I was reading one of Jenny’s posts last week when she was discussing a painful (though thankfully short-lived) arm injury. As part of her healing process, she wondered if she might have to switch her watch to the alternate wrist. This made me think about my own watch-wearing habits and I’m now very curious about how other people wear their watches!
Loading ...I wear my watch on my left wrist – always and forever. I feel like this is the more common orientation, but maybe I’m wrong. Does it matter if you’re right or left-handed, I wonder? (I’m right-handed; do lefties tend to wear their watches on their right wrist?)
In a similar vein, do you have a designated side of the bed? I assume most people have a standard side at home since most of us have a bedside setup unique to our habits, but how do you decide where to sleep in a hotel bed?
Loading ...I am Team Left Side. Before getting married, I was usually in a twin bed so there weren’t any sides! In grad school, I was in a double bed and did sleep on the right side but that was because of the way the room was set up – the only bedside table was on the right of the bed. But since getting married I have become exclusively “left.”
Finally, John looks at me like I have two heads because I put on socks AFTER I put on my pants. Am I unusual for doing this?
Loading ...Occasionally, I will put on socks before my pants – it makes more sense this way since things don’t tend to get bunched up like they do when I wrangle on socks after bottoms…but still. I feel weird putting on socks without pants. Is this just me? Does anyone else out there do the “sock after” technique?
Your turn. Are you Team Right or Left for watches and beds? And are you socks Before or After bottoms?
Bonus question: Are you a “righty” or a “leftie” – I’m curious how many of each I have reading here (it should be 90/10, according to statistics…)
Loading ...Header photo by Bruno van der Kraan on Unsplash
Melissa
I’m left-handed (for writing and other skilled tasks, right for sport) but I still wear my watch on my left hand. I think a lot of left-handed people are a little bit ambidextrous (more so than right-handed people) because of the way the world is set up to favour right-handed people. I’m left-side of the bed always and socks on last, usually just before I put my shoes on.
Elisabeth
Things definitely are organized for right-handers.
My husband is left-handed but being born in Portugal, they forced him to write with his right hand. Other than writing he’s very ambidextrous and throws, kicks left etc.
Suzanne
I’m a righty and wear my watch on my left wrist; my husband is a lefty and wears his watch on the right.
I put on socks however makes the most sense for my pants. 😂
Elisabeth
I think I’m with you, though sometimes I put socks on after I’ve put on leggings and it IS a nuisance. It just doesn’t feel right to do socks first and then pants!
Beckett @ Birchwood Pie
Woo hoo I’m Team Leftie and we are DOMINATING at 30% right now. And yes I wear my watch on my left hand.
Elisabeth
I’m shocked by how many lefty’s read here! Definitely more than the 10% we’d anticipate.
Interesting that you’re a lefty AND wear your watch on your left hand…
mbmom11
Team leftie forever! Watch on right, but I do use right hand for throwing and other activities. (Living in a right handed world!) I married a leftie, and all my kids are righties!
My bed side really depends on how easy it is to get up at night- I’ve been the designated night time parent for many years now. However, if my husband’s away, I will take his side of the bed for the convenience of the nightstand.
I prefer being dressed to put socks on- I dress in the bathroom usually and put socks on in the bed room later. No soggy socks that way.
Elisabeth
That’s so interesting that you married a leftie but all your kids are right-handed!
I’m with you on no soggy socks. I often pick up the bathroom in the morning and invariably the kids will have gotten water on the floor. I HATE soggy socks. Blergh.
Lisa's Yarns
Wow, there are more left-handed readers than I would have thought! I’m right handed and wear my watch on my left. I think my parents both wear their watch on their left hand so I must have mimicked them. Phil’s parents are/were both lefties so his answer would probably be “it’s complicated.” Because he learned a lot of things from lefties, he does a lot with his left – like eat, brush his teeth, use a computer mouse. The only thing I do with my left hand is deal cards! I could not do it with my right hand. It would feel sooo awkward. I wondered if one of our boys would end up left handed and so far it seems like they are both right handed! They will eat with either hand though which blows my mind! There have been times when I’ve had really painful flares in my right hand so had to eat with my left hand and it was not an easy process!
