With the shift of our entire lives going from IRL to online, it is important to keep an eye on that screen time.
We know the dangers of lurching from endless scrolling on the small screen [phone] to working on the medium screen [laptop] to spend an evening in front of the big screen [TV].
With gyms closed for the short term foreseeable, there is a world of fitness apps to choose from, and as a discerning consumer, it’s imperative to ensure you aren’t adding to your visual stress with yet another video-based platform.
Simply put – screen time decreases happiness and increases stress. Not what you want, on top of being grounded by Boris.
WithU is an intuitive, premium fitness app that offers audio fitness guides, co-developed by Olympic 400m runner Tim Benjamin.
It gives you audio access to over 1,000 strength, HIIT, running, cycling and mobility workouts led by Olympians, elite athletes and advanced trainers from around the world.
Tim Benjamin adds: “Screen based workouts largely require you to be inside, with a set up allowing you to workout (internet, equipment, space etc.), however with our product it can be taken to a field, garage, driveway, gym and downloaded in advance, ready to go.
The portability aspect of audio fitness means you’re more likely to get outside, meaning less screen time, so is doubly beneficial to your mental as well as physical health.”
Audio fitness, like audio books, lends itself to a more focussed workout, you aren’t constantly checking on what the instructor is doing, pausing the video and interrupting your flow.
This in no way detracts from the expertise of the movements, you are coached through every step.
When you move your body, it’s important to move your mind too – not be transfixed to a screen that is conversely, chipping away at your ocular and mental health as you try and keep your physical self, fit.
Fitness pre-Covid allowed you to take a break from your screen, to simply be you, in a gym, on a run, on a bike, on a climbing wall, challenging yourself.
The meditative moments that come from quietening your mind and just getting the job done, exerting yourself to feel that rush of endorphins afterwards, are directly compromised by staring at a blue-lit screen.
As we observe how these times are newly affecting our physical and mental selves, we note just how much more screens are replacing our human interaction.
To regulate this, try where possible to assimilate fitness aurally, making for a more intimate and all-round healthier way to exercise.
WithU is available on iOS and Android for just £7.99 per month. Access is unlimited, with no additional pay-to-unlock content.