Lynbrook | New Hyde Park | NY

Fitness

Which Fitness Tracker Is Right For You?

This year’s top fashion accessories are fitness trackers! If you are one of the few that have yet to join the movement, here are some of the highly rated trackers out there to help you to get started on your fitness goals. We’ve compared several brands and models to help to choose the right activity tracker for you.

1. Fitbit Surge: According to Consumer Reports the best overall tracker is the Fitbit Surge. This fitness tracker is also a watch. The Fitbit Surge has been classified as number one because its easy to use, it’s heart-rate monitor accuracy and sleep-count accuracy. The other features of this great fitness tracker is it calculates how many floors you climb a day, has GPS tracking to calculate running outside and has a food tracking ability. In addition, the battery lasts for 7 days without charge. The price for this fitness accessory is around $250.

2. Basis Peak: The Basis Peak is also a watch like the Fitbit Surge. This watch is rated just as high as the Surge in the fact that it is easy to you and heart-rate monitoring accuracy. The battery life lasts around 4 days. This watch is good for individuals who are looking for a simple, accurate heart rate monitoring watch that does not have any fancy features. This fitness watch starts at a retail price of $200.

3. Fitbit ChargeHR: The Fitbit ChargeHR is not a watch, but a band unlike the Surge and the Basis Peak. This band is highly rated in terms of ease of heart rate monitoring and sleep-count accuracy. The battery life lasts around 5 days. The features of this band consist of food tracking, sleep tracking and stairs climbed tracking. If you are not looking for a GPS tracking, this band is very similar to the Fitbit Surge. The pricing for the Fitbit ChargeHR is $150.

4. Samsung Gear Fit: The Samsung Gear Fit is highly rated amongst the fitness bands. The band is easy to use, has heart rate monitoring and sleep count activity. This band has also has a sleep tracking feature as well as notifications to update you about your exercise progress. The battery lasts about 3.5 days. This fitness tracker averages around $150.

5. Fitbit One: The Fitbit One is a clip on health tracker. This fitness tracker is easy to use and also has a sleeping tracker. Other features include tracking of floors climbed, GPS tracker and a food tracker. This clip on food tracker has a battery life of 14 days. The price on this fitness tracker is $100.

6. Microsoft Band:This band ranks high in sleep-count accuracy and heart rate monitoring. This band also has GPS tracking and notifications that alert you throughout your exercise progress. The battery life for this watch is 1.5 days and is priced at $130.

7. Withings Activité Pop: If you are looking for a fitness accessory that just tracks sleep, this is the watch for you. The battery life also lasts for a very long time, 240 days. The price of this gadget is $150.

There are many different fitness tracking devices out there that feature an array of different applications, you just have to pick the right one for you! Get out there and get tracking!

 

By Sally Leahy

How Do You Get The Sunshine Vitamin In The Wintertime?

Vitamin D is important for our bodies, but how can we get enough during the winter months?

Research has linked Vitamin D to decreased rates of cancer, osteoporosis, diabetes, heart disease, anxiety and depression. Vitamin D levels in the body are not as much of an issue during the summer when people are going outside. However, during the winter months, people spend a lot more of their time indoors due to colder temperatures and snowy days. This often leads to a drop in the body’s vitamin D levels.

But how can you get Vitamin D in the winter? Go outside! Even when there is snow on the ground, you can still get enough sun to boost your vitamin D levels. When you’re outside, let as much skin show as you comfortably can- your face, neck, and hands can get some sunshine. Go outside during “solar noon.” This is the time of day when the sun is at its highest point in the sky. When you’re outside, use your skin as a cue. If your skin starts to turn pink, you’ve had enough. Keep in mind that you don’t need to spend hours in the sun. Even ten minutes a day can help boost the level of vitamin D in your body.

We live in an area where the sun shines enough in the winter that vitamin D supplements may not be necessary. However, especially with supplements, we need to ensure that we don’t get “toxic” on vitamin D. A better way to get vitamin D is simply by eating more of the foods rich in this vitamin. There are a handful of foods that can help boost vitamin D levels. Good food sources include fatty fish such as salmon, tuna, mackerel, mushrooms, eggs, and vitamin D fortified foods such as milk. Wild salmon is a great source and just a small 4 ounce serving can give us more than enough of the recommend daily allowance. For those with dietary restrictions, any type of milk will do! Cow, soy, almond, and coconut milk are all vitamin D fortified.

Following these simple recommendations can help everyone enjoy the health benefits of vitamin D naturally not only during the winter, but all year long.