I sleep on the left in our bedroom but if we are traveling, I tend to sleep on the side w/ the most direct path to the bathroom or if only one side has a bedside stand, I sleep on that side since I have a glasses case and other items I need for bed (sleep mask and ear plugs). Phil needs nothing to sleep so he doesn’t really need a bedside stand.
I’m like you and tend to put on socks after pants, but if I am wear fitted pants/skinny jeans, I put the socks on first. It does feel awkward, though. I am usually getting dressed in the bathroom after a shower so I have to sit on a cold toilet seat to put the socks on before putting pants on and that does not feel pleasant! But it is better than pulling my (fitted) pants legs up to put socks on. If I am wearing socks w/ fitted pants/skinny jeans, it’s probably cold so that means I am wearing wool/heavier socks.
Elisabeth
That’s so interesting that even though Phil is R handed, having to L-handed parents impacted how he does things. FASCINATING.
Wow, I can’t imagine dealing cards with my left hand.
I can’t imagine needing nothing to sleep. I am white noise + eye mask forever. Now I don’t have glasses, but I always want a place to charge my watch and phone and all sorts of other things (hair ties, a book!). I could not manage without a bedside table.
In high school I knew someone who was in a car accident that permanently injured her right hand so as a teen she had to learn to write and do everything with her left hand. It was crazy and SO hard for her.
Jenny
Yep, I’m right handed and wear my watch on the left wrist (although I’m thinking of switching it on my next long run just to make sure I don’t stress that sore arm at all- I’ll report back on how that works out!)
My son is left handed and I can vouch for the fact that lefties are more ambidextrous- I’ll have to ask which wrist he wears his watch on (I’ve never noticed.)
Hmm, putting on socks before pants sounds weird for some reason! Oh and I’m glad no one has answered they “mix and match” which wrist they wear their watch- that would blow my mind.
Elisabeth
I hope your arm is feeling better and you didn’t have to go all crazy with the watch and put it on your right wrist. It almost makes me shudder just thinking about it. Why? It’s such a small difference, but I’m just so used to having a watch on my left wrist!
sarah
No watch! My own bed, so the middle! Usually no socks! Lefty!
Elisabeth
No watch?! I can’t imagine (though I did go almost a decade without a watch).
And no socks?! Do you wear shoes without socks even in the winter?!!
And I had no idea you were left-handed. Wow – there is a lot of new information to process here 🙂
NGS
I always sleep on the left side so that my left leg can sneak out of the covers if the weight is too much (this became a bit of a problem after I broke that leg a decade ago). I never wear a watch because it turns out that when you a anxiety-riddle neurotic, it is best to not have a way to track time so close. I used to schedule my life to the nearest five minutes and nearly drove myself mad. I took off my watch my sophomore year of college and never went back. When I did wear a watch, I wore it on the left wrist and I am right-handed.
Elisabeth
I went through a 3-4 year period without wearing a watch, but think I will be Team Watch again for the rest of my life. I LOVE my Apple Watch and use it for so many things (my favourite is setting a timer; I use the timer function daily). When I was in high school I couldn’t leave the house without my watch. I remember forgetting it one day and running all the way down the driveway (1/2 km) because I just could not bear the thought of not having a watch all day at school.
Amanda P.
I’ve always been told you wear your watch on your non-dominant wrist because it doesn’t get banged around as much that way. Your poll seems to be showing that, though I can’t convince my 10 year old lol
Elisabeth
This makes so much sense!
J
I don’t wear a watch anymore, but when I did, I wore it on my right wrist, and I am right handed. I started doing it that way when I was a teenager, just because I was told most people wore it on their non-dominant side, and I wanted to be different.
