Hi, I’m the New York Post’s Wellness Editor — and until a couple weeks ago, I was a smartwatch virgin.
I wasn’t a wearables virgin (seriously, what do you take me for?). At this point I feel naked if I leave the house without my Oura ring.
But I know the top smart watches have more capabilities, so when I got the opportunity to test out the new Samsung Galaxy Watch9, which is on sale today, I jumped at the chance.
Well, I got the watch first, and then I jumped — I’ll be damned if I’m not getting credit for those calories burned.
First, basics: The 40mm Bluetooth version costs $379.99 (the 44mm is $409.99). It needs to connect to a nearby phone for features like calling, texting and apps with data. There’s also an internet-connected LTE option for $50 more.
Either way, you need to use it with an Android phone — and if you want all the advanced health features, it has to be a Galaxy. (That’s similar to the Apple Watch, which can only be used with an iPhone.)
Here’s everything you need to know about the most interesting health features, whether you’re thinking of upgrading your old Samsung watch or switching over from another device entirely.
Fitness tracker in action
To celebrate the launch of the new watch and the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold8 Ultra, the brand invited me to a workout to see the fitness tracker features in action.
Once I started recording the session, it was gratifying to watch my screen measure my raised heart rate in real time — and see which particular moves were pushing my body the hardest.
During less intense exercise, like a walk in Central Park, I haven’t even had to press “record” — it’s given me a vibrating nudge to let me know it’s tracking my steps and calories burned, and buzzes again when I’ve come to a stop, delivering a summary directly to my wrist.
I will note that this watch is very perceptive of heartbeat — and maybe put too much faith in the idea that I’m super active versus highly emotional. Last week, it registered a stressful conversation I was having as a 13-minute workout, which I realized when it vibrated and told me my exercise session was well underway. (My heart rate was in zone 3 — yikes.)
It also vibrates if you’re being too sedentary. A few times a day while sitting at my desk at work, I feel a buzz on my wrist as the screen tells me it’s “time to get moving.” This is pretty useful, since studies have linked prolonged sitting to heart disease, diabetes, weight gain, depression and even some cancers. Oh — and early death.
Fitness trackers are often framed as a must for really active people, but they can be a useful tool for those who have a tougher time getting motivated. Seeing evidence of what you accomplished immediately — and being encouraged by in-app goal trackers — can definitely be a helpful kick in the butt to make you add more movement into your day.
Tracking your progress
A brand new feature on this watch is the Fitness Index, which compares your fitness level to that of your peers — and offers guidance to improve.
Using data it picks up from various places (e.g. workouts, body composition scans), it scores you on five indicators:
- Cardiorespiratory fitness
- Muscular endurance
- Muscular strength
- Body composition
- Flexibility
Once you set a goal — I went with “improve overall fitness” — it gives you weekly missions to complete.
My week one goal was to do two hours and 30 minutes of exercise spread across four categories: one minute of strength workouts, 39 minutes of cardio, 41 minutes of flexibility, and nine minutes of endurance.
With an additional $15/month iFit subscription, those workouts are right there under the suggestions, broken down by category.
Grading your sleep — and coaching for healthier habits
A joke-not-really-a-joke that any health tracker wearer will understand: If you can’t check your sleep score in the morning, how do you know how tired you’re supposed to be that day?
Now with two trackers, I’ve got two sleep scores. The good news is, they aren’t wildly different — 85 versus 92 on Sunday, 79 versus 84 on Monday, 85 versus 86 (a match!) on Tuesday. As for how long I’ve slept… the metrics differ, sometimes by as much as 45 minutes.
I’m pretty good at prioritizing bedtime — sleep is important for weight, heart health, longevity… and looking my best — but for those who need some help, Samsung debuted new sleep coaching to build better habits.
During week one, it encouraged me to get up out of bed quickly, eat breakfast, avoid naps, skip caffeine after 5 pm, avoid alcohol, meditate and practice deep breathing. For the goal-oriented, there are checkboxes.
Are you eating enough vegetables?
One of the features I was most intrigued by is the “Antioxidant Index,” which debuted with the Samsung Galaxy Watch8 but has gotten an upgrade.
The feature estimates how much of the antioxidant beta-carotene (found in foods like sweet potatoes, carrots, spinach, kale and cantaloupe) you have in your skin. The body converts beta-carotene into vitamin A, which is important for vision and immune function.
So while it’s not actually telling you whether you’ve eaten enough veggies — cauliflower and cucumbers, for example, barely have any beta-carotene — it does give an indication if you’re eating a good amount of some kinds. And more importantly, it may give you clues as to how well your body is handling oxidative stress.
Unfortunately, my own Antioxidant Index numbers keep coming back as… not great. But I do eat lots of veggies! And my most recent bloodwork showed no obvious nutritional red flags, so it’s a reminder that this watch function is a very specific measurement — not a full picture of your health.
Check your vitals
Medically speaking, there are four official vital signs: body temperature, heart rate, respiratory rate and blood pressure.
Samsung’s “Vitals” are a tad different: They measure skin temperature, sleep heart rate, HRV, respiratory rate and blood oxygen, and let you know if something is off from your baseline.
Body composition
BMI is increasingly seen as a problematic way of categorizing someone as overweight — just look at all the pro athletes who are “obese.”
Body composition is often considered more accurate, since it breaks down how much body fat you have. But you can’t exactly do regular DEXA scans, and certainly not at home.
The Galaxy smartwatches are among the only wearables that offer body composition — and a University of Michigan found the readings to be pretty accurate, with a 95% correlation to DEXAs.
This could be great news for people who aren’t happy with the number on the scale — but whose workout habits have given them some pretty impressive muscles.
Heart health
Samsung’s Heart Health Score looks at your sleep, stress, activity and body composition to tell you about your cardiovascular wellness.
The Health Monitor app also has an ECG (electrocardiogram) feature, which can detect whether you ahve AFib (irregular heart rhythm).
There’s also blood pressure monitoring, which was rolled out in the US earlier this year. It requires an initial reading from a traditional blood pressure cuff to calibrate it. This is for wellness tracking, though — not to diagnose hypertension.
How bad are you AGEs-ing?
AGEs (advanced glycation end-products) are harmful compounds that build up when sugar sticks to proteins and fats in your body.
High levels can trigger oxidative stress and inflammation, which are linked to conditions including Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes and heart disease.
Samsung says its AGEs index “can give you a sense of your metabolic health, which reflects your overall biological aging process and is strongly influenced by your diet and lifestyle.” High score? You may be eating too much sugar, not exercising enough, and getting poor sleep.
Now that the review is written, I’m officially at the end of the testing phase — but I as of publishing this, I’m still wearing the watch.
While all the health data available these days may stress some people out, I still find it fun to collect clues about what’s going on in my body — and get a bit competitive with myself to improve. But at the end of the day, I’m listening to my body first — and since I’m still sore for that workout Samsung hosted, I’m taking it easy today, no matter how much my watch nudges me.
