Healthier Health Tracker Habits

But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows. Matthew 10:30-31

Let’s talk health trackers.

I have avoided getting one for a few years, until I got a new iPhone and recently discovered that it had been tracking my activity all along, without my permission!

Pretty soon, Apple will be planting a tracker in my brain and reading my thoughts along with counting all my steps. Mattox and I received Fitbits as family Christmas gifts so we could challenge one another to walk more. Health trackers are good for spurning one another on towards good health, but personally, I know health trackers can be tricky.

I can look at the numbers at the end of the day and use them as a measurement for how good of a human I was for that day.

Did I use my legs enough?

Did I work my heart and lungs?

Am I living up to the reputation of a personal trainer?

The answer to that one is usually no. I literally just asked myself that as I ate a leftover piece of birthday cake, then decided to just enjoy it. But maybe we can change our view of training for restriction to training for enjoyment.

How God Tracks Our Health

Matthew 10:30-31 above says he counts all the hairs on our head—but He does it because He already values us, not to use it as a measurement for value.

If He is able to keep track of every single hair on our heads, He can also keep track of our steps, our heart rate, our weight.

He knows all of these things because He loves us, not so that He will love us. So why do we think that we have to live up to the numbers on the scale or let them define us?

Your weight on the scale isn't your measure of worth: it's simply your body mass according to gravity.

Are you going to let gravity tell you who you are?

Are you going to define yourself by a number?

Of course not. You are not made to be weighed down, you are made to be lifted up.

And God does not define you by a number; He calls you by name:

But now thus says the LORD,

he who created you, O Jacob,

he who formed you, O Israel:

“Fear not, for I have redeemed you;

I have called you by name, you are mine.

When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;

and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you;

when you walk through fire you shall not be burned,

and the flame shall not consume you. Isaiah 43:1-2

He has called you by name, you are His.

Start measuring yourself by a different scale. You can't find this one on your bathroom floor. You'll have to look up to the cross to find your worth. That's where death by gravity ends and life by resurrection in Christ begins. Jesus counted the cost, He counted all the numbers on your head, and laid down His life for your sake. Don’t reduce your worth as a person to biometrics. He called you by name, you are His, so now you can call on His name:

Lord Jesus,

Thank you for looking after me as carefully as you do. I thank you for the gift of health trackers and how they help me to steward my body, but please don’t let me put my worth in them. Remind me that my value does not lie in numbers, but in your great Name. Amen.

Health Tracker Habits

Now that your spiritual heart is reoriented, let’s do rethink our habits when it comes to redeeming the use of health trackers. Instead of being used by health trackers, use them as a bonus tool at your disposal, one you do not need but can be for fun!

Get to know your body: Use the health tracker initially for about 2 weeks to get a general idea of your movement patterns. Whenever you workout, check your heart rate and see if you can start guessing your heart rate by your breath without the tracker. Then don’t pay attention or turn it off for a few weeks until you need to take inventory again.
Strengthen relationships: Challenge a friend or loved one to a friendly competition to keep in touch.
Steward your sleep: Allow a health tracker to be your accountability to reward you for good sleep. Know that you find your ultimate rest in the Lord.
Keep tabs for your doctor: You are your body’s best witness, and a health tracker can help record exactly what you are doing for monitoring certain conditions and reporting stats to your health professional. Then they can more accurately walk with you through diagnosis and treatment.
Take breaks: challenge yourself for a lesson in growth and perseverance, then take a break from the tracker and turn it off. Separate yourself from trackers during spiritual fasts to stay focused on the Lord and your own body signals.