There isn't a single person on the planet who doesn't have some kind of health and fitness goal, whether it's to lose weight, eat better, gain more muscle, or get more sleep. Chances are, it's a combination of many. And the new UA HealthBox hopes to help.
I call it fitness "for dummies" because it's a large box that essentially includes all of the components one might need to get fit: the UA Band wristworn activity tracker; UA Heart Rate chest-mounted heart rate monitor; and UA Scale, a smart, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth-connected scale. The system was designed in partnership with HTC.
Selling in Canada for $549 starting on May 23, the products are all part of Under Armour's new Connected Fitness portfolio, which also consists of headphones, including a model that can monitor your heart rate through your ears - no chest strap needed. (The headphones are designed in partnership with JBL and distributed in Canada through Erikson Consumer.)
I had the chance to check out the UA HealthBox as I journeyed toward a healthier lifestyle. Here's my take.
Design & Setup
The UA HealthBox comes in gorgeous and clever packaging: the large, red box opens up like a pair of French doors to reveal the Scale in the centre, Band on the left, and Heart Rate Monitor on the right. Each device is finished in black and red, continuing with the consistent colour theme.
Setup was simple. First, download the app and sync each device to it. Then, adjust settings to your liking. I turned virtually everything on to get the full experience, including bioelectrical impedance measurements on the scale to measure body fat (more on that later.)
The system comes with a free membership to MyFitnessPal and MapMyFitness. (Under Armour paid US$475 million to acquire the former app last year, and acquired the latter back in 2013.) I already had a MyFitnessPal account, so synced it up with that so I could log my daily food diaries. I did not, however, use MapMyFitness.
The UA Band & UA Record App
Employing a simple design reminiscent of the Fitbit, the wristband tracks everything you'd expect it to, including steps, sleep, and resting heart rate. I was pleasantly surprised to see that it could also display smartphone notifications: it will vibrate when you receive a message, call, or calendar update (should you turn vibration on), then swipe left to read the missive in its entirety. While the screen is a bit tough to read in direct sunlight, it's decent enough to serve its purpose.
The battery lasted about a week of continuous wear (including tracking of one or two one-hour workouts) before it needed recharging via the neat, but sometimes awkward to connect, magnetic charger. Connect it, and the screen displays the percentage charge, so you have an idea whether you can grab it and go because it's at 75%, or might have to leave it at home for the night if there's only 5% life left.
I was also pleasantly surprised to receive move notifications. "It's been 60 minutes since you last moved," it would tell me on those especially busy days when I was stuck at my desk. Needless I say, it encouraged me to get up, stat, and walk around a bit to get my juices flowing.
The touch screen displays text clearly, but it's a tad too sensitive to touch. It would often switch to a different screen, or select an option I didn't want when I tried to tap. But operation did become a bit easier the more time I spent with it.
Data is synced to the app, where you can get a pie chart, at-a-glance view of your daily status, including number of steps, workout goal, hours of sleep, and caloric intake. You can also track patterns, your weight, and set and manage goals.
Set specific activities to initiate before you're about to engage and keep track of those as well, either on their own, or in conjunction with the heart rate monitor. (More on that in the next section.)
You can also share personal notes about each day, and rate how you feel on a scale of one to 10. This is great for analyzing data beyond physical health, like your mental state, or high levels of stress. Tap the screen any time, as well, to check your resting heart rate.
At $229, the UA Band is accountable for about half the price of the Box. Given this, I would have expected a higher end design, or at least an additional fashion band options. But in terms of functionality, it does it all, and more.
UA Heart Rate Monitor
The one time I needed to resort to the Quick Start guide was to figure out how to turn this baby on. You need to touch the sensors on either side simultaneously to do so.
Then, strap it around your chest, and select an activity from the Band or the app. I chose "Class" for my weekly Zumba class.
When initially setting the activity from the Band itself, I encountered some problems. The monitor refused to connect to the Band. However, after a few failed attempts, I finally forgot the monitor from the app, then re-paired and the two, and it finally successfully connected.
