I didn’t expect a small device on my wrist to affect my mindset this much.
But it did.
1. When My Sports Watch Made Me Doubt Myself
There were days when everything felt right.
My breathing was calm.
My heart rate stayed stable throughout the run.
I wasn’t forcing the pace. I was enjoying it.
For the first time, running felt… peaceful.
And then, after I finished my session, I looked at my watch.
“VO₂ max decreased.”
That one sentence hit harder than it should have.
Suddenly, all the confidence I built during the run started to fade.
I began questioning myself:
Was my training not effective? Am I getting worse?
But deep down, I knew something didn’t add up.
VO₂ max is simply an estimate of how efficiently your body uses oxygen during exercise. it’s useful, but it doesn’t always reflect your real progress, especially day-to-day.
And yet, that tiny metric had the power to mess with my mind.
2. The Obsession With VO₂ Max (Especially for Beginners)
What I’ve noticed is that many people especially beginners become overly focused on VO₂ max.
I get it. It’s a number. It’s easy to track. It feels like progress.
But I started to question that mindset.
Why are we chasing a fluctuating number…
when we haven’t even built a solid aerobic base yet?
For me, one thing matters more:
A stable heart rate.
When my heart rate is controlled, it means:
- I’m not overtraining
- My body is adapting
- I can run longer without burnout
That feels like real progress.
Honestly, this topic deserves a deeper discussion. I might write another blog just about this.
3. My Realization: A Sports Watch Is Not a Coach
At some point, I had to remind myself:
My sports watch is not my coach.
It doesn’t know:
- How tired I am after a long day of work
- Whether I slept well or not
- How motivated (or unmotivated) I feel
It only sees numbers.
In reality, it’s just a very smart calculator on my wrist for processing data, giving estimates, and sometimes… making wrong assumptions.
4. Taking Back Control of My Training
That’s when I made a decision.
I stopped letting my watch define my progress.
Instead, I started asking myself:
- Did I feel good during the run?
- Was my effort controlled?
- Am I consistent this week?
Because at the end of the day:
The data is just a tool.
The decision is still mine.
My sports watch can guide me, but it should never control how I feel about my journey.
