A trainer “on your wrist” can make sure you regularly close rings and what better day to begin a journey towards fitness than on International Day of Yoga? One of the most talked-about devices in recent years has been the Apple Watch in its many variations — the regular one to SE and the Ultra. The best thing about this smartwatch is how the health-focused device can also turn into a lifestyle product, thanks to its design and wide range of straps.
Can the Apple Watch help a person like professional yoga expert Shani Dayal? “Coming from a traditional yoga background I initially wasn’t sure how I could use technology to enhance my practice. I then started using Apple Watch in 2021 and since then I’ve been extremely happy with some of the Yoga first features that the device has to offer. The Mindfulness app on Apple Watch is one of my favourites and most frequently used features as it gives timely reminders to focus on breathing and being mindful. Additionally, I have also been using Asana Rebel app compatible on both iOS and watchOS to do simple stretches on the go,” said Dayal.
What most people love about the Apple Watch is how it takes virtually all of the guesswork out of how many calories one burns each day and how it acts as a motivator. It’s a device that can always be with you, allowing you to do so much right from your wrist—take an ECG, check your elevation, track your sleep, message your kids, find your keys, or better yet, get help in an emergency.
Take the case of the native Workout app that is used by Apple Watch users across the world. It includes running form metrics like vertical oscillation, stride length, and ground contact time. There are new ways to visualise them with workout views, including activity rings, elevation and running power and splits. Plus, powerful training experiences like heart rate zones, race route, pacer, and a new custom workout help improve performance. A new multisport workout can automatically switch between swim, biking, and run for triathletes.
Under the Workout app, users can select yoga as an activity while performing their workout. These options can be selected to track all types of yoga sessions from restorative to power vinyasa flow. There is also access to a multitude of third-party apps compatible with both iOS and watchOS to help with yoga workouts.In case you are wondering where to start with third-party apps, here are a few options. Pocket Yoga is widely popular and it’s a single purchase and doesn’t rely on a subscription; it’s perfect for anyone looking for something practical. The goal-focused Asana Rebel can record your practices and save them to the Health app. Down Dog creates a new sequence each time you practice.
Also, take a look at the Mindfulness app, which is there on the Apple Watch. It can make a huge difference when you are feeling overwhelmed. The app encourages you to set aside a few minutes a day to focus, centre, and connect as you breathe. Users can change how frequently they get mindfulness reminders, mute mindfulness reminders for the day, change your breath rate, and choose haptics settings. By completing a reflect or breathe session on Apple Watch one can also get a look at their heart rate at the end of the session in the summary screen.
Yoga can bring about important changes to your life, like improving your gut health and keeps you in a relaxed zone mentally. “Doing yoga and eating mindfully helps in making the body stronger and developing immunity. Yoga plays a significant role in strengthening the immune system and improving lung capacity. Yoga also helps in improving our gut health that has various positive effects on our body and mind. It also goes hand in hand with a mindful diet. A mindful diet not only helps boost immunity but also keeps allergies away. Yoga brings mindfulness in eating which goes a long way in boosting heart and digestive health,” said Dayal.
MP
Yoga trainer Shani Dayal