Smartphones keep people connected. Tablets provide computing on the go. And now wearable technology like the Fitbit watch pro- vides instant feedback and tracking of physical fitness data.

Fitbit watches were heavily advertised during the winter holiday and now several teachers are using them to help them improve their fitness.

Social studies teacher Marcy Emerick has worn her Fitbit since Christmas. She said that the best place to use it is in the gym and that can be worn all day to give people an idea of their overall fitness levels.

“The fitbit makes me feel better about myself, and its made me more conscious of my physical activity,” Emerick said.

The watch is a wireless-enabled wearable device that measures data such as the number of steps walked, calories burned and other personal activities.

“The best part is that I can track my workout separate from the calories I burn daily,” Emerick said. “The only thing that would make it better is if it injected caf- feine into my body.”

The fitbit measures sleep quality by tracking periods of restlessness as well as how long it takes for the wearer to fall asleep and how long the wearer is asleep. This is something that attracted social studies teacher Melinda Horowitz to buy one this year.

“I bought the watch because I wanted to know how much I walked at school, and if I walked enough at school I wouldn’t need to go to the gym,” she said. “I was also interested in the sleep tracker, I thought it would let me know when to go to bed and when to get up.”

A feature that the Fitbit

Charge has is that it has a display on the watch so people can see their information on their wrist.

“I used to make students walk around for me and now I like doing it myself.” Horowitz said.

The watch makes people more aware of their exercise or if they work too much or not enough.The watch also lets people compete with friends to motivate people to walk and move more.

“I would definitely recommend this to other people,” Horowitz said. “I’ve gotten a little healthier and if I want to get more healthier I need go to the gym more and eat better to keep up the good work.”

Fitbit watches can be found at locations such as Best Buy, Target, or Brookstone. Prices range from $99.99 to $249.99.