Ep. #1036: Paul Hough on Useful and Useless Fitness Tech

Do you wear an Oura Ring, Whoop Band, FitBit, Apple Watch, or other fitness tracker, or ever thought about getting one? Advances in technology and people’s desire to take their health and fitness into their own hands have made wearable fitness devices more popular than ever. These tools claim to offer us unprecedented levels of insight into our health and well-being, but how accurate are these devices when it comes to tracking your heart rate, step count, total daily energy expenditure, sleep, stress, or recovery? Are these gadgets really that useful? Paul Hough returns to the podcast to discuss the topic of wearable fitness technology and the “quantified self” movement.

In case you’re not familiar with Paul, he’s a Senior Lecturer in Sport and Exercise Science at Oxford Brookes University in the UK and has published several studies in academic journals. He’s also a fellow author, and his new textbook, Advanced Personal Training, which aims to turn science into applicable practice for personal trainers. And on the hands-on side, he’s worked with elite-level athletes in tennis and Formula One.

In this interview, Paul and I discuss . . .

• The “quantified self” and what wearable tech can tell you about your health
• The accuracy of these gadgets and how useful they really are
• What these devices are good at (and what they’re not good at)
• How tracking can be counterproductive and the importance of considering why you're monitoring
• Heart Rate Variability (HRV): who should track it and why
• And more . . .

So, if you’re interested in wearable fitness devices and want to learn whether you should buy one, listen to this podcast and let me know what you think!

Timestamps

0:00 - Please leave a review of the show wherever you listen to podcasts and make sure to subscribe!

3:53 - Is it important to track our health with health & fitness trackers?

12:27 - What are your thoughts on health & fitness trackers?

43:30 - Legion VIP One-on-One Coaching: https://www.muscleforlife.show/vip

46:18 - How well do health & fitness trackers measure recovery and stress?

52:54 - Who should we track HRV and why?

1:03:30 - Is there anything you would like to add?

1:06:04 - Where can we find you and your work?

Mentioned on the Show:

Legion VIP One-on-One Coaching: https://www.muscleforlife.show/vip

Paul Hough’s website: www.exerciseandsportscience.com

Paul’s textbook Advanced Personal Training: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09HXGDLNT/?tag=mflweb-20

Paul’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_h0ugh/

Paul’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/the_hough