Whoop: The Unexpected Fitness Gadget That I Never Thought I Needed
'I've been in the market for a fitness tracker for a while, mainly because I want to understand my body better. But every time I tried one, I got left disappointed… My previous fitness tracker (the apple watch) is a great example. When I first got it, I thought it was "the ONE." The packaging, the look, and the convenience of it were lovely!
But as time progressed, I couldn't live with some things. For instance, the battery life… It only lasted a single day, and if I forgot to charge it at night? Say goodbye to fitness tracking that day. And don't even get me started with the annoyance of taking it off and putting it on countless times to charge it.
The other issue I had was the digital screen. It's a personal preference, but I prefer to avoid fitness trackers with digital screens because I constantly get distracted by them. The ease of looking at notifications or apps didn't help my workouts or mental well-being.
In Comes The Whoop
My current and foreseeable future fitness tracker. I'll touch on the features later, but let's start with how it got on my wrist. I first heard of it from a couple of my friends who mentioned this new fitness tracker they're into—talking about how it boasts better tracking than others and how it doesn't come with a digital screen.
Instantly, I was intrigued! And when I got home that day, I couldn't help but binge-watch those youtube review videos about the whoop.
And with every video, it just got better!
It comes with a wireless charging battery pack that just clips on, and it's IP68 which means it's waterproof/ sweatproof so that you can wear this baby anywhere.
And the price? It didn't cost $400, $250, or even $50… it was a whopping $30 bucks (pun intended), the same price as getting jeans from a thrift store. The catch? They require you to pay the $30 fee every month. But for what you get, I thought this was still a bargain! So with all the boxes checked and a price within my budget, I took action and ordered one for myself.
My First Impressions
The box came within two days of ordering, which fascinated me that a small/medium size company could have such a quick shipping time. The delivery box was small yet felt durable and premium. Opening it was a breeze; all I had to do was tear a line off, which revealed my brand-new whoop 4.0.
At first glance, I couldn't help but appreciate the clean and minimalistic design. And when I put it on, it felt like nothing was on my wrist. Though the whoop didn't come charged out of the box, I didn't have to take it off—the charger clips onto the whoop, which was great. Within 90 minutes, the whoop was fully charged. I just had to install an app, and it paired instantly.
So How Did It Hold Up?
The whoop is everything I have ever dreamed of in a fitness tracker. The lightness of it doesn't leave my arm feeling heavy. And thanks to its slim minimalist design, it didn't keep hitting my laptop when I worked or different objects when working out or moving around. Thanks to its clip-on charging (that is waterproof), I didn't have to keep taking it off and putting it back on. Within days of wearing it - it felt like the whoop has become a part of my body.
As for the tracking? One word - unparalleled.
The tracking is everything you would ever need and more. And if you've ever used a Garmin watch before, you can expect that type of data, but if you haven't, it calculates sleep levels, blood oxygen levels, HRV, and so much more. But what makes the whoop unparalleled to the others is how it implements its tracking. For instance, when you have an Apple watch, Garmin, or Fitbit, you must start and stop your workouts manually. And if you're anything like me, I can't be bothered to remember to pull out my phone, open the app, and end the workout after an intense session.
But this isn't the case for the Whoop at ALL; it requires none of that fumble jumbal… it automatically detects when you start working out. And it does a pretty good job for the most part.
Start your workout; once you finish and your heart rate lowers, a notification will pop up asking what workout you've completed, your performance level, and if you've completed the entire session. You may think this is small detail, but I can't tell you how many workouts this saved. It's something you've got to experience yourself to understand how great it feels.
And the sleep tracking left me speechless…
Did you know that human goes through four stages of sleep?
I didn't either! The whoop app shows all of this (hence how I found out), and it calculates everything… from when you're awake during sleep (what?), light sleep, deep sleep, and rem sleep. It utilizes this data to wake you up at the most optimal time. Simply set the timer on when you would like to wake up and the percentage of how much you'd like to perform. The whoop will give you a slight vibration around that time to wake you up. I've played around with this, and it isn't a gimmick. It's astonishing how much more energized and less groggy I felt when I woke up. It’s a game changer, and I can’t live without it anymore.
What Makes The Whoop A Whooping Buy
What makes whoop genuinely stand out is how it delivers the end information to you. For the longest time, fitness trackers would boast the latest tech and tracking but provide the info where it was usable. Unless you understand how to aggregate SP02, HRV, and sleep levels, you are stuck looking at a fancy graph that only tells you nothing.
This is how the whoop is completely different.
It aggregates all this data into two categories - recovery and strain, which has made my life much easier. By taking a 2-second look, you can tell if you're putting your all into your workout and how good your sleep was the previous day. I've never seen anything like this on the market, so if you're looking for an easy way to read your health in seconds, the whoop is definitely for you.
My Final Verdict
So whose the whoop for? Honestly, it's the perfect fitness tracker for those wanting a minimalistic and easy-to-use fitness tracker. Tracking is more in-depth than the others, which cost $300-$500. And if you're like me (who gets distracted easily), the no screen is a big plus. The app is great and intuitive, and the optimal strain calculation helps me push myself that extra mile at the gym. If you're in the market for a fitness tracker, I highly recommend it. It even comes with a 30-day return policy when you purchase it, so you've got nothing to lose and everything to gain.
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