part of that!!
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