Fit at fifty! What a beautiful thing. And at sixty. And at seventy, too. These days, we all know that fitness matters. A healthy lifestyle affects our weight. Our love lives. Our longevity. And quality of live. Benefits like these are so well known, in fact, that they’re just common sense. But science supports the fitness-health connection, as well. And, as it turns out, the benefits of a healthy lifestyle grow ever more essential as we age.
So, how do you fit fitness and health routines into your already busy-to-the-brim life? By letting technology lend a helping hand.
Wellness Wear
Often referred to as fitness trackers, up-to-date wellness wear, in the form of stand-alone devices and apps for your phone, can come to your aid in every area of your fitness battle, from stress management to calorie counting to simple motivation. Are you ready to find the tech that will fit your fitness needs? Read on. Here are some of the best.
- Physiology – Physiology is the measure of just what’s going on in your body at any given time. This can include things like your heart rate, your blood pressure, even your metabolic rate. Basic fitness trackers are so popular now that there are literally hundreds of them to choose from at some very reasonable prices. The Yihou Fitness Tracker, for instance, tracks your heart rate, blood pressure, oxygen levels and calorie expenditures, all for less than $50. Keep in mind, however, that wellness wear is for generally healthy people and offers only a reference point for these vital statistics. They’re not a substitute for more accurate medical devices. If your healthcare provider has advised you to monitor your blood pressure, for instance, ask him or her the best way to do that.
- Posture – Posture affects your appearance, your digestion and even your mood. Looking to improve your posture? The Upright GO Posture Trainer is a piece of wellness wear that can help. The flat device is about one inch by one-and-a-half inches in size, and just a half inch thick. Strapless and comfortable, it attaches directly to your skin and can be worn under your clothes. Throughout the day, it gently vibrates when it senses in real time that you’re slouching. A digital report is also sent to your smart phone with a personalized training program and realistic daily goals.
Upright GO Posture Trainer, $79.95
- Sleep patterns – Knowing how much you’re sleeping and whether that sleep is high quality or not allows you to take measures to improve your sleep habits. Not quite a wearable, the SleepScore Max actually sits at your bedside and uses echolocation to monitor your sleep patterns. You may remember that echolocation is the process bats use, bouncing soundwaves off of their surroundings to “see” in the dark. The SleepScore Max uses the same process to monitor your breathing patterns. In the morning, a score will be sent to your smartphone telling you how well you slept and offering pointers for improving your sleep next time.
- Stress levels – By measuring your stress levels, you can pinpoint what raises those levels and just what helps lower them. The Bellabeat fitness tracker predicts periods of stress based on your lifestyle and habits, measuring your stress sensitivity and the impact of other events. This gives you a chance to avoid high stress levels by using proactive techniques like meditation or exercise to alleviate stress before it even gets started. Best of all, the Bellabeat’s delicate leaf-shaped design makes it look more like jewelry than sports equipment, allowing you to wear it all day at the office and even on an evening out.
- Goals – Setting, and then accurately measuring, your fitness goals is the first step toward accomplishing them. With its “personal goal setting” feature, Fitbit allows you to identify the healthy habits you most want to focus on, then set goals in those areas and measure your progress toward meeting them. The app will even analyze your past performance and recommend reasonable goals to set. After that, it will give you updates throughout the day so you’ll know just how close you are to meeting your goals.
Fitbit Charge 3 Fitness Activity Tracker, $129.95
- Motivation – If you’re using wellness wear to help you with other aspects of your fitness routine, why not let it help you with motivation, as well? There are several that are designed with motivation in mind. The LumoRun Fitness Coach, for example, tracks your running data and then offers tips for avoiding injuries and running longer and stronger. The Misfit Ray not only lets you know when you have a phone call or text message, it also reminds you to get moving if you’ve been sitting still too long.
Misfit Ray – Fitness + Sleep Tracker, $63.89
Maintaining fitness is vitally important as we age. It can improve your mood, your health and even your appearance. Why not line up some of these helpful little gadgets and start your new fitness routine today?
