The Pros and Cons of Working Out with Technology

The Pros and Cons of Working Out with Technology

An illustrated guide to when technology helps boost your fitness—and when it doesn't

For the most part, integrating some sort of biometric tracking is awesome for improving your fitness. Activity trackers can get you motivated to move more. And heart-rate monitors can give immediate feedback on the intensity of your workouts, so you can adjust as needed to meet your aerobic and weight-loss goals. “Technology can provide a snapshot of what’s going on inside your body,” says Natalie Abrhiem, a personal trainer and assistant personal-training department head at Life Time Fitness in Shelby Township, Michigan. Life Time does a full metabolic profile with personal-training clients and encourages members to use a variety of fitness devices to maximize results.

That said, tech isn't necessarily all good, all the time. If you take it too seriously, it can sometimes get in your head—and it might not even be super accurate. With that in mind, we break down what you should sync up for, and when you should shut it down:

Tech is great for heart-rate training so you can train optimally. See, surprise: Most people go too hard! To get maximum benefits, you need to run at different levels of intensity (and, thus, in different heart-rate zones). “I often use heart-rate monitors with athletes who are battling the urge to constantly run every run too fast,” says exercise physiologist Janet Hamilton, C.S.C.S., head running coach at Running Strong Professional Coaching in Atlanta. “When they see that the heart rate they’re running at doesn’t match the effort they should be feeling on an 'easy' run, they start to get it.” Tech is less great when it overestimates your calorie burn—and most cardio machines and heart-rate watches do. If you think you’ve burned more calories tha n you actually have, you might end up overeating.

MORE: Should You Run Naked?
 

Tech is great when you want an easy way to log your running mileage and see improvement week after week. It’s less great when you obsess over maintaining your pace during every run—and feel totally lost if you forget your watch one day. “If you get too dependent on looking at your watch, you don’t learn how to ‘feel’ the proper pace,” says Hamilton. “This can be problematic when the GPS is not accurate. Think downtown with all the high buildings around you—during a marathon.”

MORE: 8 Kicks We Love to Run In

—

Amy Roberts is a certified personal trainer.

Powered by WPeMatico