Activity Trackers and Wellness Challenges

Activity Trackers

I’m probably the last person on the planet to finally get a Fitbit. I workout, teach dance, and run after my kids, so why would I need one? Activity trackers are for people who need to get more active, right?

Wrong.

After getting my Fitbit for Christmas, I’ve realized activity trackers are a great way to figure out what your daily activity really looks like, how much sleep you’re getting, and how hard you are exercising.

It was a huge eye opener for me, and prompted me to make some changes.

I’ve also made a few other changes in the new year, including seeing a new doctor,  and trying to get my mental health in check.

It’s been hard.

So, I wanted to share my thoughts, progress, and challenges with my new health overhaul and road to wellness.

Mental Health

Before, I get into the physical stuff, I wanted to talk about the hardest thing I’ve been going through. As I’ve mentioned before, I suffer from anxiety. It’s something that I’ve dealt with most of my life. At times, it’s been all-consuming, while at others, just an afterthought. I’ve tried therapy, different medications, and natural remedies.

Recently, my anxiety has been under control. I’ve been using the same medication for a few years, as well as the techniques I learned in therapy. Writing and exercise help too.

But, still something didn’t feel right.

It’s hard to describe, but the only word that comes to mind is flat. No excitement, no joy, and no desire. Small things would bring me to tears, I would snap at my kids, and I had no desire for physical affection.

Sure, most of the time, I just put on a brave face and push through, but it’s been getting harder and harder. It’s actually exhausting. So, when we switched insurance in January, I brought it up to my new doctor.

I told her about my lack of desire and joy, how I can’t sleep, and how I just don’t want to do anything.

We decided it was time for a change.

So, I’m weaning off my old medication and going back to one I used before I was pregnant.

This process is not easy. There are side effects, both physical and mental, from going off one. It also takes a while (like weeks) before the new medication starts working. Plus, there’s no guarantee it will work.

But, I had to try something different because what I was doing just wasn’t helping anymore.

Luckily, this new doctor seems very knowledgeable, and I’m hopeful.

Getting Physical

While my mental health is a work in progress, my physical health is too.

I consider myself a pretty active person. I take classes at the gym and teach dance classes most days of the week. When I’m not doing actual exercise, I’m fetching things for my kids and cleaning/organizing the house. Plus, they don’t call it “running” errands for nothing, right?

However, I’ve seemed to have stalled in my progress. I’ve gained a little weight back, which I know is from eating junk and all the mental stuff above, but my workouts have been off too. With the amount of time I spend at the gym, I figured I’d be feeling stronger and fitter at this point.

I can lift more weight, but I don’t feel like my endurance has changed.

So, how could I figure it out? This is where activity trackers come in!

Fitbit

After seeing and reading about them so much, I had to see what all the hype was about activity trackers. I didn’t want a really fancy one, and I also didn’t want something to big or bulky. I asked for one at Christmas, and my husband got me the Fitbit Alta.

It seemed like the perfect size, he got me a bunch of colored bands to use with it, and it syncs with my phone. Reading text messages on my wrist? Super cool. I feel like a technology wiz….even though I’m about two years behind everyone else.

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It also tells me how much sleep I’m getting, tracks the type of exercise I do, and tells me how many calories I burn.

This was definitely going to give me the info I need to get in better shape.

Activity Trackers for the win!

10,000 Steps

I’ve read that 10,000 steps is the minimum amount a person should hit for optimal health, so that’s where I set my goal on the Fitbit App. I also enabled the hourly move reminders, which I obviously wouldn’t need.

I would hit 10,000 steps by lunchtime.

Um. Not quite.

10,000 steps is actually quite a lot of activity. I guess I didn’t realize how inactive I was. Or that some of my gym activity didn’t really up my heart rate like I thought.

On days that I take a cardio class, teach a class, and then take a dance class, I do hit the 10,000. At the very end of the day.

However, on a day where I’m working on the computer and hanging around the house, those steps are hard to hit. Even on weightlifting days, I’m still running in place at 10pm while catching up on Netflix. As I’m writing this, it’s 3:30 pm, and I’m only sitting at 4200 steps.

I’m going to have to hit the basement stairs tonight!

I’ve read all the tips and tricks:

• Park your car far away.
• Take the stairs, not the elevator.
• Take an afternoon walk.

It all basically boils down to the same thing: I need to move more!

Yes, I am active, but I am inactive a lot too. It’s not all about the weight on the scale, but about feeling better and being healthy.

t’s also a little bit about how my jeans fit.

While the “time to move” notifications are getting annoying, that little buzzer that goes off when I hit finally do hit the 10,000 is pretty addicting.

During the summer, I will definitely be incorporating a daily walk. But during negative temperatures and snow storms? No thanks. I will take some extra strolls around Target or Costco instead.

Lessons Learned

So, I’ve got some work to do both mentally and physically. It made me realize how connected my mental and physical health are, so it’s not surprising that both are challenging me right now.

Stay tuned for progress reports.