Part 3: 'Data & tracking' — how to make exercise non-negotiable
The right information can yield a powerful impact on our movement and health habits — if used strategically. Here are 5 tools I use.
Warmup
The headline is unequivocal.
Move or Die.
Beneath these words comes a piece of research almost too good to be true, as reported in Outside magazine’s November/December print issue by one of my go-to health columnists — Alex Hutchinson.
Here it the big takeaway:
The amount of physical activity you perform in a typical day, as measured by a wrist tracker, is a better predictor of longevity than a host of other factors — among them lifestyle habits such as smoking and alcohol consumption and pre-existing medical conditions, including heart disease and diabetes.
It’s even more important than your age.
Post
On the back of that research, let’s ride into our topic.
Today’s newsletter is the third of five posts about how to make regular physical movement non-negotiable in your day.
Here’s what we’re covering in this series:
• Pre-programming and Time-blocking (Posted 11/17/24)
• Visual Cues & Accessibility (Posted 11/24/24)
• Data & Tracking (TODAY)
• The Double-Up Pledge (Posted 12/9/24)
• Completion Signaling (Posted 12/15/24)
• BONUS: N2L Reader Tips (Posted 12/24/24)
Let’s get it done.
Data & Tracking
I think about collecting information on my physical movement the same way I do collecting data at work: it’s only beneficial if accurate, put into context and triggers good decisions.
To that end, I have tested and tried a multitude of tracking devices, apps and systems and winnowed them down to a handful that meet these three criteria:
Comfort and ease of use. In other words, the device can’t be so complicated it gets in the way of doing.
Simple, consistent results I can often verify elsewhere.
Using them generally changes my behavior for the better. (There’s a clear ROI.)
(Note: I earn no money from companies making products mentioned in this newsletter.)
GPS Sports Watch
If I had to choose only one device and throw out the rest, it would be my watch.
It is the keeper of my physical activity, how long, fast and far I go — along with other beneficial information such as my heart rate, cadence and, wait for it, even the time!
My watch is simple without loads of bells and whistles: a Coros Pace 2. It’s thin, barely noticeable on my arm but can take the heavy beating of an obstacle course race with barbed wire crawls and muddy trenches.
Also, it’s proven accurate when I’ve checked it against other heart rate monitors and GPS devices.
Bottom line: I don’t want a watch to do what my phone does. I do not allow texts to come into my sports watch. That’s a good way to trip on a tree root when barreling down a path.
When I wear it, it’s only for one thing only: tracking the basics of my exercise so I can consistently monitor my progress. I’m not boiling the ocean with this data.
Can watches do more? Absolutely. Do I feel like I really need that data to improve my fitness? Not really.
Sleep Tracker
I track my sleep for two primary reasons when it comes to exercise:
To give a general sense of my readiness for the day based on data about my nocturnal patterns. Then I can dial exercise up or down accordingly.
To make it far less likely I will have a glass of wine or dessert at night— both of which negatively impact my overall fitness in other ways.
I’ve tried watches and wrist bands that track sleep. They all work fine. But they aren’t comfortable for me in bed. So I’ve worn an Oura smart ring since 2021.
In addition to importing the exercise data from my watch, the ring gives me a picture of readiness based on Heart Rate Variability, Resting Heart Rate, Body Temperature and Respiratory Rate.
Bottom line: When I consume alcohol or sugar in the evening, those numbers are ALWAYS negatively impacted. I don’t like getting bad grades. So, the ring makes me a lot more mindful and selective about when I choose to indulge.
Continuous Glucose Monitor
I began wearing a CGM about 18 months ago. My blood glucose levels as measured by my doctor were ticking toward pre-diabetes levels — which given the healthy diet I ate and my exercise consistency, didn’t compute.
The CGM findings led to additional tests that revealed impaired glucose tolerance. Wearing the monitor now helps me take specific actions to deal with that impairment — namely what carbohydrates I regularly eat (for instance barley versus rice) as well as when I engage in movement (like a walk or ruck) following certain meals to lower my blood sugar.
Bottom line: Could I make these decisions without a CGM? Yes.
Does the CGM act as a powerful governor to my behavior much like the Oura ring? Absolutely.
For that reason, it checks my boxes as a sound investment in data.
Apps
Call me anti-social on the fitness app front.
Despite numerous people I love trying to woo me to Strava and other exercise communities, I remain a digital movement hermit.
The fitness apps I do use are ones where my workouts are programmed by my Grit Coaching trainers:
Final Surge - which keeps my daily workouts programmed into a calendar where I also can track data and communicate with my coaches.
PT Distinction - an app specifically for my monthly strength programs. It includes simple written instructions and videos.
Bottom line: I totally get the appeal of online fitness communities (and feel free to try and persuade me again.) But for now I’ve made a choice to abstain other than some posts on social channels such as Instagram. It’s 100% a time and screen detox decision on my part.
Which brings me to my favorite tool …
My Notebook
Often I will write down those workouts from my strength app into a small notebook. This way, I won’t have any screen in front of me when I exercise — so no texts or news alerts popping up.
My notebook is where I also track miscellaneous information I collect while exercising when I don’t want to look at my phone.
My times running up and down Bear Mountain for the past six years.
Feedback to give my coaches.
Ideas for this newsletter.
Bottom line: A notebook is the tracking tool least likely to offer distractions from exercise.
Cooldown
One common thread of all these tools: accountability. Collecting and tracking data helps holds me accountable to myself.
I’d love to hear what tools and tracking devices you use — or suggestions of things to try — so please email me or leave them in the comments below.
Remember:
"How much and how vigorously you move are more important than how old you are as a predictor of how many years you’ve got left.” — Alex Hutchinson, Outside Magazine
Thanks for reading. And as always, find something you love. Dig in. Stick with it when things get hard.
Wendy
I like your emphasis on simplicity. Watches and apps inundate us with data and sundry scores based on proprietary algorithms. When I look at the results reported from my bed, my watch and my apps they rarely agree. One says, hit it hard, another — take a rest day etc.. The only consistent measurement comes from my dog. He never believes in rest days and every day should be all out.
It may be off topic but you introduced CGMs. At some point would you consider discussing what you learned from it and why you decided to use it?
I’m a fan of the Oura also. I do like tracking with apps. Probably too many :) I went back and forth looking at either an Apple Watch Ultra or a Garmin and ultimately went for the Apple Watch. I have a 1% Journal about making yourself 1% better each day coming I’m planning on using to write down goals.