INTHEBLACK Mental Health 2021 - Magazine - Page 28
Mental Health and Resillience
H E A LT H S M A R T // T E C H F O R W E L L N E S S
Jabra Elite Active earpods are
waterproof and offer a warranty
against failure from sweat damage.
Above: The Headspace app
can help you meditate or get
a better night’s sleep.
STORY GLENN REES
WELLNESS
TECH
Left: The Apple Watch 6
can measure the level of
oxygen in your blood.
D EV IC ES A N D A P P S TO P UT US ON
T H E PAT H TO A H E ALTHI ER L I F ESTY L E.
G
one are the days when “wellness” was a
word that you’d only read in New Age
magazines. Wellness is now top of mind
for both individuals and organisations.
Of course, your physical and mental health
largely depends on the choices you make, but
technology can help you live a healthier lifestyle.
WEARABLES
To become fit and healthy, we often need help
in the motivation department. Wearable
devices can help by tracking your activities and
showing how you are improving over time.
You name it, the latest wearables can track
it: your heart rate, your sleep patterns, a wide
variety of activities from walking and running
to cycling and swimming, and even the oxygen
level in your blood. Wearables typically sync
with a companion app on your smartphone to
provide details of your activities, and they can
also often display notifications, such as
incoming text messages.
28 ITB October 2021
Tracking accuracy varies significantly
between wearables, but as long as you
understand the tech’s limitations, wearables
offer a good way to track your improvement
over time.
Fitness bands are the smallest and,
generally, the cheapest wearables. If you want
a decent size screen, you will need to invest in
a smartwatch.
Higher-end smartwatches, such as those from
Apple, Samsung and Garmin, offer lots of fitness
and general features, such as a built-in GPS for
more accurate tracking of outdoor activities.
They are also sometimes available in 4G
versions, so you can take calls and receive
texts even when you are out and about
without your phone.
OTHER DEVICES
Don’t like the look of smartwatches? Hybrid
watches are a good alternative, offering a
traditional watch face with some smartwatch
capabilities. Popular brands include Fossil
and Withings.
Other alternatives include running and
cycling “pods” from the likes of Garmin. These
small clip-on devices measure your speed,
cadence, distance and other aspects of your
performance. Or, for a true “wearable”,
Sensoria’s smart socks can do the same thing.
If you want to track results, not just
activities, consider getting smart scales made
by companies such as Fitbit and Withings. As
well as measuring your weight, they can also
capture your body fat, muscle mass and more.
Music is great way to get through a workout,
and you are spoilt for choice when it comes to
wireless earbuds for sports, from brands such
as Bose and Jabra.
For training at home, there is any number of
treadmills, rowing machines and other devices
that can get you moving. Apps that integrate
with these devices can help with your
motivation. One of the most popular is Zwift,