Technology can be used for good. Nowadays, we see its purpose growing larger and extending to more than simple access to social media platforms and Netflix. Today we get to use technology to track heart metrics and help us take better care of our health.
With the variety of fitness trackers and apps available on our smartphones, we can now track multiple aspects of our health from anywhere. So, if you want to improve your health, then we recommend these 5-health metrics to track with a phone!
The 5-Health Metrics That You Need to Track Daily
Resting Heart Rate
The first of heart metric to track is resting heart rate also commonly known as basal heart rate. It is the number of heartbeats that the heart makes per minute while you are not engaging in any physical activity.
A normal resting heart rate for adults is considered to be anywhere between 60 to 100 beats per minute.
The lower your resting heart rate is the more effective cardiovascular function and better cardiovascular fitness and health you have.
With regular aerobic training, you can work to lower your resting heart rate, and with that, improve your heart health.
By tracking your resting heart rate daily, you can track the health of your cardiovascular system. Today, most devices like smartphones and wearable fitness trackers can measure and track your resting heart rate daily for you. They can notify you when they register a sudden increase in your resting heart rate over a period of a few days. So that you can schedule your visit to the doctor.
Daily Movement
Did you know that sitting down for more than six hours makes you 18% more likely to die due to obesity, diabetes, and heart disease, as compared to those who sit less than three hours a day? A simple way to minimalize the health risks because of prolonged sitting down is by tracking your daily movement.
This is an option that normally comes with most new smartphones, and we are incredibly grateful for whoever thought about adding it to their software. Now smartphones can keep track of our daily movement and even set up goals and reminders to improve our lives.
The option that we love the best is an hourly reminder to get up and stretch your legs. Even if you are buried under a pile of documents, your fitness tracker will remind you to get up. In order to at least get yourself a glass of water or simply stretch out before you continue working.
Deep Sleep
How often do you wake up in the morning feeling groggy? Do you envy those who wake up feeling full of life and health? You too can be one of those people if you would only track your deep sleep cycle.
You see, deep sleep is what refreshes and energizes your body and mind after a long and exhausting day.
Researchers suggest that it takes as little as one night of poor sleep to decrease your physical endurance, altering your mood, energy levels, and even motivation to get out of bed and enjoy life.
So, it is a good thing that now we get to choose from using our smartphones, fitness tracker, and even a smart bed that can help us track our deep sleep for us and even suggest ways in which we can improve and increase our deep sleep. If investing in a smart bed seems a bit too much, you can download a free app and track your daily deep sleep.
Calorie Intake
Tracking daily calorie intake has become quite an effective tool during weight loss. But this is a method that can generally help you improve your health since nutrition plays such a big role in our lives and health.
The old-fashioned way of tracking your calorie intake would be through using a food journal in which you would write everything that you have been eating and calculate the total daily calorie intake by yourself. The much easier option involves downloading an app on your smartphone that can do all of the math for you. You can even link some of the apps with your fitness tracker and use your daily physical activity data to adjust your calorie intake accordingly.
Urine Output
Most people focus on tracking their heart rate, calories, and steps. However, they forget about one vital heart metrics to track – their urine output. You can learn a lot about your health by simply tracking your urine output daily. Pay attention to the urine color but also how frequent your daily trips to the bathroom.
The lighter the color of your urine is, the better and more hydrated you are.
Knowing that the cure for dark-colored urine is quite simple – you only need to drink a glass of water. Mind you that your urine is naturally darker in color in the morning.
Once again, you can use a fitness tracker or your smartphone to remind yourself to drink enough water. You can also take notes on your smartphone about your daily trips to the bathroom as well.
Conclusion
Tracking your resting heart rate, urine output, and even calorie intake daily can help you understand how your body works. It only takes 5-health metrics to track with a phone. You will be able to recognize alterations in your health that can help the doctor diagnose what caused the negative changes.
