Honest Oura Ring Review 2024-I tried it for 90 days

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Have you seen people in the wellness community wear those sleek-looking rings that supposedly are health trackers? Let me introduce you to the Oura Ring!

Have you been looking for an in-depth Oura Ring Review?

As an RN, I know the important role sleep plays in our health, and how detrimental it can be when we are not getting enough. After becoming an Integrated Health Practitioner though, I learned more about the important phases of sleep that are required for our body to heal and restore at night that most people still need to improve. This Oura Ring Review will be an in-depth review of the device and how it can help your sleep and overall health.

**Disclaimer-nothing in this blog post should be taken as medical advice just my own personal experience

Taylor(The Clean Living Nurse) is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.

 After having my fourth baby and about 5 months in, I was actually sleeping pretty well (or so I thought) but I wanted to take my health and sleep to the next level, so I decided to go all in and try out the Oura Ring for a sleep tracker. I have utilized a fitness tracker before, but I had never really used anything to check out my sleep and my sleep stages. This in-depth Oura Ring Review will cover all the bases!

What is the Oura Ring?

The Oura Ring is a ring that you wear preferably on your index finger or middle finger that tracks your body metrics. It syncs with a mobile app that is compatible for both Apple and Android.  It syncs with 40 apps including Apple Health, Google Health Connect, Natural Cycles, Flo, Strava, & more. The app then provides personalized recommendations based on the user’s insights. Not only does Oura Ring track your individual sleep metrics, but it also tracks your activity and readiness. Let’s dive a little deeper into each of these categories.

Sleep score

Every morning when you wake up, you will go to your Oura app on your phone and open up the app. It will immediately begin running your sleep and readiness scores. Your sleep score will pop up. You will get your total sleep score for the night. 

0-59- Pay attention 

60-69- Fair

70-84- Good

85-100- Optimal

You will notice a little “crown” next to your sleep score if you reach the optimal level.

Total sleep time, time in bed, sleep efficiency, and resting heart rate will all be shown as well. Total Sleep reflects the amount of time spent in all stages of sleep. Light, REM, and deep sleep. 

Sleep efficiency refers to the percentage of time that was spent asleep compared to awake in bed. In adults, a score of 85% and above is a sign of peaceful and uninterrupted sleep.

Restlessness (this is an area I am ALWAYS in the red) tracks the amount of times you wake up, and excessive movement. I account for my terrible restlessness scores mostly to the fact that I have a restless 9 months old.

REM sleep– otherwise known as “rapid eye movement” is typically where you will dream. This study states that on a typical night, a person can cycle through REM 4-5 times. REM is important in re-energizing your mind and body. The Sleep Foundation states that the average adult needs about 2 hours of REM sleep each night as it also plays a role in memory consolidation, emotional processing and brain development.

Deep Sleep– this is considered the most restorative and rejuvenating sleep stage. During this stage blood pressure drops, and heart and breathing rates begin to steady. During this state of sleep muscles grow and repair, toxins are pushed out of the body by the brain, and immune system gets a rejuvenation. Adults should aim for between 1-1.5 hours of deep sleep per night.

Latency– Sleep latency is the amount of time it takes to fall asleep. A good goal of latency is to fall asleep within 15-20 minutes of lying down.

Timing– this is the amount of time the person was asleep. For optimal timing, the midpoint of the night’s sleep should fall between midnight and 3 am.

Details– Oura Ring will show all your sleep details on a graph from the previous night. It will show the amount of time asleep and then colored blocks on a graph showing time periods you were awake, the amount of time spent in REM, the amount of time in light sleep and the amount of time in deep sleep. You will notice that it will show the amount of time in bed might be 9 hours, but the amount of time spent asleep was only 7 hours. Pretty crazy!

Oxygen Saturation- It will give you a percentage of your average blood oxygen levels from the previous night. A good reading is between 95-100%

Lowest heart rate– this is measured by detecting changes in your blood pulse volume through infrared PPG sensors found inside your ring. Why is this important? Oura ring helps to establish an individualized baseline so you can begin to notice when something is off. The resting heart rate provides a snapshot of sleep quality, recovery, stress response, activity level and overall health. Lower resting heart rates can actually be good signs of health as your body and heart aren’t working overtime to do the main bodily functions it needs to do. Oura will give you a snapshot of what your lowest heart rate was the night before.

