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After years of bulky watches and old school pedometers, prayers for a chic fitness tracker were finally answered in the form of the best fitness rings. You’ve almost certainly spotted the thick metallic bands adorning the hands of workout enthusiasts and celebrities, including Jennifer Aniston and Gwyneth Paltrow, and they’re only growing in popularity.
However, although it may seem like they’ve been around for years, fitness rings are still fairly new in the workout tracking world. There are only a select few brands that have brought them to market thus far, and they can get fairly pricey.
To find out if different rings are truly worth the investment, I spoke to several experts who regularly use fitness rings and spent plenty of time researching the top-rated models out there to get an official verdict.
And if you’re in the market for the best fitness trackers, we’ve also rounded up the best Garmin watches and best FitBits, as well as all the essential kit you need: exercise headphones, workout leggings, running shoes, and even Pilates socks for low-impact sessions.
The Ultrahuman (left) and Oura (right) rings.
(Image credit: Future)
Oura Ring
(Image credit: Amazon)
The Oura Ring is probably the most well-known fitness ring on the market. Delivering insights into sleep, activity, recovery, heart health, and stress, it boasts impressive functionality. It’s water resistant up to 100m/328 ft, has eight days of battery life, and delivers very accurate measurements.
Emma Pereira, Head of Stretch & Reset at online women’s running coaching collective, PASSA, wears the Oura Ring generation 4 in silver. “Mostly I love its ability to track recovery levels, sleep and my cycle, too,” she says.
“Beyond the daily stats and check-ins, it does helpful quarterly reports, offering another chance to helpfully remind me of the good/bad habits I’ve built up in that time. The app is really simple to use (the crown feature is an added bonus if you’re the competitive type ready to hit all the activity and recovery goals) and helpfully shares general insights on overall health (my top fave is the cardio age predictor).
“Like other rings, removing it to charge is a downside, but it holds battery well, reminds me with 24 hours to go before it needs a charge, and then charges to 100% in a few hours.”
Ultrahuman Ring
(Image credit: Currys)
Lillie Bleasdale, Founder & Head Coach at PASSA, has been wearing the Ultrahuman Ring Air in Bionic Gold for the last few months. “I’ve been mainly using it as a way to track my sleep as I don’t like sleeping wearing a smart watch,” she says.
Unlike the Oura, you don’t need to pay for the Ultrahuman app, which is a huge benefit. It’s ultra-light for comfortable wear, and tracks sleep, steps, distance, calories, sports and more with six days of battery life.
“I’ve found the app interface really easy to navigate and really useful for comparing sleep metrics day to day and helping me to ensure that I’m staying on top of enough recovery as an athlete,” says Bleasdale. “I’ve also found it really useful to have a monitor of my resting HR and HRV to indicate that I may be overworking or putting my body at risk of illness.
“The only negatives I’d say are having to remove the ring to charge, and if I’ve forgotten to do so during the day, then sometimes I’m unable to sleep with it on overnight. I also have to remove the ring when lifting weights in the gym in order to stop scratching, etc.”
Samsung Galaxy Ring
(Image credit: Amazon)
Samsung’s Galaxy Ring may be slightly less well-known than Oura and Ultrahuman, but it offers plenty of enviable technology. With seven days of battery life, three sensors, and AI-powered data analysis that provides health insights, it promises a lot. Monitor your sleep, activity, heart rate, and general wellness with the easy-to-use app.
“The ring works very well – I love that I don’t have to wear a watch for tracking any more. The sizing kit is very useful, but do make sure you wear the ring for a minimum of 24 hours to make sure you’ve got the correct size. The charging case is the perfect size to throw in your bag. Overall, the ring appears to be fairly accurate and is giving similar stats to my FitBit Versa 2,” shares one reviewer.
However, it’s worth being aware that it is only compatible with Androids – not iPhones. This limits who can use it, but there is the added benefit of no subscription fee.
Shop our other favourite fitness trackers
I’ve been wearing this Garmin for months, and I love it. Considering the price point, it offers brilliant technology and an impressive two weeks of battery life. It’s sleek, lightweight, and offers extremely accurate stats.
“You have to wear WHOOP for a few weeks before it starts feeding back your data, but I’ve never had more insight into my overall fitness levels, recovery score, and so on, and it was very accurate when cross-referenced with my Garmin,” says Senior Health Editor Ally Head.
“The Versa 4 looks great, accurately records your health stats, and lasts nearly a week. I’d buy if you exercise a few times a week and love tracking your workout classes and steps – Garmins are still my go-to for marathon running,” says Head.
“I was pleasantly surprised by the Google Pixel 3. It’s got everything you could want from a fitness tracker and doubles as a handy smartwatch, too, showing your email, phone, and message notifications,” says Head.
I have had my Apple Watch for years, and it’s never let me down. It looks chic, is extremely easy to use without the need for an app, and can be worn for watersports too. It is slightly heavier than my Garmin, but it’s still very comfortable.
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