“Health is Wealth” a phrase I have begun to hear an awful lot in recent years, mainly from people who are a few decades older than me and its usually the thing they say that they could go back and change. Me being in my relatively early years (emphasis on relatively) my concern for my health is quite a recent thing since im starting to feel achey in places I never was before and the constant fear of aging has finally arrived.

But how does one track their health? How do you know that you’re doing well? Even if something is wrong, how are you meant to know? Well due to this technological world we live in there are many health tracking accessories nowadays from Apple Watches (see our previous winners) Fitbits, Whoops and many other ones, all wrist centred. 

But there is one brand that is quite different from the rest. The Oura Ring 4 from Oura is considered to be one of the best health tracking wearables on the market right now, it is a ring instead of a wrist watch so it is a bit more subtle to wear but doesn't make it less powerful. Packed with research-grade sensors that work with an algorithm that adapts to the unique structure and skin tone of the users finger and their current activity that helps to deliver the most accurate data all whilst keeping battery life high.

My fitbit versa 2 had a pretty strong charge when I got it 5-6 years ago but overtime it has degraded and my strap has broken off. I also forgot to take it with me to places and it also stops me from wearing a proper watch like a Rolex (if i owned one). 

For me the Oura Ring had a lot of things that I was interested in that my current Fitbit was simply not capable of. One thing being able to wear it to sleep, I don't imagine many people wear a watch to sleep since having a metallic heavy foreign object be present in a comfy environment can be quite annoying. The Ring negates this issue by being way smaller as well as being located on the finger there 

The ring's features include a detailed sleep analysis, 24/7 heart rate tracking, advanced temperature monitoring, Blood Oxygen Sensing, daytime stress, heart health and metabolic health. Which are quite a few things you wouldn't be able to know unless you were on a Body scanning machine, therefore also adding a level of convenience to your health tracking.

But why the finger? What's wrong with the wrist? Well with ring wearable health trackers and with Oura the finger has quite a few advantages in terms of physiology and anatomy, including rich blood flow which provides a clearer, stronger photoplethysmography (wtf) signal than the wrist which has more body hair and movement which can disrupt with measurements. Makes sense why my readings are always a bit off.

The finger also has a dense capillary network and multiple small arteries near the surface which makes it ideal for detecting blood volume changes. 

Overall the Oura Ring 4 is said to have the best sleep tracking available in a wearable device, it provides a comprehensive view of wellness through its readiness score and other metrics that can help understand how sleep, stress and activity affect you. For people who dislike bulk wearables the rings discreet, comfortable and lightweight design makes it a great alternative to a smartwatch for wearability, especially whilst sleeping. Even for women that are interested in fertility and pregnancy tracking the Oura offers that with Natural Cycles.

The Oura has a lot to offer in a small condensed package, it is small, minimalist and doesn't really bring attention towards itself but it is second to none with its health tracking and is regarded as the best sleep tracking ring on the market. It is true that the day begins the night before and you could be performing and living at your very best with the Oura.

For now I'm going to have to manage with my broken fitbit until the time comes where I can invest in something new. Tickets cost 59p and the draw date is the 25th November at 5pm hope to see you guys there.