I love running, but running doesn’t always love me back. It makes me frustrated (why aren’t I getting better?), sometimes cry (yes, really) and even throw tantrums (like me quitting Parkrun after years without a personal best).
But over the past few months, the realisation has dawned on me that perhaps it’s not the running causing me problems, but the way I’m approaching it.
I’ve now worn some form of fitness tracker while running for over a decade – first to monitor my running following the birth of my first child, and then out of habit and a desire to see how I was progressing. My trusty Garmins, Polars and more have seen me through many a 5k/10k/half marathon and even (the pinnacle of my running career), the Brighton Marathon back in 2019.
But shortly after completing this 26.2 miles (pure joy mixed with sheer terror), I started to dread even a short 5k run, finding it was all a bit stressful for my liking. My confidence nosedived after the crushing disappointment of just missing my marathon time-goal, culminating in feelings of failure and self-doubt. I’d lost all confidence in myself and my (albeit limited) running abilities; the fun just wasn’t there any more.
But what if it wasn’t the running doing me dirty, but that piece of plastic strapped to my wrist? Could it be that once I’d gained back my fitness (post three pregnancies), tracking my speed, distance, cadence and VO2 max was doing me more harm than good? Fitness tracker junkies, you may want to look away now.
Why are fitness watches so popular?
It’s fair to say that the wearable technology market is booming. Valued at an estimated USD $1.731 million in 2024, fitness watches have never been so popular – with cyclists, runners and even recreational ramblers tracking their every move via their wrists.
The ultimate “It” accessory certainly has its benefits. Research suggests that fitness trackers do, in fact, improve physical activity, body composition and overall fitness, while further studies show they can increase adherence to an exercise programme. For those just starting out – or, like me, returning to exercise after a break – seeing your stats improve can be hugely motivating.
“Data can absolutely be motivating and useful when applied in the right context,” notes personal trainer Amy Snelling. “For example, seeing pace improvements over time, monitoring recovery, or noticing patterns in fatigue can help runners train more intelligently. For beginners, simple metrics like distance or time can build confidence and provide structure.”
Personally, I felt a huge sense of achievement seeing my metrics improve week on week, post-partum. But slowly, inevitably, my progress began to plateau – and with it, my stats and motivation began to plummet.
Running had previously been a sanctuary for me – a space where I felt free, both physically and mentally, unburdened by the (joyful) shackles of motherhood and responsibility. As most parents would attest, I had many days when I felt I was failing at raising my children. Running became my safe space, with no one to judge.
But I soon found that my watch was weighing me down – both literally and figuratively. Rather than returning from a run invigorated and buzzing with endorphins, my mood was dictated by the binary stats on my wrist. Why hadn’t I run a faster kilometre than last week, when all the signs were telling me I should have? I became my own worst enemy, constantly berating myself for not measuring up.
Running started to feel like a chore – just another thing I had to do, in an endless cycle of jobs. I’d lost all the joy and freedom that got me hooked in the first place; I wasn’t enjoying being in nature, or the feeling of exhilaration when running downhill. Things came to a head one day when I found myself crying after running slower than the previous week. Months of tracking my times had led to an expectation of consistent improvement that was impossible to maintain – a position I’d never been in before, and something I absolutely attribute to my obsession with the data.
It was no coincidence that I started to feel burdened, explains Dr Josephine Perry, sport psychologist and author of The Ten Pillars of Success.
“Fitness trackers can have a negative impact if someone is already doing lots of exercise,” she tells The iPaper. “If you need motivation and incentive to exercise then they can be beneficial, but if you are already very focused and determined to do well, a fitness tracker can cause more harm than good; tracking can suck the joy out of exercise or sport. When we are focused on how fast we are going or whether we are hitting the right heart rate we forget to look around and enjoy the environment we are in or the feeling of flow that can come from exercise.”
I have serendipity to thank for my realisation that I needed to ditch the data. One day, I simply forgot to charge my watch. Cue much panic and alarm at first, before it slowly dawned on me that I could just run without it. You probably don’t need me to spell out what happened next: I loved that run. Instead of constantly pressing tiny buttons and monitoring how I was feeling, I was free to go with the flow, soaking in my surroundings and feeling more at peace with my body than I had in a very long time.
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“Fitness trackers are best seen as neutral tools: they can support you, but they can also trap you if you let the numbers dictate your self-worth,” cautions Snelling.
“If you’re running just to hit a certain pace or distance on your watch, you can lose sight of why you started – health, joy, stress relief, connection with nature. Mentally, obsessing over numbers can breed guilt, anxiety, or even disordered behaviours. Physically, it can push people into overtraining or ignoring signals of fatigue because the watch says they haven’t hit their goals.”
I haven’t worn a tracker since, and as for my progress, metrics are no longer my currency. I prefer to track those things that can’t be monitored via a watch – how my body feels, how quiet or noisy my mind is, the changing seasons around me. If I want to stop and pet a dog (which happens frequently) I can – no one and nothing is judging me – and that, for me, is still progress.
In fact, I’d go so far as to say my running feels easier, too. Without the anxiety of having to smash a target, my heart rate feels steadier, I’m not flooded with adrenaline and my inner critic has quietened. The result? A smoother, steadier run that, even if it’s not necessarily faster than before, certainly feels less taxing, both physically and emotionally. Gone is the hill dread, too – safe in the knowledge that I can slow down, or even stop and walk, if I feel like it, suddenly those uphills feel just that little bit less scary. And while I have no plans to run another event race, I’m fitter and stronger than I’ve ever been – and this I know, mainly from sprinting up those seemingly endless steps on the tube without so much as breaking a sweat.
“Progress isn’t only about getting faster or going further,” agrees Snelling. “Sometimes it’s learning to run without pressure, or realising you enjoy running with friends more than chasing a personal best. Whether you track or not, the most important thing is that running feels sustainable, healthy, and meaningful for you.”
And isn’t that, really, what health is all about?
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