Listening to your body in the age of self tracking
Who wouldn't want to be a better, fitter and more beautiful version of themselves? In a world dominated by smartwatches, fitness trackers and health apps, it's tempting to follow the trend of the Quantified Self and log almost every aspect of our lives through self tracking.
But does this really mean that we better understand ourselves?
Our watches count our steps, analyse our sleep phases, monitor our heart rate and calculate our stress levels. Fitness apps record every training session; smart scales measure our body fat. It has never been easier to collect health data about ourselves. Yet this flood of digital information reveals something quite paradoxical: the more meticulously we measure ourselves, the more difficult it becomes to actually feel our own bodies.
It sounds tempting: everything that can be measured gives us objective information. Numbers convey a sense of security, provide guidance and allow us to compare data. It's true that modern technologies can help us live healthier lives. Tracking daily activities can make us more aware of how we behave; if we see that we haven't been getting enough sleep over an extended period of time, we might know what to work on. But once data take over and we lose our self-perception, things become problematic. The Quantified Self movement proposes that true self-awareness can only be achieved through hard figures and algorithms. As a result, many people engaged in body tracking rely more on the information they receive from a device than on their own body signals. Yet our body has an astonishing capacity for self-awareness.
This doesn't mean that statistics are not helpful. On the contrary – modern medicine would not work without data. Blood tests, ultrasound scans, performance diagnostics and cardiovascular examinations offer valuable health data. Whether data are measured or not isn't the issue: it's how the information is interpreted. After all, each number tells just one part of the story. Elevated blood pressure could point to an underlying condition or simply be the result of anxiety before a check-up; unusual lab results could be of no clinical significance. Conversely, seemingly normal results can mask signs that something deeper is wrong.
Good measurements make the invisible visible. Good medicine makes what’s visible understandable.
Beyond the numbers: Body analysis at Park Igls
Modern diagnostic approaches play a central role at Park Igls Medical Spa Resort. Comprehensive lab tests, cardiological diagnostics and modern body analysis provide essential information about a person's state of health. Nevertheless, these results aren't considered an end in themselves, but instead a tool for guiding us.
One example of this is our new in-house 3D body scanner. Using high-resolution infrared technology, it scans the body and generates a three-dimensional image, which not only allows us to analyse body circumference, muscle mass and fat distribution, but also to detect asymmetric posture, for example. This, in turn, provides useful insights for physiotherapists. The advantage of this is that it allows us to objectively visualise developments over time, providing precise data which doctors and therapists can use as a starting point. The real medical work starts afterwards: assessing individual experiences and making observations during personal consultations.
This approach is a corner stone of Modern Mayr Medicine, where we get a feel for the individual – quite literally. Manual abdominal treatment has always been one of the central elements of Mayr Medicine: palpating the abdomen not only has a therapeutic effect; it can also reveal information that no lab test might show.
It is probably called 'gut feeling' for good reason.
Whilst figures tell us the facts, experience and intuition help us to understand what this information means. Therefore, measuring different types of data does not automatically mean you know more about yourself — not even in the age of the Quantified Self.
As Head Physician Peter Gartner noted in the last ParkZeit issue: "You need to take the full measure of a person." It is therefore crucial to measure the right things, to put them into a wider perspective, and to keep cultivating body awareness: listening to your body and truly feeling yourself along the way.
Some things can be measured. Others need to be felt.
Five things no wearable can measure
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whether something is right for you
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when you actually need to rest
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whether an activity is enjoyable for you
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whether you trust your body
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whether you are comfortable in your own skin.
Seeing the bigger picture
Detox Medical Check
Our Detox Medical Check consists of a comprehensive analysis of all key physiological processes of the body and brings together modern diagnostics with medical expertise. Cardiovascular examinations, an extended blood lab including hormone levels, ultrasound scans, spirometry and other medical findings deliver a holistic picture of your overall health. If needed, we can consult with one of the renowned specialists from our extensive network of consultants for a more detailed assessment.
