{"id":670,"date":"2025-11-21T13:42:17","date_gmt":"2025-11-21T18:42:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/diabetes\/?p=670"},"modified":"2026-02-27T10:28:38","modified_gmt":"2026-02-27T15:28:38","slug":"choosing-a-fitness-tracker","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/diabetes\/2025\/11\/choosing-a-fitness-tracker\/","title":{"rendered":"Choosing a fitness tracker"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Fitness trackers are wearable devices or apps that monitor activity and provide feedback on activity or health metrics. Wearable technology is the #1 trend in fitness for 2025<\/a> according to the American College of Sports Medicine. Fitness trackers monitor activity and provide real-time feedback to users that can be a valuable form of self monitoring. Users can see data from specific time periods or look for overall trends in their health and fitness. A few of the most popular ways to engage with fitness tracking devices are through phone apps, smart watches, and smart rings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Smart watches<\/strong>. As the name implies, a smart watch is a computerized device designed to look and wear like a traditional watch, but with extra benefits. Smart watches typically connect to a phone app using Blue Tooth technology. Some also have cellular service, giving the ability to send and receive phone calls through the watch without a smart phone nearby. The features available vary by brand and model, but typically smart watches are able to monitor physical activity (like steps or distance travelled), sleep quality, and a variety of health metrics like heart rate. They may have a built-in GPS or rely on a connected smart phone for location tracking. Apple, FitBit, Garmin, and Polar are some of the most well known brands for smart watches that emphasize fitness and health monitoring features. Research has found that wrist-wearable devices are fairly accurate<\/a> when it comes to steps or heart rate, but less effective in measuring overall energy expenditure (aka calories burned). <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Phone apps<\/strong>. Yep, there’s an app for that! Mobile exercise apps were actually the #2 trend in fitness for this year, right behind wearable technology. Mobile apps can be used alone or in conjunction with a wearable device. Some health and exercise apps are dependent on the type of phone you have. For example, Apple iOS devices come with the Health and Fitness apps installed. Google Fit is available for Android devices and Samsung Health is available for Samsung Galaxy phones. These native phone apps use geolocation and link with other apps or trackers to provide feedback on a user’s daily steps, exercise sessions, heart rate trends, and more. In addition to native phone apps, there are a number of other apps that can be installed on iOS or Android devices for monitoring physical activity and health. Strava<\/a>, Garmin Connect<\/a>, and Runkeeper<\/a> are popular apps for tracking and analyzing physical activity. Some apps are free and others charge on a monthly or yearly basis. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Overview<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Smart rings<\/strong>. Smart rings are a smaller but growing segment of the wearable technology market. Similar to a watch, a smart ring is worn on the finger and collects similar health metrics. Those who prefer wearing a traditional watch – or not wearing anything on their wrist – may prefer the look and comfort of a smart ring. Unlike a smart watch, smart rings don’t feature a screen and communicate through a paired smartphone app; for some, this can be considered a benefit as it reduces the distraction of a wrist-mounted screen. While smart rings are relatively new, Oura, RingConn, and Samsung are three well known brands on the market.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The bottom line: choosing a fitness tracker ultimately comes down to individual needs and preferences. Budget, features, and battery life are factors to consider. If all of these smart devices are sounding overwhelming, a pedometer is a simple and inexpensive device that can be worn on the waistband to track daily steps; no subscription or smart phone necessary. Delving into the world of wearable technology opens up more options for personalized data collection on physical activity, health markers, sleep pattern, and sedentary time. Not only can these devices track your activity, they can provide gentle nudges and reminders when you’ve been sitting or inactive for a period of time. It’s important to note that the FDA has not approved any smart watches or rings for blood glucose monitoring<\/a>; while a smart device may be able to display or communication information from an authorized glucose measuring device, like a CGM sensor, they cannot measure or estimated glucose levels independently. A quick list of questions to consider when choosing a fitness tracker includes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n