Exercise Comparisons

[emattson]

I monitored several forms of exercises using my Apple Watch and thought to make some comparisons.

Indoor run is my favorite for data science. It has the most detailed statistics including average steps per minute, distance, average pace, average heart rate, heart rate zone, and more. Being a data science, I love playing with statistics. Jogging is the one inexpensive form of exercise that creates the highest heartbeat rate to improve the VO2 Max. Since I do it indoors, weather is not a factor. The main drawback is jogging is hard on the joints. Double hard if trying to jog in place, on a hard wooden floor. I'm experimenting using an old seat cushion placed on the floor to protect my feet. Best yet, it gives resistance. Another disadvantage is it only exercise the legs. Since I can only jog in short bursts, I need to use other exercises to complement it.

Outdoor walks is my favorite as far as the total amount of time I spent doing it. My Outdoor Walk app generates almost as much data as running for number crunching. It gives me the pleasure of watching sunrises, sunset, flowers blooming and trees budding leaves. It also allows me to see the neighborhood. That works only if the community has sidewalks and is safe. It helps improve my mental fitness by increasing my navigation skills. Some people can get lost easily. It's also the best exercise that has practical applications. I walk to go the library, events, do shopping. One problem is it exercises only my feet. The biggest drawback is weather. One day, I stepped outside, saw long sheets of slick ice on the sidewalks, and wished that I stayed home.

Swimming is one of the best form of exercise, but I'm afraid of wearing my old Apple Watch in the water. Anyone lucky enough to live on a tropical beach near reefs should take full advantage of it.

Yoga is great exercise. I like it because it's quiet, can strengthened any muscles, improves flexibility, and can be done indoors at any time without need of equipment--don't even need sneakers. One drawback is my yoga App generates very few workout details--only 4 metrics. But in a sense, I can create my own data points. For instance, my best one leg stance with my uplifted foot extended forward is two minutes. I'm working out on a one leg stance that is most consistent for improved measurement. I'm also working on planks. Yoga is the lowest intensity workout of the bunch, so I need to spend a lot of time doing it to meet my calories goal.

When needing to do housework, like cleaning or replacing the yard's fence, I set the workout to "Other." Some projects have the same intensity as outdoor walks. Because it may go on for hours, I need to be sure the battery is charged. This workout is impossible to measure health wise. Often I pause to rest or wait for someone else to complete a task. Despite it's lack of measurement, I felt this is an excellent form of workout primarily for the practical improvement of the household. All muscles are used.