I decided this week that the time has come to end a long-term relationship.
Now, that might not seem like a big deal to a normal person, but here’s the fact: I’m 46 years old and I’ve been through a failed marriage and had my fair share of serious boyfriends, and yet I have never once broken up with anybody. Ever.
Sure, I’m done the ghosting thing where you kind of fade out and hope they get the hint and move along without any direct confrontation (they usually do), but I’ve never had to come right out and say, “This relationship is over.”
Until now.
The bad news is that I’m about to break a lifelong streak.
The good news? The relationship I’m ending isn’t with a man.
It’s with my Fitbit.
I have no regrets about the decision. We’ve had a good run, my Fitbit and I. We’ve been together for over 3 years, and we’ve (literally) done everything together, since the damn thing has been strapped to my wrist 24/7 (except for those torturous hours when it needs to recharge).
But lately, I’ve been feeling like my Fitbit’s getting kind of selfish. What I want doesn’t matter. At all. Sometimes it feels like my every waking hour needs to be about doing what Fitbit wants me to do, regardless of what’s going on in MY life.
And that’s not cool.
Call me crazy, but I think the person who’s paying for the device should be the one who gets to be in charge, not the other way around.
Some days, I feel like I exist only as the Fitbit’s slave—rushing around the house to get my steps in, making sure to be awake and active during the hours the Fitbit decrees, not even being able to enjoy a normal lunch out with my friends because the Fitbit thinks I need to step away from the table and get in at least 250 steps for the hour.
Sometimes, being with your friends is more important than walking 250 steps. Health is about more than just movement. And if Fitbit can’t be flexible (or accurate, but that’s a whole other story), it’s just not the right “fit” for me anymore.
It’s more than that, though.
The truth is, I don’t really NEED the Fitbit anymore.
When I bought my first fitness tracker back in 2012 or 2013, I was fairly new to the health and wellness thing and I needed all the help I could get. But in the years since, I’ve become pretty knowledgeable, not just about health in general but about my own body and what I need to function at my best. In fact, I’d have to guess I’m a bit MORE knowledgeable than Fitbit, since I’m aware that the human body needs to REST now and then, but Fitbit doesn’t allow for that without penalizing you.
At this point in my fitness journey, I don’t need help to know how active I am. Even on days when I don’t go for my usual run, I average close to 20,000 steps a day, almost twice the recommended goal of 10,000. I do strength training several times a week, I (for the most part) eat right, and I’m even sleeping better than usual (believe it or not—and I hope I didn’t just jinx myself!).
I’ve got this on my own.
Besides, something weird is going on at Fitbit’s app. As I mentioned in a previous blog, the social media portion of Fitbit has become a veritable meat market, and I’m just not comfortable fending off the aggressive advances of multiple men every day.
Unless the shame and discomfort you feel as you wince while reading the creepy men’s messages are part of a deliberate attempt by Fitbit’s designers to help me burn extra calories, I don’t see any reason for continuing to expose myself to it on a daily basis. These dudes? Are just plain gross.
So, the time has come, and I have to say, “Fitbit, it’s over.”
I’d like to use the old “It’s not you, it’s me” line, but in this case, it most definitely is YOU, Fitbit.
It’s time for me to move on.
My wrist will feel naked without you.