Average HRV– HRV stands for “heart rate variability” According to the Cleveland Clinic, heart rate variability is:

“Heart rate variability is where the amount of time between your heartbeats fluctuates slightly. Even though these fluctuations are undetectable except with specialized devices, they can still indicate current or future health problems, including heart conditions and mental health issues like anxiety and depression.”

Oura will give your average HRV from the night, and on the readiness score of the day, it will give you a rating of your HRV balance that compares your 2-week heart rate variability trend to your 3-month average.

Readiness Score

Along with a nightly sleep score, Oura ring will give you a “readiness score” for your day ahead calculated from your sleep score. Readiness score will show your body temperature throughout the night, respiratory rate, all of your heart rate scores again from sleep, and a few other measurements. Variety in readiness scores is positive due to the fact that it demonstrates you are taking on healthy amounts of stress.

0-59- Pay attention

60-69- Fair- you could benefit from prioritizing rest and recovery

70-84 Good

85-100 Optimal- you are ready to take on the day and new challenges!

Sleep balance– it will give you a sleep balance range over the past two weeks that will show if your sleep numbers have been balanced between 7-9 hours

Sleep regularity– Your sleep regularity will tell you how regularly you have slept over the past 2 weeks. Checking both your bedtimes and wake times it will show if you’ve been consistent with keeping a regular sleep schedule.

Previous day activity– This will account for your activity on the previous day. Aiming for optimal activity the previous day is key to knowing that you have a good balance of activity and rest. A high amount of inactivity or excessive activity can lead to a drop in the readiness score.

Activity balance– this is a measurement of how your activity levels over the past few days is affecting your readiness score. A goal is to have consistent activity levels throughout each day to reach a good balance.

What Exactly does the Oura Ring do?

The Oura ring does everything from tracking sleep data, activity scores, readiness tracking, health metrics, and resilience scores. It can track a woman’s cycle to help prevent pregnancy, plan pregnancy, or simply just track your cycle. 

Oura ring will track activity steps, total calorie burn, and walking equivalency, and give you an overall activity score as well.

Cycle Tracker

If you are interested in using the fertility menstrual cycle tracker, it is available through the natural cycles app through the Oura Ring app. Subscription plans start at $14.99 per month. I think this is a great price for natural cycle tracking.

Rest mode

You can choose to activate “rest mode” on your Oura Ring app. This is designed for days when rest due to illness, jet lag, or other stressors need to take place. This means your activity goal, score and all related contributors will be muted so that you can recover properly.

Circles

You can choose to add other Oura Ring wearers such as family and friends to your “circles.” I have my husband in my circle so I can view his stats and scores from the previous night and he can view mine. This is cool because it allows me to see if he might be struggling today if his scores aren’t ideal and I can check in with him to see if he needs anything to help him recover today.

How does Oura Ring Sizing Work?

The cool thing about Oura Ring, is you can purchase a Oura Ring size kit for $10 on Amazon and then Amazon will give you $10 towards your future purchase of Oura Ring. This is necessary so you can choose which size fits your finger best. As stated before, it’s recommended to wear the ring on either your pointer finger or middle finger. It is recommended to try the size you wish to wear for at least 24 hours. You want the ring to feel comfortable but not loose. I have to admit, when I first tried on the ring and wore it it felt super weird and almost uncomfortable. I have worn it now for over 90 days though now and it feels completely normal to me.

How accurate is the Oura Ring?

According to Oura’s validation study, it shows that Oura’s HRV measurements are 98.4% accurate when compared to an echocardiogram.

Since the ring measures directly from arteries in your fingers, rather than surface capillaries on your wrist like watch trackers, the Oura Ring can capture the signal as it leaves the heart.

