8 exercises I can't do when I'm wearing a Galaxy or Oura Ring

There are many obvious benefits to wearing a finger-based fitness tracker, which explains why shoppers have clamored for the Samsung Galaxy Ring. However, fingers are high-contact body parts. From grabbing to pushing to pulling and lifting, it’s hard to protect smart rings from potentially damaging interactions.

I’m no Olympian, but I do foray into various fitness activities, and in my months of testing the Samsung Galaxy Ring, Oura Ring, and other smart rings, I’ve discovered that there are specific exercises that I can’t do or would rather not do while wearing them. Here they are, in no particular order, and I hope that this list helps you decide whether a smart ring is a good fit for your exercise tracking or not.

• Weightlifting: Across the web, weightlifting is the most commonly referred-to example of a workout that is best done without a smart ring. Samsung specifically warns Galaxy Ring users against wearing their ring while using machines that equip “hard bar-like objects such as weights, dumbbells, or iron bars” and cites the possibility of injury or damage to the device. In my experience, it simply hurts, and that’s enough reason to take the ring off. I also wouldn’t recommend attempting pull-ups with a ring on hand.
• Rowing: Likewise, I find machines with handlebars uncomfortable to use while wearing a smart ring. Though I doubt that a rower would damage the ring, it does pinch my skin and eventually dig into my fingers painfully. I have not felt the same discomfort on an elliptical, as you don’t need to hold the handles nearly as tight. The stair machine has also been fine, even though I often end up holding on to the handlebar for dear life by the end of my workout.
• Swimming: Both the Galaxy and Oura ring are water resistant up to 100 meters, so you can safely clock laps with either device. However, even after using both brands’ sizing kits and choosing the appropriate fits for my fingers, each has a tendency to feel precariously loose underwater. When I tried swimming with my Oura Ring 3, I spent more strokes worried about it slipping off my finger than focusing on my form or breathing. My colleague Rita feels the same way. So, while I can technically swim with a smart ring, the fear of getting done with a grueling workout only to realize I need to scour the bottom of a pool for my $300 tracker is enough to rule out this activity for me. And let’s not even talk about open-water swimming — that’s a big no.
• Surfing: For similar reasons, I also remove my smart rings for surfing. If I might lose my ring doing the backstroke in a pool, I will definitely lose it tumbling beneath a white cap. The odds of recovering it from the bottom of the blue are extremely slim. I personally wouldn’t even wear a smart ring for snorkeling or casually swimming at the beach, but again, how your ring fits will impact your own comfort level. Both Samsung and Oura rings are safe for use in salt water, though it’s recommended to rinse the device with clean water afterward.
• Stand Up Paddling (SUP): SUP has the double whammy potential of being extremely uncomfortable to do with a smart ring and also being a horrible way to lose your device in a body of water. (Even if you have great balance, the best part of paddle boarding is tipping your companions and inevitably ending up submerged as well.) Long before those shenanigans, though, my hands blister almost every time I go out, and that’s without introducing a bulky metal component on my index finger. The carbon-fiber paddle can also ding or scratch the finish of a smart ring in a similar manner to weights.
• Tennis: During the COVID-19 pandemic, I got wildly into the idea that I could learn to play tennis and have a lifelong hobby to share with my partner. It turns out he’s a really good player, and I’m really good at annoying strangers when I shank six serves in a row into their neighboring courts. Nonetheless, we still play often, and slipping my smart ring off my finger and into my racket bag is part of the routine. Any exercise that includes gripping a handle and bracing for impact isn’t especially conducive to wearing a titanium bangle on your finger. Smart rings are fine for pickleball which is mostly one-handed, as long as you wear your device on your non-dominant hand.
• Lacrosse: I know this is a niche sport, and the no-smart-ring reasoning is repetitive, but I love lacrosse so much that it deserves its own spot on this list. Like other handle-involving sports, lacrosse is significantly less comfortable with a smart ring on and can definitely lead to damaging the ring.
• Boxing: To be totally transparent, I tried boxing once, and as soon as I was lightly tapped in the face, I realized it was not the sport for me. I have, however, occasionally taken boxing classes (because bags don’t hit back), and while some smart ring users claim it’s perfectly fine to wear rings under a boxing mitt, this has not been my experience.

Beyond exercise

Personally, I also remove my smart ring when showering and doing the dishes. According to the manufacturers, this isn’t necessary, but I find both tasks more comfortable with naked hands. I also remove my ring when prepping certain foods. Rolling meatballs and hand-mixing cookie dough are two that come to mind immediately. I don’t make bread, but I watch The Great British Baking Show, and I imagine I’d take my ring off to knead dough if ever a contestant.

Some users report removing their smart ring for yard work, such as lawn mowing or gardening with a shovel. I can imagine how these chores might be uncomfortable depending on your grip and the boniness of your finger. Meanwhile, Samsung warns users that their Galaxy Ring might not work properly in close proximity to magnets. Both Oura and Samsung advise users not to wear their smart ring on the same finger or adjacent to fingers with other metal rings. Oura claims their devices are safe for saunas, hot tubs, ice baths, and cryotherapy tanks. Samsung issues more conservative warnings and urges Galaxy Ring users not to “expose it to sudden temperature changes in environments such as saunas and steam rooms.”

In other words, there are many scenarios to consider when trying to keep your smart ring safe from damage — and your hands safe from pain. Depending on your preferred workouts, it’s worth thinking through a ring’s limitations before investing in one.