It’s never been easier to track your fitness and wellbeing levels and that’s in part thanks to clever wearables like the Whoop band. Wearable tech of this kind enables you to track all your biometric data in one place and optimise your health based on the results.
Prince William is the latest celebrity to be spotted wearing the Whoop wellness tracker and he’s in good company. Sporting icons like LeBron James and Rory McIlroy are already fans of the wearable device. William sported his Whoop band while supporting England at the Euros in their game against Switzerland this weekend.
So what do we know about the latest iteration of the Whoop? And is it fit for royalty?
What is the Whoop wearable?
For the uninitiated, Whoop is one of the most high-tech wellness devices on the market. Worn on your wrist like a watch, the band uses sensors to capture biometric data like your heart rate, temperature and sleep patterns to give you a comprehensive view of what’s going on with your health.
The app then creates a series of baselines and predictions using your health data. It breaks this down in a way that’s easy to understand and coaches you with recommendations on where to make improvements. The band and app essentially act like a 24/7 health coach, helping you to tailor your habits and take better care of your health and wellbeing.
Obviously, Whoop is a hit with athletes and people for whom training is life, but anyone can use the technology to improve their fitness, make lifestyle changes and track metrics that matter to them. Prince William is just the latest in a long list of celebs who have opted to use the Whoop to optimise their wellbeing. But is it worth the investment?
Is Whoop worth it?
Well, Whoop reportedly has the best level of accuracy of any wearable of this kind, with a gold-standard EGC, five LEDs and four photodiodes built into the band. In our review of the tracker, the user experience was praised for being pretty straightforward, with three different phases of your health to track: strain, rest and recovery. You’ll receive a score for each of these which will help you to customise your activity throughout the week.
Our testers also ranked the Whoop the highest out of all the sleep optimisation devices. The band analyses your sleep quality and makes suggestions on how much sleep you’ll need, as well as sending reminders to track your own behaviours throughout the day so it can make better predictions and suggestions to support sleep hygiene. The battery life also measures up pretty well – lasting five days, with a removable pack that you can charge on the go.
As for the cost, the Whoop works similarly to other wearables in that you’ll pay for a subscription to the app and the band will come included as part of your subscription. Annual membership will cost you £229, which is less than £20 per month. But before you commit, you can try a month for free and trial a pre-owned device instead of opting for a brand new one.
If a brand new band is preferred, there are around 30 different styles of bands to choose from for a small upgrade fee. Opt for a sleek knitted band in your favourite colour or go with classic onyx a la Prince William.
Looking for more wearable recommendations? Read our review of the best smart rings