The 3 Health Metrics That Actually Matter

Apple watch. Oura ring. Strava. MyFitnessPal.

Does it feel like your phone's going to explode from all the stats? From all the apps?

It's information overload, and it's not necessarily helping.

Our CEO and founder Warner Jenkins used to be an obsessive stat tracker: now, he's realized most health metrics are just noise. He's spent years experimenting and validating what really matters — tapping into his MBA brain to experiment, theorize, and execute.

It's the same approach he used to heal his psoriatic arthritis and to build Nordic Wave. Here, he shares the critical daily health tracking metrics you should monitor regularly, and the fad numbers you can ignore.

The Over-Optimization Trap

Don't drown in data.

Warner will be the first to admit that he and a lot of wellness pros went a little overboard on metrics. They're overwhelmed instead of optimized. But now, the pendulum's swinging back — we're focusing on the fundamental health metrics to track, and not over-quantifying everything.

In order to thin out the pile of metrics that people pay attention to, Warner used himself as a test case and experimented — the same way he did with Nordic Wave products.

He asked: What health metrics actually matter?

No snake oil, no marketing fads. Just an analysis of different metrics and exercises, and the resulting validated solutions.

Because when you're already overworked and overbooked, simplifying your wellness stack to cover what really matters is better across the board.

And tracking your health metrics well can help you live longer.

Warner's Analysis: Health Metrics Do's and Don'ts

Health metrics to track:

• Sleep tracking: Your sleep is the foundation of every part of your health
• Heart rate variability (HRV): This metric can indicate your stress and recovery
• Temperature monitoring: This is underrated, but plays a role in early illness detection

Overrated health metrics:

• Step counting: Walking is important, but specific step counts can be pretty arbitrary
• Continuous glucose monitoring (CGM): Unless you're diabetic, this isn't particularly revealing
• Obsessive macro tracking: This is a hallmark of over-quantifying — you can eat a balanced diet without hyperfixating on food weights and hitting exact numbers

There are a lot of trendy metrics that people are keeping an eye on, but certain metrics — like blood pressure monitoring — go underwatched.

"Measuring blood pressure doesn't have the instant gratification or coolness of fitness tracking," Rishi Wadhera, MD, a cardiologist at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medicine, told Women's Health. "But it's the only way to assess the strain your blood vessels are under. Since hypertension doesn't cause symptoms, it flies below the radar, quietly damaging the pipes that deliver blood to your body and brain and increasing your risk of being blindsided by a heart attack or stroke."

A lot of wearables are looking to put more of an emphasis on blood pressure — and 52% of women/55% of men own at least one wearable. Right now, 54% of women and men track at least one health metric as well. On average, women track more health metrics than men do (3.11 metrics vs. 2.85 metrics).

When you want to optimize your health, you don't need the latest $400 CGM or obsessive macro tracking — you just need to pay attention to the fundamentals.

Focus on What Works

When you simplify, you might feel like you're falling behind: like, without a metric to pair with every single bodily function, you're leaving important information out of the full picture. Any successful professional or executive would tell you: "Focus on what works."

It's about investing your attention in the right place. Investing in yourself for the absolute best understanding of your health and smartest health metrics tracking — that's what will help you make informed decisions for your future.