Reconfiguring Our Data: A Duoethnography on Chronic Health and Physical Activity through the Lens of Fitness Trackers

Does a run count if it is not logged and datafied? What about intentionally or unintentionally missing a run? Does missing a scheduled run count if it is not logged and datafied? In this paper, we grapple with these and other questions as we reflect on, discuss, and critique our interactions with our physical activity data as individuals with a chronic health condition. We describe the preliminary results of a six-week duoethnography study where we use our Garmin wearable devices – and the data collected and generated by them – as our object of study. We draw from critical and feminist perspectives on data to interrogate what is and is not captured by the data and reflect on the temporality of physical activity, data, and our chronic health conditions. We conclude by discussing three considerations on how data could be reconfigured to meaningfully account for our chronic health conditions.