Using the Band to track a workout and heart rate allows you to leave your phone tucked away in a gym locker, or back at home. Useful information displays on the Band's screen, like current heart rate and calories burned. Meanwhile, the indicator light on the side of the Band changes colour to advise of your heart rate status: from blue for low/resting, all the way up to red for peak heart rate so you know when it's time to cool down.
Upon completion of the workout, the data is automatically synced and stored within the app.
The second time, I set the activity from the app itself, and positioned my phone on a table within view while I worked out. I was able to see my current heart rate, target heart rate, a running clock, and other useful data, like willpower, calories burned, and intensity. All of that information was also stored in the app for later review, and I was able to snap a photo at the end of the workout for posterity. If you want immediate feedback, it's best to set a workout through the Band. But if you're OK checking in on your status every now and then, or seeing a summary at the end of the workout, setting it through the app might just suffice.
Ideally, a system like this would allow for tracking your heart rate without the chest monitor. Aren't we at a point yet where we can do away with such a device? That said, for those who still don't mind wearing one, it's a great way to keep on top of your workouts. And many argue that a chest strap is still the most accurate way to measure heart rate.
You can buy the Heart Rate monitor on its own for $100.
UA Scale
Sleek in glossy black, I'd be just as willing to leave this Scale as a statement piece on my main level than to tuck it into an upstairs bathroom. Step aboard, and it will greet you by name, displaying your current weight and, if you so choose, body fat percentage. (There is a warning not to measure this if you are pregnant or have a pacemaker.)
As noted, it connects via your home Wi-Fi, and syncs the weight data directly to the app.
You can set up to eight users, and it will automatically recognize you based on your weight. If you're using it with siblings or roommates who might be of similar weight, just press the left side of the scale to move to the next person, or tap the right to cycle through different profiles until you find yours.
What's great is that, aside from being a smart scale that syncs with your Connected ecosystem, it also functions as a standard scale. So if your spouse, or even young child, wants to step aboard, it will recognize it isn't you and simply display the person's (or object's) weight. The Scale sells on its own for $229.
Is it Worth It?
For someone looking for an all-in system to get started on a path toward better health and fitness, the UA HealthBox is an interesting, and creative, option. It includes three integral components, for a price that won't break the bank.
If you'd rather opt out of the heart rate monitoring, you could simply buy the Scale and Band separately, though it would cost $460.
The biggest question here is: does the relationship between the three products justify the system versus buying a band that has built-in heart rate monitoring, then simply manually inputting your weight and body fat using an inexpensive scale that can measure both?
You could, of course, go that route. But there's something about the integrated design, and the full ecosystem, that makes monitoring effortless. The only data I needed to manually input was my food diary through MyFitnessPal. But once I did that, the app would automatically calculate how much over I was each day (because, of course I was always over!) and provide helpful tips to reduce the amount of fat, for example, or increase protein. (Many overall health tips were also provided from IBM Watson.)
And the UA Record app adds some of its own unique features, like the "how did you feel?" integration. It calculates how many days per month you log as feeling from a 1-6, or a 7-10. Seeing how often I fell into the former category made me realize I needed to make some changes, including eating better, getting more sleep, and reducing stress.
Conversely, seeing the caloric intake surpass what it should every day made me think twice before cracking open that bag of potato chips, or downing the second glass of wine.
It would have been nice, though, considering Under Armour's involvement and the ample price tag, to have received a piece of sport clothing in the box as well. Even a simple headband or baseball hat would have been a nice branding tie-in.
Bottom line: you could hand-pick the right activity tracker for you, a heart rate monitor, and scale, and do the integration yourself. But much like with the smart home, the easier it is for devices to work together, the more inclined we are to use them. And this system really is a "for dummies" option that can help you get back on the right track to fitness, if you're willing to spend the dough.
The UA HealthBox will be available starting May 23, and in Sport Chek and Best Buy stores on June 13.