Confessions of a Recovering Apple Watch Addict

Admittedly, as my husband would (rightly) suggest, I am absolutely (and willingly I might add) a slave to the supreme cult-like existence of Apple. Completely “indoctrinated” by the brand when my parents bought my little brother + I a - now probably vintage - Mac back when we were kids - think dial up connections + not having a clue what the internet really even was, I am grateful for Apple, in all it’s crazed-up-marketing genius glory, because it works for me + I’m happy to flow in the ease of my entire digital life + work syncing for me on every device without fault.

When Apple came out with the Apple Watch though, I was, much to my own dismay, hesitant to allow myself one. I know my personality. I get into things. Like really into things. Sometimes in an all-consuming way. But at some point I thought, hey, maybe I’ll just give it a go. I can control this. It was Series 6 by the time I chose to dive in so it was a good few years on the market at this point. And you guessed correctly, I loved it. I mean, I loved it. I was obsessed from the get go. The ability to see my activity data so clearly on the daily was like the drug for me I knew it would be. A healthy one at some level as I love to move, it was part of my wellness routine really kicking into a new gear. However.. there’s healthy + then there’s, well.. let’s just say an unhealthy level of control. And while it was all fun + giggles for a while, I knew it had been getting too much yet was resistant in admitting it out loud. Apple’s collection of my data was working on me - or perhaps more aptly, against me. Each month the targets the watch would set for me were increasingly insane based on my performance the month previously. In full type-A style though I was hitting them all. But I wasn’t feeling good from any of it really. Movement energies me yet I was tired. For me moving my body is medicine for my entire being, it is part of my life in a very positive way + it was past the point of any real enjoyment because it was entirely whatever the watch was indicating that was doing rather than what I actually felt like doing. I wasn’t even really present on an evening stroll with my husband cause it was slowing up my stats. While it low-key drives me crazy how slowly he walks, I admire how he goes for a walk to enjoy it rather than it being an exercise. But this had gone beyond me - the fun part of wearing the watch.

At the beginning of December last year I had a moment where - for the first time in two years except for our wedding day, cause hey, let’s face it it’s not exactly the most bridal look ever - I forgot to put it on. I had literally worn it every single day without fail until that point. It needed charging during the day + shockingly I forgot to put it back on. But then I realised something really clearly that evening, my thinking that came to light that day was pretty alarming(even to my madness): shit.. I can’t go for a run now cause it won’t show my full day of data, what’s the point?! OK.. wait what, Rebecca!?!?!? You can’t go for a run because you didn’t wear your watch for the first half of the day? Like WT(actual)F! A run is a run. Stats or no stats. I used to be that person to jokingly (kidding but not kidding) say that if I didn’t record it, did it even happen? But what on earth does that even really mean!? What is the real motivation behind moving my body? Like seriously. Emotionally I would only know how to feel about myself depending on what the numbers came in as at the end of the day. Was I good enough? Had I done enough? Did I need to walk around the house a little more to hit the goal? Run up + down the stairs like I’d actually lost it? Had I reached some completely made up version of “perfection” for the day? The watch dictated how I was allowed feel or think about myself. It was unhealthy. And I knew it. So.. I choose to try on something new: freedom from the stats. And I haven’t worn the watch in a couple of months now.

The results? Well while firstly I am aware this might all simply highlight my kind-of bonkers side - something you hopefully don’t relate to at all, I hope, if you do relate, that you might find some freedom in the idea of not wearing your smart watch with me one day if it’s become more of a prison for you than just the intended information it provides because on the upside, while I took a little break from working out since being floored by a flu recently I’ve been enjoying my walks so much more, being present with my husband on our (ok slow walks is so his thing.. I still love to walk fast, it’s just who I am, ha) slower walks together. For real though, I’m more in the moment, letting our little dog Winston stop + sniff as many times as he wishes cause let’s face it, he doesn’t give a damn what pace we take so long as he gets to stop a million times to pee on every plant + check out all the corners. And how do I record my workouts you might (or totally might not) ask? Well in case you were wondering for friend, this week I went to my first class since being sick + it was fabulous. I was there, on the reformer, in my body.

And while I’m definitely not saying I won’t ever wear it again or dive back into the desire to track my movement, for now it’s a welcomed calm in mind + body to move with more of a body-mind connection as my focus + to cherish what it feels like to move again rather than how a device dictates it should feel to me. A more nourishing + self-respecting body-mind connection is something I am really working toward as it’s something I notice is still very much a work in progress for me. Well if I can give up the stats, then maybe we really can do anything. Here’s to progress, not perfection.

What Is.. Forest Bathing

Full disclosure, forest bathing sounds slightly more elaborate than it is. You don’t need your swimsuit, not even a towel + actually it is not even really an organised event as such. Forest bathing is simply the act of mindfully immersing oneself in nature; bathing our senses rather than our bodies. However it is the effects of forest bathing that are so much more interesting than the now trendy term often appears. As old as nature itself, the expression was only coined in the ‘80’s when the Japanese put structure to what cultures around the world have historically used for thousands of years: the irreplaceable healing effects of the natural world on human well-being.

Seen as an antidote to a rather aggressive emergence of the tech-boom, shinrin-yoku as it is known in Japanese, was a welcomed remedy to the then very stressful environments materialising in the workplace throughout Japan. In fact it was seen to be so effective on people’s health that the Japanese government began prescribing it for highly-stressed-out workers. By the ‘90’s, researchers were becoming more + more interested in the positive impact the practice was having on people’s mental + physical well-being that they began looking into the benefits for everyone no matter the scale of stress. What distinguishes forest bathing from a simple walk though? Great question. Well, striping everything back to the power of our senses has significant capacity to decrease anxiety + depression; working to slow everything down in the mind positively feeds through into the body as greater embodied level of overall health. As we become more aware of how detrimental mental stress is to the physical body we actually have more ability to heal ourselves than ever before. And as is often typical of the most powerful healing tools, it really is simple.

These days there are many trending groups coming to light with professional guides to take you on mindfulness / meditative walks all over the world. Some therapists - see Hike Psych as one example - are even taking sessions outdoors in an effort to further influence the work done during psychotherapy treatment. Some things to consider though if you decide to embark upon a more immersive experience in nature yourself are to leave your phone behind if it’s safe to do so. Being present with the capacity to connect with the world around you is the only real focus. As wonderful as it is to go with others, try it by yourself if you’re looking to tap into your innate ability to heal + hone a more focused ability to tune out the world + into your intuitive powers. Don’t clock your walk or time on any device, it’s about mindfulness without judgement, not achievement of any kind, especially not steps, calories or distance. As you step away from the distractions of your everyday world, seek to bring awareness to your senses, ask yourself, what do I see? What can I hear? What does it feel like to touch the trees or how does it feel to walk over the different textures of the forests floor? Can I smell anything?

There’s just one question left, are you ready to feel the power of nature in a whole new way?