The Oura ring has changed my life. I mean this. It’s changed it in a way I never thought it could.
Overcoming Initial Doubts about The Oura Ring
I was hesitant to get the Oura ring because I'm not a big “ring person” and I thought that something tracking my sleep would make me paranoid and annoyed about my sleep.
But no, quite the opposite has happened.
I got my ring a couple of months ago and where i see the most amount of improvements in my life from it are:
- Prioritizing my sleep
- Getting excited to get my steps in for the day
- Feeling motivated for all kinds of movement
- Knowing my readiness score
- Being able to track my period
- Knowing the stress in my body
- Knowing the optimal time that my body needs to be asleep
Discovering My Health Priorities
And honestly much much more.
I was able to purchase my Oura ring with my HSA card. This was extremely helpful and a lot of people don’t realize that you can now use your HSA to purchase their products. Huge plus.
I upgraded to the “Gold” and “Horizon” style Oura ring. My goodness it’s a beautiful ring. I get stopped all the time with people asking me where I got my ring.
I wear it on my left index finger. You’re supposed to wear them on your index finger or your middle finger for most accurate results.
I honestly thought it was going to be bulky and I’d feel it all the time. But I completely forget it’s there. It’s part of me now.
Seamless Integration into Daily Life
I also thought that my fingers would swell so much in the mornings that I wouldn’t be able to get it off (huge fear of mine having something stuck on your body). But this also isn’t the case.
Yes, my fingers swell in the mornings, but this is never uncomfortable as there is some wiggle room. It also never feels like it’s going to fall off of my finger either.
The Importance of Trial Sizing Kits
What I love is that you can order a ring trial sizing kit. I highly recommend doing this because I would have picked a completely different size, had I not known.
I had to go up in size because they have these sensors that take up a little extra room.
So again, definitely order the kit before you place your order!
Why I am In Love With The Oura Ring
Some more things to note about why I love the Oura ring:
- The charging holds for a few days
- The app’s technology is the best i’ve seen when compared to wearables
- You can get it wet
- The durability holds up
- It’s extremely accurate
- It looks good in photos (not like I’m getting photographed by the paparazzi, but you know when you’re with your cute gf’s in a photo and you don’t want a large gadget intruding your cuteness)
Comparing Oura Ring and Apple Watch
I had tried the Apple Watch before I tried the Oura.
I gave it a few months, but truthfully, I became so obsessed with closing my rings that I found myself just pacing around my 700 SF apartment one Friday night just to get my “steps in” and my fiance was like…… maybe this isn’t for you.
I needed to find something that focused way more on rest and recovery.
That rewarded me for doing great things throughout my day, but also noticed when I needed a break.
Diving into Advanced Metrics of the Oura Ring
Here is more detail on why I prefer the Oura ring to the Apple Watch (specifically):
- Sleep tracking precision - it provides more accurate sleep tracking due to its advanced sensors and focus solely on sleep metrics, while the Apple Watch may not be as precise due to its broader range of functionalities.
- Comfort and wearability - it is designed to be worn comfortably throughout the day and night, offering a sleek and minimalist design that many users prefer over the bulkier Apple Watch (I hated the way the Apple Watch looked in photos on my wrist!!!!)
- Battery life - it typically offers longer battery life, often lasting multiple days on a single charge, compared to the Apple Watch, which may require daily charging.
- Focus on health metrics - while the Apple Watch offers a wide range of features and apps, the Oura ring is especially tailored for health and wellness tracking, providing detailed insights into sleep quality, activity levels, and recovery metrics.
- Fertility tracking - the Oura ring includes features for fertility tracking, such as menstrual cycle monitoring and ovulation prediction, making it a valuable tool for females interested in reproductive health. The Apple Watch offers some fertility tracking apps, but the Oura ring’s dedicated features provide more comprehensive insights and accuracy.
- Sleep monitoring features - the Oura ring offers comprehensive sleep monitoring features, including insights into sleep stages (which I loooooove), sleep efficiency, and readiness scores, which are more detailed than the Apple Watch’s sleep tracking capabilities.
- Less distraction - since the Oura ring is primarily focused on health tracking and lacks the extensive app ecosystem of the Apple Watch, it may provide a less distracting experience (I didn’t love the notifications and constant distractions on the Apple Watch)
- Aesthetics - the Oura ring’s sleek and minimalistic design may appeal to users who prefer a more discreet wearable compared to the bulkier Apple Watch, especially for everyday wear.
- Personalization - the Oura ring offers personalized insights and recommendations based on individual health data, providing tailored suggestions for improving sleep quality, activity levels, and overall well-being.
Oura sends weekly newsletter that are super informative and revolve around the health and wellness life I’m out here trying to live.
Understanding Your Sleep Data
Here’s a look at what your sleep data on the app looks like! I had a nice sleep score last night:
Monitoring Readiness and Recovery
Here’s a look into what your readiness score looks like! Still working on getting my recovery right from a bachelorette trip this past weekend (which is a rarity for me these days of going out - now that I have this):
The Oura Ring in Action
Here’s a photo of me sporting my Oura ring this weekend - having the best time! Life is all about balance. It also compliments my jewelry and aesthetic.
Exploring Activity Tracking
And here’s a look at what your activity score looks like:
Unveiling Resilience Contributors
Then Oura just started measuring resilience contributors which are factors or metrics that contribute to overall resilience and well-being. These contributors include various physiological measurements such as heart rate variability (HRV), resting heart rate, body temperature, sleep quality, activity levels, and recovery patterns.
Here’s my resilience contributors score:
The Oura Ring Homepage Hub
Then the homepage looks like this, and I love how clear and concise the information is about the ring’s capabilities. It includes everything I need and want to see at a quick glance:
Embracing the Oura Ring Experience
There’s honestly so much to learn and insight to gain from using a tracker and tool like the Oura ring. I feel like learning about my body on a new depth has only just begun.
The Value of The Oura Ring Membership
Just to note, you do pay a monthly membership for the app. It’s $5.99/month after your first free month. With this you get access to your Sleep, Readiness & Activity scores. You also get:
- In-depth sleep analysis every morning
- Personalized health insights & recommendations
- Live & accurate heart rate monitoring
- Temperature trend monitoring as a tool to predict periods and to identify early signs of sickness
In my eyes, it’s a teeny tiny price to pay to get to know your body on a level deeper than you could without it. Do you want a small starbucks latte once/month or know the insights of your body every minute of every day? For me it’s simple.
Making the Choice: Referral Benefits
If you’d like to sign up for the Oura ring, which I highly recommend you do, please use my referral link! It’ll save you $40. Getting a referral link is the best deal out there. My company was offering a link to incentivize us to get them, but it was only for $25 off. I searched for more offers but it wasn’t until my brother’s girlfriend sent me her referral link that I was able to get the best deal.
Let me know if you love the Oura ring as much as I do - would love to chat more about it, your habits, routines, and everything in-between!