I Am My Own Tamagotchi – How the Apple Watch Took Over My Life

Chapter 1: The Tamagotchi Era – Enter the Apple Watch

If you were a 90s baby, you definitely remember Tamagotchis—those little 8-bit, black-and-white pixel pets that demanded constant attention.

They were always hungry, sad, or pooping.

A lot of pooping.

And now, I have to ask myself:

Am I the Tamagotchi now?

Because my Apple Watch reminds me to eat, drink, exercise, and sleep—all so I can, hopefully, have good poos.

At first, it felt like a fun sidekick—a little tech pet that helped me be a better, healthier, more productive human.

Until one day, it wasn’t fun anymore.

Chapter 2: The Innocent Game – 10,000 Steps and the Beginning of the Rings

Before the Apple Watch, there was my 10,000 Steps Era—100 days of walking, no excuses. No fancy tracking, just my phone and an obsessive commitment to hitting that number every single day. It started out as a challenge, then became a habit, then somewhere along the way, it changed me.

When I finally got my Apple Watch, I thought: great, now I can track even more. More data, more motivation, more ways to win.

The three rings seemed so simple.

• Move: 420 calories (what my phone said I burned from 10K steps).

• Exercise: 50 minutes.

• Stand: 10 hours.

I closed them every day. I felt accomplished. I was winning.

Until I realised...

Chapter 3: The Obsession – Cardio vs. Pilates, and the Lies My Watch Told Me

The Watch judged my workout choices.

🏃 Cardio? ✅ It loved it. High calorie burn? Praise from the Watch. Rings closing easily? Immediate dopamine hit.

🧘‍♀️ Pilates? ❌ The Watch hated it. Effort? Insanely high. Calories burned? Practically nothing.

It didn’t take long for me to start chasing calorie burn, convinced that more calories = a better workout.

Cardio vs. Pilates – What Science Says

But here’s what my Watch never told me:

🫀 Cardio (running, HIIT, cycling) improves heart health, endurance, and burns more calories—which is great, but it doesn’t mean everything.

💪 Pilates (and strength-based workouts) builds muscle, improves flexibility, and strengthens my core, meaning I burn more calories long-term even at rest.

Yet, my Watch didn’t care that Pilates was keeping me injury-free and building strength. It only cared that I burned maybe 30 calories after an hour of suffering.

And this is where the chokehold began.

I found myself choosing workouts not based on how I felt, but on what the Watch would reward me for.

I started doing more cardio, pushing for higher calorie burns, because the Watch said so.

It was no longer helping me—it was controlling me.

Chapter 4: The Chokehold – When Motivation Becomes Guilt

What started as motivation turned into pressure.

I became obsessed with closing my rings.

📉 If I didn’t, I felt guilty. 📉 If I had a rest day, my Watch would shame me. 📉 If I missed a streak, I’d feel like I’d failed.

"You’ve moved less than usual today." "You’re halfway through the day but haven’t reached half your goals." "You’ve broken your streak!"

OKAY, CHILL.

It’s one day.

I started to question everything. Was I actually getting healthier, or was I just chasing numbers?

Was I exercising for my health, or was I performing for my Watch?

I realised...

Chapter 5: Freedom – The Reminder I No Longer Listen To

Eventually, I decided:

🔹 The Watch can stay.

🔹 But I’m no longer listening to it.

Now? I use it as a reminder tool.

🔹 It tells me to stand up? I stay seated.

🔹 It tells me I haven’t moved much today? I scroll TikTok anyway.

🔹 It tells me I should sleep more? I binge-watch Netflix.

Because the real power isn’t in the Watch.

It’s in me knowing when to ignore it.

Funny enough, after breaking free from the Watch’s chokehold... I upgraded to a Hermès Apple Watch. Because, obviously, nothing says ‘I don’t take this seriously’ like dropping $$$ on a designer strap. But that’s another story.

Chapter 6: The Final Realisation – I Am My Own Tamagotchi

Honestly?

I think I’ve fully accepted my fate.

I am my own Tamagotchi now.

And the Apple Watch? It’s just my little digital owner, making sure I don’t starve, forget to move, or sit still for too long.

All I can do is hope it doesn’t let me die in a pile of digital poo.