fitness tracker
I was thinking of you today . . . yes, I mean you. I was down on my hands and knees using one of my rectangular 2 x 5” trowels to weed around some drip hose. As I used my trowel, I wondered, as I often do, about the Perennial Club members and whether or not they have purchased the particular tool I’m using. Moments later I’m using my thinning pruners to cut off oak tree seedlings beneath the soil surface. The jays will plant acorns right in among iris rhizomes so I need a slender, long nosed pruner to extricate the seedling. So, I was thinking of you today. (It doesn’t bother me if you weren’t thinking of me.)
Now to the matter at hand . . . or really, at wrist. The tool I want to talk about is the fitness tracker. In its simplest form it is a electronic device that is worn as a bracelet. The tracker sends messages to your computer (when closer than 20 feet) or to your smart phone. It records how many steps you take each day. Who cares, you say, and what does this have to do with garden tools? Have you walked out to the garden and realized that you forgot to bring an essential tool (like a thinning pruner). You were probably a little upset with yourself, and you hated every step you had to take to retrieve your tool. When you are wearing a tracker, your whole attitude changes. You say to yourself, “I’m just getting more steps.” I know it probably sounds stupid, but it really does improve how you feel about yourself. And, of course, the whole premise of counting your steps is to encourage you to be more active, and therefore to be more healthy. Let me caution you, however. You have to temper your enthusiasm for this new program. Both LaVille and I enjoyed walking so much in the first couple of weeks (around the neighborhood and along bike paths) that we got sore feet. Now we are more moderate in our forays around Davis. But after several years of monitoring our steps, the additional exercise has made us healthier. That is what I wish for you, and the fitness tracker is a tool to help you achieve this.
But wait . . . there’s more. Many of the tracker systems allow you to create a friends group that lets you to keep track of how others are doing. You can compete with others if you need extra motivation. I tend to be this way while LaVille simply enjoys setting personal goals and competing with herself. Once again, I caution you to take it easy at first.
But wait . . . there’s even more. This device keeps track of your sleep pattern. Once again, I can hear you say, “Who cares!” The amount of sleep you get is as important as how much you exercise. You can see the number of hours of sleep you get nightly, when you went to the bathroom, and when you were restless. When you pay attention to your sleep pattern, you will work at getting better sleep.
I have just barely touched on all that the fitness tracker programs have to offer. There are many different brands and models of trackers. Check out fitness trackers on Amazon. Read the reviews. I think you will be impressed. I know that most of you need no motivation to be active. But just knowing that retracing your steps to get that forgotten tool is making you physically healthier will make you a mentally healthier person as well.
Just thinking of you,
Stan, The Tool Man