Goodbye GoWear

A year ago I put on my GoWearFit armband and I've worn it 24/7 ever since. I only took it off to shower or charge it - otherwise that device has been a part of my anatomy for a whole year. It has served me well and I'm so glad I invested in it.   Last week I took it off and gave it to my mother and now she's wearing it 24/7 (and burning way more daily calories than I ever did!).


I want to do a quick wrap up of my experience with the GoWearFit (actually they changed the name and it's now the BodyMedia).

• I did not lose any significant weight using the GoWearFit. (This is one of their big selling points.)  But then again, if you're a regular reader of this blog, you realize that the whole losing-weight-thing is a whole other story in itself. But this is one of the first questions I get asked: "How much have you lose since you started wearing it?" -- technically I've gained about 2 pounds since wearing it.  I happened to start wearing it right after my grandfather died last year which was when my weight dipped down to it's lowest as a result of an extended period of time of extreme stress and lack of eating. But I don't count that low on the scale as being real.  So my answer holds true - I haven't lost any weight using the GoWearFit. 
• Knowledge is Power.  This past year I have become more in tuned with my body than I have ever been before. The science behind the GoWearFit has helped me understand my body, understand what the consequences of my activity have on how my body burns calories and understand what I need to do each day to achieve my activity goals. This knowledge alone is what makes the investment worth it. 
• Awareness. Having that armband on my arm all day, every day gave me a heightened sense of awareness for my activity. I knew that the simple act of taking the stairs or parking further away from the entrance would burn more calories.  Oh sure, we hear those recommendations all the time, but until you actually see the calorie burn number racking up on your display device you don't realize what a difference those little things can make. What amazed me most was that doing an hour of brisk power walking burned the same number of calories as an hour of brisk housework.  So we don't need a formal exercise plan to burn calories, we just need to be active. 
• Peace of Mind.  If I didn't know that I burned 2200-2600 calories a day in activity, then I'm sure I would still be struggling to eat as few calories as possible to "lose weight" and be on a strict diet. But knowing what I know about how my body works... it has given me the peace of mind to know that when I eat 1500 or 1800 calories a day (on a pig-out type of day) that I'm still in a calorie deficit. And I know that my typical daily eating plan of 1300-1400 calories is just fine. In fact, I could eat much, much more than I already do eat and still be just fine.  But I'm comfortable at 1400 and I'm happy that the GoWear gives me the peace of mind to know that I don't need to starve myself to make this new lifestyle work.

Yes, the GoWear Fit costs a lot of money (about $250) but for me.... the rewards far outweighed the costs. 

And now that it isn't on my arm any longer, I seem to have a new sense of awareness starting to appear. It's this surreal knowledge that the GoWear is no longer keeping track of my activity levels any longer, so I need to keep track of it myself.  There is nothing to keep me accountable except myself now.  And I've been more active in the past week - by design or by subconscious? I don't know exactly.  Or maybe I wasn't really more active... just more aware?  

I highly recommend the GoWear Fit to everyone losing massive amounts of weight and trying to learn about how their body works. If you've been on a low calorie and need to increase your calories to maintain your weight loss... this device will be your life savor. Knowledge is power... and when that knowledge is based in science... life is good. 

~Pam