With a recent study suggesting that Apple Watch is, to a large extent, capable of accurately tracking stress, Apple Watch users might be ready to reap benefit of the smart device in improving their health.
A small-scale study undertaken by University of Waterloo researchers found that Apple Watch was roughly “in line with the state-of-the-art for stress prediction.” However, stress tracking is actually better at determining when one is not stressed rather than when one experiences stress.
The study recommended further endavours on various ways to calculating heart rate variability (HRV), and “deep learning”, to yield better results.
If users are interested to use Apple Watch to better understand their stress levels, there are a few great options.
First, users can see their HRV history if they go to the Health app on iPhone > Browse > Heart > Heart Rate Variability (HRV). Check out the 6M or year trend. Generally speaking, an upward trend can correlate to less stress and a downward trend can mean greater stress.
To leverage HRV day-to-day to better understand your stress, these are three great apps to try out. The first two are more focused on fitness and stress, but all of them help users understand their daily stress better.
1) Gentler Streak: It is an exercise and fitness tracker always putting well-being first. With its help, users can find a personal balance between fitness and rest. The app responds to one's readiness and proposes daily workout actions within healthy activity levels. Rest and active recovery are part of the actions that keep the streak going. Try the app to improve your fitness!
2) Training Today: Training Today constantly monitors health data from Apple Watch to determine readiness to train (RTT) each day and throughout the day. It can help to prevent overtraining injury or let one know if it’s the best time to work hard, take it easy, or have a rest day.
3) Stress Monitor for Watch: Stress Monitor app processes heart data from Apple Watch and shows one's current stress and capacity to perform while users stay at the mental, emotional, and physical best. The app easily tracks what and to what extent activities such as sleep and other daily activities influenced users' performance, stress, and health.
Stress, recovery, and fitness level show up in your body’s signals. Stress Monitor takes into account direct body signals, such as HRV and Resting Heart Rate (RHR) and shows current capacity to perform.
It analyzes body signals and finds out what is positive and what negatively affects users' stress, performance, and general well-being.
Try these apps and start tracking your stress now.
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