Working Out The Watch.

Whether it's for specific data capture like tracking pregnancy and sleep management or for staying connected in a more modern way - smart wearables are becoming a purchase that will make life easier. Better.

I'm an early adopter but really resisted wearables in their first generation.  It's taken me six months to understand my Apple Watch and what features work best for my needs.

It's absolutely transformed my workouts - both tracking and connectivity - and given me portability (away from my phone) that I find totally freeing.

Plus, from a purely selfish fashion perspective,  I love the changeable bands. It's like lipstick for your wrist. And I change them daily.

Oddly, one of the more traditional benefits is how much I enjoy wearing a watch again.

I use it to tell the time! Imagine that?

Any wearable is a significant investment - you need to really think about it's role in your life - so I wanted to share what I have learnt and how it's made a positive impact in mine.

Did I mention all the bands?

Hey Siri?

It took me awhile to get on board with Siri. There is only room for one alpha female in any relationship. But…the gremlins that existed in the early days have been ironed out and Siri really comes into her own with the Apple Watch. It’s total Maxwell Smart – you literally talk into your watch (as per your phone) and Siri will answer pretty much anything.

I use Siri for weather, time zone and every single day I use her for work-outs. Like this: Raise your wrist and ask Siri to begin the workout. You can specify time, distance and discipline by literally spelling it out: “Hey Siri, I want to go for a 30 minute outdoor run” She will start the workout tracker automatically.

If you don’t want to dictate the terms of the workout then the watch will start the session with an open goal. And starting a workout session with your voice is freaking cool.

Airpods + Apple Music.

Without overstating things: the combination of wireless headphones and the ability to download music onto my wrist has been absolutely life changing. For workouts. For house work. And also for travel. Block the world out with the tap of a finger.

I have completely geeked out on this leap in connectivity between technology and music. No chords flying around your head while you’re running is the most amazing feeling. I have tried all the head phones on the market and these win without question.

Blue-toothed to your watch (and actually all your Apple devices) the pods sit snuggly in your ears. Even while you run. They do not fall out. I have danced to Beyonce tracks (including hair flicks) with them in. There is no substitute for trying these and I would recommend them for any Apple product – even if you don’t have or need the watch.

One of my huge annoyances has been paying for steaming subscriptions and not being able to put on a portable running decide _ like a shuffle. It was your phone or nothing and who wants to run with a phone? The Series 2 allows you download playlists and sync them to your watch. That is literally all I need to say about this. Life changed. I’m now so reliant on the combination of the these two products when it comes to working out that I panic when they’re not charged. That’s the rub with wearables – you have to charge them. The battery is good but it need constant love. I recommend and overnight charge on both of these devices.

The Activity Tracker.

This app works like a personal trainer on your wrist. It tracks you moving, exercise and sitting habits telling you haptic-ly (vibration setting) when you’ve achieved goals. I underestimated this app. I was so used to just setting a time and exercise for that period. Very old school. Now I’ve come to rely on the subliminal motivation this app provides. The watch chats to me wirelessly with motivational messages which I thought I would hate but are geniunely encouraging. And it’s kicked my fitness up a notch. And so easily just by changing the goal a little bit each week. I’ve gone from running 4.5km to 6.5km. In three months.

And Some Other Things.

The Water Lock Thing: Its water resistant to 50 meters which is perfect for normal exercise swimming. My husband used it for this and it’s changed his swimming abilities. The swim workout feature auto-detects whether you’re doing butterfly, breaststroke, front crawl and clock your calories burnt at the intensity rate of the stroke. Clever!

The water lock also stops the screen reacting to water swiping over it (like your finger) so your stats are uninterrupted. The watch also automatically moves to water-lock if it starts to rain while your exercising outdoors.

The Breathe App: Its purpose is mindfulness. A word I hate but an app I love. It’s designed to guide you through relaxation sessions so you’ll give more thought to your stress levels. The app guides users through a series of deep breaths which start at a one-minute session of seven breaths, but can be extended to longer sessions. Once users begin, the app informs them to “be still and bring attention to your breath.” Then a series of circles on the display slowly expand and haptic feedback on the wrist lets you know it’s time to inhale.