November 2011

Jawbone is set to release a new "revolutionary device" called "Up" in the coming weeks. It's a wristband + app that tracks your activity, your inactivity (by alerting you that you've been sitting too long and need to get up and DO SOMETHING, DAMMIT!), your sleep and your meals. The wristband costs $100. The app, as I understand it, is free.

I've downloaded a few different activity/workout apps myself thru the years, although I rarely use them. Mostly I find that I'm 3/4 of the way through a nice bike ride and suddenly remember that I meant to track and log this one as a "workout". Oh well, next time...

At any rate, this Jawbone thing got me thinking - and not because I have anything against Jawbone mind you (I love their headsets), but this whole 'tracking and logging' thing is way out of hand.

I mean, it's like our entire lives are now plotted, planned and executed online. I need to logon to tell the twitterverse that I'm about to enjoy a cup of coffee, and now I have a wristband to confirm that I'm drinking it (and tell me I'm a lazy-ass while I'm doing it)?

My point is... what ever happened to spontaneity - when you could go for a bike ride BECAUSE YOU LIKE RIDING A BIKE? Now you have to gps the route, log the start and end times, measure your pedal cadence and elevation gains and losses, and count your calories burned.

It's like people don't do anything for the enjoyment of doing a thing anymore. It all has to be recorded, like we're a bunch of pro athletes, training for a freaking Extreme Sports Olympiad. Or maybe it's feeding a need to see our lives as meaningful and important. ("I'm not just wasting time. I'm doing a workout!")

I'm not about to uninstall my workout apps because it really is helpful to be able to track your fitness efforts, but I balk at the idea of having every second of my free time micro-managed by a piece of software. It's funny too, because when I first read about this wristband idea, I thought about the wristband that I've been wearing for years now. It reminds me to stay active, and eat right, and to appreciate good health while I have it, and it only cost a buck.