Google Health app: why it is the best health app for me

I actually wanted to do a review of the Fitbit Air. Then I used the Google Health app for a few days and realized: the app is the real highlight, not the device. That’s why this is about the app. And the best news up front: you can use it on all smartphones.

Which devices feed the app with data

So far I’ve only used Samsung Health together with the Galaxy Ring, because I liked how comprehensive and clear it was. Then I bought a Fitbit Air. It costs €99 and lasts 7 days, and I was also curious. Since Google bought Fitbit, there is a large selection of devices for the app. You can use other Fitbit models, but also Google devices like the Pixel smartwatches.

Setup with Gemini

Setup runs through the AI assistant Gemini. You enter your age, height, weight, known illnesses, complaints and medications. That is very private information. I have no problem with that. The more the assistant knows about you, the better the whole thing works.

The home screen and the personal assistant

At the top, the app shows sleep, movement, steps and more graphically. Below that, you’re in contact with your AI assistant. It puts all the information in relation to each other. I haven’t seen that anywhere else, and it thrills me.

An example from my everyday life: I have an SI joint blockage in my hip from all the sitting at my desk. Every day, the assistant makes me suggestions for small workouts and exercises to challenge or go easy on the joint. That has really helped me over the last few weeks.

The assistant takes into account everything the device on your wrist records:

• Activities like running or workouts, which you can also adjust afterward
• Sleep and movement
• Pulse and heart rate variability
• The cycle: the AI told me I’m in the luteal phase and advised me to eat enough protein

Nutrition, fitness and health

You can set weight or fitness goals. For food, a photo is enough: the AI calculates calories and nutrients and tells you what and how much you can or should still eat.

Under the Fitness tab, there is a large selection of workout programs. The AI suggests exercises that suit my back. I open them directly in the app, and the Fitbit Air tracks them. Under Health, all the recorded vital signs are shown at a glance, for everyone who likes it visual. Goals and details can be changed at any time, so the assistant adapts to your circumstances.

Why this convinces me

For me, the app has become a health buddy. I look at it in the morning after exercise and in the evening, and I read summaries and recommendations. The assistant asks questions: What did you do last night that kept you up so long? Your deep sleep phase was short, your resting pulse is high, your heart rate variability is a bit low. How is your back today?

That is a big difference from Samsung Health, which isn’t interactive. There you get pretty graphs. Here you have a personal health coach that you can ask questions and that observes on its own and makes suggestions.

Important: the AI keeps pointing out that it doesn’t replace a doctor. Complaints should be taken seriously and checked out with a doctor. For everything to do with lifestyle, meaning sleep, movement and nutrition, the app can be very helpful.

What I don’t like

• In my opinion, the calorie burn calculation is always a bit too high. All the other values mostly match my Galaxy Ring.
• As a woman, I’d like a more precise and detailed display of body temperature, so I can keep track of my cycle as well as in Samsung Health. Maybe that’s still to come.

What the Google Health app costs

It isn’t free. The Premium plan for the Health app currently costs €8.99 per month. If you have a Google AI Pro plan for Gemini or cloud storage like I do, the Premium features are already included in the €21.99. A new Pixel smartwatch or a Fitbit usually comes with a free trial. With it, you can test whether the AI assistant suits you.

Verdict

I don’t want to be without the app anymore. I’m glad that with the Fitbit Air, I have a discreet way to use it.