So most of us have heard by now that the new Apple Watch measures blood oxygen levels. This feature, known as a pulse oximeter, reports oxygen saturation (also known as SpO2). This reading can let you know how well your body is processing oxygen, which is key to workout performance, especially if you train hard and if you live or workout in high altitudes. As a snow skier, I know this measurement can be important to track when on the slopes.
This data is not just for altitude performance, though. The tech world has now brought the pulse oximeter to the masses for use in fitness programs. For fitness, the importance of the data that this meter provides cannot be denied. Blood oxygen levels determine how much oxygen reaches the muscles. When you train more often your body will become more efficient for oxygen utilization and through the data, you can see when and how this happens.
Normally humans need 550 liters of oxygen per day, but when you workout the need for oxygen is 2X, 3X or more. Normal levels of oxygen range from 95-100%, but will drop during a workout as your body works to process the need for more oxygen.
A pulse oximeter is non-invasive and can be worn on the wrist now as a feature within a fitness tracker. It utilizes infrared light to measure the % of hemoglobin in red blood cells. Hemoglobin carries the oxygen where it is needed throughout the body. Hemoglobin changes color depending on the amount of oxygen it carries and this is what enables the device to measure the oxygen level. As the hemoglobin changes color, it absorbs a different amount of infrared light.
“In Apple Watch Series 6, the optical heart sensor has been redesigned to add blood oxygen measurement capabilities. During a blood oxygen measurement, the back crystal shines red and green LEDs and infrared light onto your wrist. Photodiodes then measure the amount of light reflected back.” (1) The advanced Apple algorithms record the color of the hemoglobin to determine the level of blood oxygen.
Higher SpO2 means better training recovery. Higher blood oxygen levels can go a long way to prevent over-training. Higher SpO2 will also give you more oomph for aerobic endurance. “A SpO2 of 88 to 92 percent will give you the most beneficial training adaptations without causing undue fatigue.” (2)
Since your blood oxygen levels drop during exercise it is important to train in an environment that enables ease of breathing. This is why working out in infrared heat is more efficient for your body as opposed to training in a studio that is heated with old school HV/AC systems that blow hot air in allowing higher levels of humidity. Radiant heat from infrared heaters creates a dry environment making it much easier to breath. Good breathing is key to raising your blood oxygen level!
Why not know everything that you can about your health!?
Now that we can easily measure our own fitness data, as a trainer, I would be remiss not to recommend that you invest in a new Apple Watch and make the effort to keep track of your oxygen for training performance.
Train hard, breath in, and track your data!
