Fitness, Feelings, and Finding the Trends

This week on Generations, we dive into health tracking—why we use it, where it falls short, and how it can actually help instead of hurt. We talk Apple Watches, calorie deficits, anxiety, sleep data, menstrual cycle tracking, and why trends matter more than daily numbers. We share what we’ve learned from years of experimenting with fitness wearables, why privacy matters in tech, and how being “in tune with our bodies” isn’t about obsession—it’s about awareness. And we wrap with some surprising research on how just a little resistance training can dramatically lower your risk of death and even cancer. Show Notes We kick off with winter fatigue, weird sleep weeks, and how small disruptions affect how we feel.Why this episode started with a text about starting a calorie deficit — and why we decided tracking was worth discussing.Peter’s long experiment with wearables (Fitbit, Garmin, Pebble, Microsoft Band) — and why most of them ultimately fell short.Why we landed on the Apple Watch:Best overall smartwatch experienceSolid fitness tracking for normal humansActually useful smart featuresBetter privacy model than Google-owned ecosystemsThe real value of tracking:Not the daily numbersThe trends over timeUsing data for awareness, not obsessionHeart rate alerts and anxiety:Using elevated heart rate notifications as a cue to regulateTracking medication side effects responsiblyCalorie tracking on a cut:We don’t rely on watch calorie burn to determine deficitsApps like Chronometer and MacroFactor help — but ease of use mattersSleep tracking:Sleep latency, HRV, resting heart rateSeeing physiological effects of behaviors (like late eating)Why tracking can be helpful if it doesn’t increase anxietyCycle tracking & women’s health:Logging symptoms daily reveals powerful patternsHormones affect sleep, hunger, mood, and performanceBeing in an “in tune with my body” eraApple Health collects a lot of data — but doesn’t present it well.Third-party apps like Athlytic make it more usable.Medical Fact:Resistance + cardio training linked to 40% lower all-cause mortalityNearly 30% lower cancer-specific mortalityStrength training plays a particularly protective role