I’ve been dreaming of a fitness tracker for a long time.
From Fitbit to Jawbone, all the way through to the Apple Watch, I’ve looked at them all. And though a pedometer looks like a good idea, or even the app on my phone, I wanted something more, something that offered a little of everything.
Though fitness wearables started out life as pedometers, they’ve evolved (there’s a great history article on their development here from Legal & General) to include sleep monitoring, compatability with your diet apps, and heart rate monitoring, they’ve moved on some way from the ‘10000 steps a day’ place they started.
So I did my research and decided I wanted something a little bit different. A Misfit. This little coin sized monitor can fit in a wristband, or clip to any piece of clothing – and in the case of the Shine, can be worn as a necklace, pendant, watch – there are even socks and t-shirts that have compartments built in for it.
I think what drew me to the Misfit Flash was it’s wearability. When it comes to the tech (and I will come to that shortly), most of it is similar. They all monitor your sleep, heart rate, and track your exercise, as well as your steps. What I like about misfit is that it’s not trying to hide. It’s trying to be part of your life, and integrate into it. From coloured sports bands, to the jewellery, it’s not trying to be a discreet black band around your wrist.
And the price is pretty good too. It’s recently gone down in price to around £30.00. Compare that to a Fitbit One (the closest comparatively) at £79.99, and I’m already pretty convinced.
The app interface is pretty straightforward too.
You register, then set up on the app simple things, like if you want to manually trigger an activity (going for a run, swim etc) where you wear it, whether you want it to display the time before or after it displays your progress towards your target and your daily target.
Your daily target is a points system – the default is 1000 points – and it’s comprised of not only your steps and your exercise, but also your sleep. The system recognises that sleep is as important as exercise, and judging from my apps readings, I definitely don’t get enough of it.
You can adjust your points to whatever suits you. The fun then comes when you try to not only reach that target, but occasionally smash it to bits.
Of course, then when you come nowhere near on a rest day, you have to reassure yourself that you’ll smash it again the next day. I genuinely think it simply appeals to my competitive nature. You can add friends to it and be competitive with them, or as I prefer to do, stay competitive with yourself.
I must admit, I’m kind of addicted. It’s easy, so easy to see what’s missing where – and helps you get a real handle on exactly how many calories you’re burning.
I’m so addicted, I’m looking at treating myself to the next step up from the Flash, the Shine. There’s even a Speedo Shine built specifically for swimmers, and if you really fancy pushing the boat out, the Swarovski Shine, which is just damn pretty.