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Feeling tired? Not sleeping? And lacking energy?
Have you ever wanted to know what’s going on with your body day to day? And when you should be exercising? Well, if you haven’t, then you’re perfect and you should stop reading now…. but for the rest of us, and I’m going to bet that it’s the majority of us, you might find that the answer can be found at your wrist. Specifically, the data collected from your wrist.
I spent 100 days wearing a WHOOP – because life is a treadmill that isn’t going to stop, and with all the tech options for insight available, I thought I would join the WHOOP craze.
For me, I wanted a better idea on the stressors influencing / affecting my life and body day to day, and how better I can keep up with two charming young boys (and a hot wife that hits the gym daily and is a high level corporate bad ass Bi*ch).
So, over the 100 days did I notice the most?
– Sleep matters
– Alcohol has HUGE effects on sleep and recovery, along with energy the next day
– Balance is everything.
SLEEP
So why does sleep matter? This one is pretty obvious and we all know that our systems need time to repair and rest for the next day but wearing a piece of technology that tracks sleep was like a huge punch in the face. It gave me insight into how that little bit of extra sleep can slowly build over time and give you more energy, and overall make you feel just that little bit better.
ALCOHOL
I like the next person, enjoys a drink. Not the “out till 3am” drink, but a couple of drinks after work on a Friday after a big week of running the kids to school, music lessons, swim training etc. And its deserved, right? Well, my biggest message from 100 days of wearing the WHOOP came when I did and didn’t have alcohol. The data gave a pretty stark contrast for when I did drink and how much even a couple of beers affected my sleep, and how much higher my heart rate was during the night as it tried to do its job and deal with the alcohol. I was shocked that even two beers showed to have an effect, slowing down my heart overnight and the next day.
EXERCISE
This for me is something I’m striving to get better at, gone are the days of 2 exercise sessions a day and doing what I want when I want, but what the WHOOP did in this instance was show me how sporadic my exercise routine was. The insights from WHOOP showed me that I needed to be more consistent and the combination of sleep data and stress indicators did play a role so all in all my visits to the gym and in general getting out to exercise increased significantly over the 100 days.
BALANCE
Sleeping more, exercising more and drinking less were the biggest lessons I have learned over the last 100 days. Was the WHOOP the defining factor in this? Well no. But the insights and small little nudges that it provided were great. At the end of the day it’s all information that deep down we know… but I have to admit, seeing it all in black and white does make you sit and pay attention.
VERDICT
For me having used multiple fitness trackers over the years from Polar and Garmin along with Apple Watch and now WHOOP I feel the industry is taking a slight curve to wellness and other factors that previously were not at the forefront of overall wellness. When we look at exercise and recovery and how important it all it to be aware of the strains on the body right now WHOOP is worth trying if your looking for a different take on your health.