Oh My God Do I Not Care: Tracking My Data on Fitbit
The app I’m using to track my data is my Fitbit app, which tracks the number of steps I’ve taken and number of calories burned (it also checks calories consumed and how many glasses of water I’ve drank, but I tend to forget to put in that data). In order to use the app, which I set up a while ago, you have to put in your weight and your height. To collect your data you just wear the fitbit device on your non-dominant hand and it monitors the number of steps you take, the number of miles you’ve walked, the calories you’ve burned, and the number of minutes you’ve been active. The other data, such as the number of calories consumed and the amount of water you’ve been drinking, has to be put in manually. You don’t have to put those in (and I generally don’t) but if you are trying to lose weight you can check the calories consumed versus the calories burned and adjust your eating habits from there to better your health.
I would say the future of this app is tracking more health related data. I know some fitbits already track pulse (and apparently sexual activity), but there may be an update where it estimates blood pressure or tells you what kind of physical activity would best benefit you. I’m not sure it’ll actually change anything in medicine- physicians may check it to accurately look at the amount of movement their patients do, but as long as putting in calories consumed, water drunk, and amount of sleep gotten is optional, the app is not a reliable measure for certain health stats.
I don’t post about this app or the data it collects to social media. I only use certain social medias already, and very rarely do I post about myself. The only social media that has information about myself is Facebook, and I tend not to be the one posting there- I’m generally tagged in posts and pictures. I don’t really like sharing information about myself on social media anyway, so to begin sharing how much I’ve moved or how much I’ve eaten versus how many calories have been expended over the course of a day would make me incredibly uncomfortable. Also I don’t see why people would care about that information anyway- it doesn’t improve or degrade their life any to see how much I’m moving or not moving, so why should I share it.
The app does have a feature where you have “fitbit friends,” meaning there are people who can see the number of steps you’ve taken and you can see the number of steps they’ve taken. My mom, my sister, and myself all use fitbit, and we are “fitbit friends”- mostly because both my mom and my sister are competitive and want to see who is winning (always my sister because she runs everyday).
I don’t know if self-tracking makes me any more or less happy. If I checked the app more I’d probably have more of an opinion, but I kind of forget about the app itself a lot. I only know when I’ve hit 10,000 steps when the bracelet vibrates in a certain pattern on my wrist. Beyond that, I don’t really pay attention to it. It’s also the only app I use to track my data. I’d say it has sort of a neutral impact on my life because I don’t check it very often. I’m also pretty neutral when people post about their data on social media- it doesn’t really impact me. If they are running marathons or working on bettering their heath I’m generally proud of them, but overall, I don’t think I care all that much.
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I think the future benefits you mentioned are going to go a long way with the health and medical industry. If it can measure blood pressure, that would help a lot of people maintain their regimens specified by a doctor ideal for their health.
On the other aspect you mentioned, I’m very curious to know if the app starts tracking sexual activity, would people still their updates to social media? Would people want to be FitBit friends with their mom?? I think that part could very much change the participation of FitBit and Facebook, for example, because that is part of people’s private lives and those people who share that sort of thing are, generally, icky.
I agree that sharing data such as caloric intake and daily movements on Facebook is a bit strange in that it’s not necessarily information anyone would benefit from knowing. However, I’m also supportive of friends announcing they’re training for a marathon or something of the sort because by announcing a goal, their friends are able to help hold them accountable. Those kinds of posts seem more normal than listing your amount of calories in and out every single day on Facebook. I’d say that the sharing of self-tracked data is still uncommon on the social media platform, but it seems like that may be changing in the next 5 to 10 years.
I think most would agree with your prediction that more tracking of health related data is the future, but I think the extent to which that data is tracked is the most interesting part of it. The technology is already capable of doing things that I can’t wrap my mind around, but as it grows more advanced and more sophisticated, it’s difficult to think of where the limit will be, or if there will in fact be a limit. I agree that most apps aren’t, “a reliable measure for some health stats,” as you put it, but I have to think somewhere down the line that will change. It might not be to the point where we no longer need certain medical professionals, but I think it could still be substantial.
I think it’s interesting that you don’t think these apps could chance medicine. Perhaps fitbut information will eventually update straight to your doctor? Or maybe the data will help researchers find out commonalities between people and can focus on early signs of heart problems or something. You never know the possibilities. Maybe they can have needles embedded and test blood discreetly one day, or inject medication! There are so many possibilities, and I am afraid that a lot of people are only thinking of the negatives, when the positives are so great!