It was a pretty lazy Saturday! I went to bed too late and woke up too early, boo. It’s hard for me to go back to sleep once I’m awake…it can be done but usually, I start thinking and then my coffee craving kicks in and that’s it, I’m up! But I did have an excellent after-lunch nap and my Oura sleep score was so happy, lol.
I’ve had an Oura ring for several years now. I’ve had it so long, that I’m grandfathered into the software and I don’t need to pay a monthly subscription fee. I did upgrade to the 3rd generation ~2.5 years ago. I feel I use it somewhat strangely. I don’t pay attention to the readiness score at all. If my score tells me I should rest but I want to do a hard workout and I feel fine, I do the workout.
The main benefit for me is the sleep tracking, especially on bad sleep nights. There are some nights that I feel that I didn’t sleep at all. Well, it’s helpful for my alertness to see in the app that actually, I did sleep more than I thought. Sometimes, I still have a normal amount of REM and deep sleep although the total time is short. I realize this is totally a mental thing since whether the Oura ring “tells” me about my sleep or not, the night’s sleep was what it was. But it’s nice to know and the mind game is important!
I really like that it’s a ring. For me, rings are very comfortable to wear and I don’t notice. Things on my wrist are a different story and I dislike sleeping with watches, bracelets, etc. Also, I don’t like the idea of wearing a tracker on my wrist. I’m not a felon- I don’t need a monitoring device. And yes, I realize that I carry my cell phone on/near me for most of the day but in my mind, it’s not the same!
I keep a general eye on my step count. The Oura ring seems to generously overcount steps, which they say they’re going to improve in a software update. I just know that I used to walk a lot more than I do now. I mostly blame my commute. It used to be so short and involve some walking. Now, I feel a little more stationary. I’m working on more movement through the day, so it’s nice to keep a loose eye on it through the Oura software.
Overall, I like it. I don’t think I use enough of the features to subscribe but fortunately, that’s a non-issue for me. Way to be an early adopter!
I’ve never heard of an Oura, but it sounds really interesting. Like a Fitbit but easier to wear?
I think the Fitbit is probably more accurate with the steps. I like rings better than items on my wrist, but I know many people who love their Fitbit. It’s also amazing how the Fitbit has had some real longevity in the wellness tech space since there are so many competing devices.
I’ve never heard of an Oura Ring either. I take my rings off at night, so likely it wouldn’t work well for me. Cool concept though, I’m glad it gives you helpful information.
I have trouble going back to sleep too. I wish I didn’t. I wanted to sleep until 8 this morning, but woke up at about 6:15. I tried to go back to sleep, I was so comfortable and it was dark and quiet. Nope. Body said, “Too bad Missy-Thing, We’re getting up now.” The upside I guess is that I had a couple of hours to myself in the morning.
I do like my early morning time- I feel like it’s “free” time. Sometimes I workout, sometimes I read, sometimes I play games, and sometimes I seem to just sit on the couch for a long time with coffee.
I’ve heard of the Oura ring and I am intrigued but it’s pricey and I don’t think I’d want to pay for yet another subscription.
I hear you- especially since it’s such a niche product and if you want to stop the subscription, there’s no functionality or use. I mean, the ring looks ok but I don’t feel like it’s a fashion statement.
I have heard a lot of things about the aura ring. But I use an Apple Watch and it does the tracking too. So I always opted for not getting another device. Do I like wearing a watch in the night? Not necessarily.
So tell me… besides that… are there any advantages ofer an Apple Watch? If you can compare. I would be interested.
An Apple watch is so all-encompassing. From a tracker standpoint, it seems more gamified (the rings) and more likely to give you little reminders. The Oura ring will take away from your readiness score if you are too motionless, etc but it doesn’t send little alerts. It’s mostly for sleep, but my understanding is that the Apple watch is very good at that too. I like the limited functionality and lack of tracking. To San’s point, I don’t think I would get it if I had to subscribe. It’s a little niche and I’m feeling very over-subscribed to the premium subscription model of paying for things.