Your Watch Is Not Your Coach: My Take on the Wearables Boom
Photo: Ambitious Studio* | Rick Barrett on Unsplash
Look around any gym these days and almost every wrist has something on it: a smartwatch, a fitness band, a ring. It's not just my imagination, either. The American College of Sports Medicine's yearly survey of fitness professionals just named wearable technology the number one fitness trend for 2026 (you can read it here). The lead author put it well: the question is no longer whether people will use wearables, but how to use them in ways that actually support their health.
I wear one too, so this isn't a "throw your watch in the lake" post. But after 20+ years of coaching, I have some thoughts on where these gadgets help and where they get in the way.
Where Wearables Really Help
They keep you honest. Steps, workouts logged, nights of sleep. It's hard to argue with your own data. If you think you're "pretty active" and your watch says 3,000 steps a day, that's useful information.
They build streaks and habits. Closing a ring or hitting a step goal is a small win, and small wins are what keep people coming back day after day.
They make remote coaching better. When my remote clients share their training data, sleep and daily activity, I can see the patterns between check-ins and adjust their program with a lot more confidence.
They show trends over time. One bad night means nothing. A few weeks of short sleep and a climbing resting heart rate is worth paying attention to.
Where They Can Lead You Astray
Calorie burn numbers are estimates. Treat them as a rough guess, not a licence to "earn" a dessert. Your nutrition plan shouldn't be built around a number on your wrist.
A "low readiness" score isn't a doctor's note. Some mornings your watch says you're wrecked and you have a great session. Other days it gives you the green light and you feel flat. Use the score as one input, not the final word.
Strength work confuses them. Most wearables are built around steps and cardio. They can't tell a sloppy squat from a great one, and they don't know whether you added weight to the bar this week.
Data overload is real. I've seen people get so wrapped up in their scores that they stop listening to their own bodies. If checking your numbers stresses you out, that's a sign to step back.
How I'd Use Yours
Pick two or three numbers that match your goal. For most people that's daily steps, sleep, and workouts completed. Ignore the rest for now.
Look at weekly averages, not daily swings. Check in once a week, the same way I review my clients' programs.
Pair the data with how you feel. Write down your energy, mood and soreness. When the numbers and your feelings agree, you can trust the signal.
Track the things a watch can't. Log your weights, sets and reps. Getting stronger over months is one of the best measures of progress you'll ever have.
Let it support the plan, not be the plan. A watch tells you what happened. A good program tells you what to do next.
Data Plus a Coach
Wearables are a fantastic tool, and I'm glad so many people are paying more attention to how they move and sleep. But the magic still happens when someone looks at that data, asks the right questions, and builds a plan around your life.
That's what I do every day. Whether you train with me 1-on-1 or with a partner in my home studio here in London, or work with me through remote coaching from anywhere in Canada, I'll help you turn those numbers into real progress. Learn more at whosyourtrainer.com.
Yours, in health,
-Coach Dave
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