Since I bought the Oura Ring to measure my sleep scores, I don’t have a solid opinion on the activity tracker. It seems to be pretty consistent with what measures on my Apple watch. If you are only looking for an activity tracker though, the Oura Ring probably isn’t for you as there are better fitness trackers out there made specifically for that.

Does Oura Ring Have a Monthly Fee?

You will get the first month free to use the metrics on the Oura Ring app, and then after that it is $5.99 per month.

Can I use Oura Ring without a Subscription?

Yes, you can cancel the monthly subscription at any time, you just will not have access to the full range of benefits and in-depth insights. If you choose to not have the membership, you will only get access to sleep scores, activity goals, and readiness.

What Comes with The Oura Ring?

The ring, a portable, sleek charger that doesn’t take up much room at all which I appreciate very much!

My Personal Oura Ring Review

After purchasing the Oura Ring over 90 days ago, I have to say that I am very impressed with the Oura Ring. Normally I buy something like an Apple watch or Fitbit or something of the sort having high expectations and then I get somewhat disappointed.

I am very impressed though with the sleep tracking metrics. I like that it is not bulky or anything like a watch can sometimes be. It’s also very trendy looking in my opinion with a sleep minimalist look. I got the silver color, but they also have four other colors:  black, gold, rose gold, and titanium. The gold and the rose gold are at a more expensive price point.  

I love that the charge lasts so long too. I can wear mine for about 4 days without needing to charge it. It charges very quickly and efficiently as well. I loved the sizing kit so that you can order the correct size. It is lightweight and very durable. It goes through a lot of work with this mom of 4! My favorite feature is the sleep score, I think it’s so fascinating to see what score you have compared to how you really feel! I love that the app is super easy to use as well.

If you are looking to help your sleep, check out my post on Mary Ruth’s Organics Nighttime Multi-Mineral supplement here

I think the biggest takeaway I have gotten from Oura Ring is that I am more cognizant of my body and how it reacts to the stressors of day-to-day life. Before using Oura Ring, I would have never prioritized rest on days when my readiness showed off as I might not have noticed it as much. 

Is Oura Ring Waterproof?

It is water resistant up to 100 meters, so you can shower with it and not have to worry about getting it wet.

What are the two different styles?

The Oura Rings has two different styles: heritage and horizon. The only difference I could find on the two different models is that the heritage has a distinctive flat top and the horizon is completely round. I have the heritage version.

What does it cost?

At the time of this blog post, the Oura Ring runs anywhere between $299 up to $549 on Amazon.

Does Oura Ring emit EMFs?

Like any device, unless the Oura Ring is put on airplane mode, it will be emitting EMFs. According to the Oura Ring Website: 

“The Bluetooth signal from your Oura Ring is only active during a small portion of each day (well below 1%!).” 

Bluetooth transmissions are disabled when you are sleeping, that is pretty amazing!

How is the Oura Ring different than Apple Health?

The Oura Ring specializes more in sleep tracking and readiness while Apple Health focuses more on health and fitness tracking

FSA/HSA Eligible

What better way to spend those HSA/FSA dollars on than this awesome sleep and health tracker!  Oura Ring and additional chargers are eligible.

Cons of the Oura Ring

I honestly could not come up with any cons for my Oura Ring Review. Some things I saw people writing about that they thought were of disadvantage are: 

• If you use barbells working out, it might get in the way as opposed to a watch
• It is an Investment around $300
• May Develop scratches after daily use
• If you are trying to avoid EMFs and only use airplane mode, you must dock the ring first on the charger and then take it off Bluetooth. It will transmit the date from 7 days.

Is Oura Ring worth it?

Absolutely! Like I said previously, I am used to buying “techie” gadgets that are all the rage just to get bored with them in a couple of months. I think the Oura Ring is a standout product in the fact that it tracks sleep and health metrics. The fact that it tracks HRV rate is super impressive to me as a nurse! I think so many people could benefit from this tracker because it gives so much insight into the health of the person. The insight into how my body is responding to stressors is great and the app gives you recommendations on how to approve.

I hope this Oura Ring Review was helpful! Be sure to let me know your thoughts on the Oura Ring!