Nevermind how truthful such statements might be, I’ve never been one to live and die by mantras such as;
Summer bodies are made in winter.
The facts are, the gym and I aren’t ever going to be friends and my natural inclination to hibernate during winter is strong so, if there is a season in which all good intentions fall off the wagon – winter is it.
Despite this, the past few months have been revelatory for me, and it all kicked off with a throwaway comment during lunch with a friend. We were discussing the frustrations of living with our middle-aged-mum bodies and the struggle of deciphering what advice/diets/workout plans we should or shouldn’t be prescribing to. I’m not running at the moment (more on that later!) but mentioned to my friend that monitoring your heart rate during workouts was a good way to ensure your activity matched whatever goals you might be working towards. This was a lightbulb moment for me as I remembered the Fitbit functionality that automatically maps your heart rate zones during exercise. Right now, I want to be burning fat during workouts and maintaining an (almost) daily exercise routine – that means power walking. 6kms per day, around an hour, putting me in the fat burning zone for approx 50 mins and tracking this daily on my Fitbit app.
Put simply, moving and doing it more often are my top priorities.
I love checking in with my Fitbit app or the desktop site to see the results of my daily walks – in the zone baby!
The past 6 weeks have seen me create space in my day that I didn’t think I had, and dedicate that time to myself. Exercising has to be a non-negotiable part of my routine and I think I’ve finally arrived at that sweet spot where the habit is sticking, yay!
I’m a total magpie and LOVE my gadgets so no surprises that the latest Fitbit iteration, Versa (RRP $349.95) caught my eye – as they always do – and I was excited to review it. There’s a lot to be said for the persuasive power of measurement and accountability and as I’ve been a Fitbit user for years now I know first hand how effective wearable tech can be when it comes to keeping you on track. I definitely lean towards Fitbit’s fully functional range, loving the multitude of features in the Ionic (built in GPS) and now the Versa.
What I LOVE about the New Fitbit Versa
- The battery life is awesome. Specs say ‘over 4 days of battery life’ and this is legit. Plus, the new charger is the best Fitbit charger yet, secure and FAST.
- Slim profile. Guys, let’s face it if you don’t need a built-in GPS then why pay for one or make room for one in your watch? When I’m running (soon, baby!), I love the accuracy of the Ionic, but, you pay for this in size. The Versa is gorgeous, no joke. It’s all slim and curvy and is super comfy to wear. 10/10 for design.
- Water-resistant to 50m!!! yus. I’m no swimmer but Mum life dictates I’m washing dishes, laundry, dogs and children multiple times per day and as a Rugby mum (and Rugby Club Captain) I’m out in the weather a LOT. I’ve always been a little bit precious about my Fitbits getting wet so love that my faves, Versa and ionic are both water resistant.
- Improved sync: I’m not sure if it’s because I don’t use one of the big 2 phone brands (currently Huawei Mate 10 Pro), but sometimes syncing was a bit iffy with previous Fitbit products. The Versa syncs easily and quickly with my on-phone app which makes me soooo happy as my Fitbit dashboard is life!
- It’s just SO pretty. This is a BABE watch team, that just so happens to look equally good on both men and ladies.
- Fitbit app. I’ve been using this for years and it just gets better and better. I’m loving the addition of the Female Health module, which is helping me track my period – and associated moods (gasp!), plus I’m becoming more and more aware of how important it is for me to consciously increase the amount of sleep I’m getting each night. The Fitbit app tracks sleep beautifully and provides such great feedback and info that you seriously can’t help but want to do better for your body and your life in general.
How I’m staying motivated this winter
- Using my Fitbit Versa as my support team and my coach. Gyms don’t work for me, being personally accountable DOES.
- Podcasts are GO. I can easily smash out my hour-long walk by zoning out and listening to some awesome content. I use Podcast Player on my android phone and some of my faves are; Death in Ice Valley, Fat Mascara, Oprah’s Super Soul Conversations, The Minimalists, This Sounds Serious.
- Doing less gives you time for more. I’ve stopped saying YES to other peoples demands so I have more time for what I need to do – which is scheduling exercise for my mental and physical health. Blocking off 1 hour per day for me is NOT a sacrifice, it’s something that positively impacts my life and has a flow on effect on my family.
- Embrace the weather and prepare for it. Winter sucks, winter in Auckland sucks more. Walking in wild, winter weather is kinda liberating. Embrace it, wear a hat so the rain stays out of your eyes, put a jacket on and go for it. Letting go of excuses is priming me for great things I can feel it!
I’m so pumped on my daily walks right now, I’d love to know how you’re pushing through during this awful weather and getting your workouts in, leave me a comment below if you’d like to share!
PS – Versa also has on-screen workouts so if dodging hail isn’t your thing, squeeze in a 10-minute ab workout while you’re hibernating with Netflix!
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