Working at OneU and helping to market the wearable fitness tech we have got the better of me. I walk to campus (and home) four days a week. The appeal of having some of this great fitness tech keep track of my accomplishments and share them with my social networks was irresistible. So I bought in to the hype.
Does fitness tech live up to the hype? It depends on what you use, your lifestyle, and how willing you are to wear and interact with the technology. Personally, I find it easy to remember to put my tracker back on after charging and engage with the app regularly. Not everyone would agree. Some think it is a natural condition of my generation. That is, Millennials.
According to the Seattle Times,
Experts agree that getting people to set goals — and then reminding them of the goals — absolutely works, and the wearable devices are built to do that.
If you are looking for a relatively inexpensive accountability tool, wearable tech is the way to go. According to a LiveScience article, research by the American Heart Association shows that “weight loss, exercise and quitting smoking are the three areas that show the most promise of actual improvements due to the use of mobile health technologies.” It’s never too early to start on these goals, and Millennials shouldn’t view these issues as something to address ‘when they grow up.’
With a relatively small amount of research on the benefits and effectiveness of wearable health tech, it seems counter-intuitive to say that now is the time to invest in such tech. But according to David Goodspeed, Assistant VP of Digital Innovation at the University of Oklahoma, we are in a pivotal period of wearable and mobile fitness tech. He says “Now is the time to experiment and figure out what you like. You can give your feedback to these companies so you can influence the future of fitness tech and get what you want out of it.”
In an effort to make these “experiments” more affordable, OU IT Store is offering a 15% discount on all fitness and audio tech through the end of the year at both stores. Experts in-store can answer your questions and help you choose the fitness tech that will best help you achieve your health and fitness goals.
My health is important to me. My experience is that wearable tech helps me accomplish my goals and push myself. It may have been called a “fad” in some places, but your health is important, too. If tech (whether devices or apps or some combination of both) will help you set and accomplish health and fitness goals, starting today can only benefit you more.