I sleep on the right side of the bed, but when we were in Alaska last summer, I decided to mix things up one night and slept on the left side. It was very disorienting to have my husband on the ‘wrong’ side!
I think people look ridiculous with socks on with no pants, and I don’t want to look ridiculous, even for short moments, so I put pants on first, then socks. Actually, I usually put on my socks much later, unless I’m getting ready to leave the house. I wear slippers around the house though, not barefoot. If I wore skinny jeans that were tight around the ankle, I might change my ways.
Elisabeth
Ha! This sounds like something my tween would do to “make a statement.”
I think you captured my thoughts exactly. I feel RIDICULOUS wearing sock and no pants and I don’t want to look ridiculous. I also tend to go barefoot (or in slippers/Crocs) until the last minute before leaving the house.
Emily
Socks BEFORE pants?!? That’s just bizarre unless it’s stockings or really tall socks.
I switched my watch to my right (dominant) hand when I got a tattoo on my left inner wrist. It feels natural now but took getting used to!
Elisabeth
That’s what I think – but my husband was convinced I was the odd one out. Turn out, I’m normal and he’s the crazy one – haha.
Michelle
Right-handed/ don’t wear a watch/ sleep on the left side of the bed/ socks first
It’s so fun to see how you and everyone answered!
Elisabeth
I am amazed so many people don’t wear watches. I couldn’t get through a day without my watch!!!
Doris
I’m right handed and have historically worn my watch on my left hand, but a few years ago, I started wearing a jade bracelet 24/7 which is traditionally on the left wrist to be closer to the heart. So then I started wearing my watch on my right wrist in order for the watch to not clang against the jade. It did take getting used to.
Elisabeth
I think I could switch if I have to, but imagine it would feel odd for a while!!
Lindsay
I have always put my socks on last – my entire life, I’m pretty sure! But, then I started thinking of what I take off first and I am pretty sure I take my pants off BEFORE my socks unless I am wearing my socks on the balls of my feet but not the ankle-ends, which might a quirk specific to me, haha!
Elisabeth
Yes, I usually take my pants off before my socks. Huh. I hadn’t thought of that…
Gigi
When I wear a watch (which isn’t often these days); I wear it on my left wrist. I’ve been told that as a leftie I should wear it on my right. I’ve tried that and it just doesn’t work for me.
If I am in bed, I sleep on the left side. It’s a toss up when we are away. I know at my MIL’s old house, I always slept on the right for some reason.
Socks depends on the pants I’m wearing. Skinny jeans? Socks go on first.
It’s funny you brought up the left/right handed question as I’ve just been pondering a post about the same.
Elisabeth
I don’t really wear skinny jeans or leggings very often, but I can see it making a lot more sense to do socks first with something so form-fitting around the ankles. Sometimes I wear ankle socks, too, so then it’s all moot since they’re easy to get on regardless of the taper on bottoms!
SHU
Left handed, right wrist, right side of bed!
My parents and sister are all left handed … and 0/3 of my kids are!!!
Elisabeth
I didn’t know everyone in your childhood family was left-handed! Wow. I don’t think I’ve ever heard of an entire family of lefties. I think Josh is right-handed, though? I wonder how surgeons break down in terms of handedness. Less than 10% lefties because of how most surgical tools would be designed?
Erica
I sleep on the left side of the bed, on my own left side, which means I face out of the bed and can have only my shoulders under the blanket. In hotel rooms, I might sleep on the right side of the bed due to the room set up. But then I either have to sleep on the wrong side or face inward to the Husband Heat Vortex, and neither of those are conducive to sleep.
I’m mostly a rightie but I think my 3-year-old is a budding leftie and I try to model doing things with either hand when I can.
Elisabeth
Ha! Some nights I need the Heat Vortex and then other times I need to escape – hence having and LOVING a king-sized bed.
I also sleep on my left side (well, a combo of left-side/stomach) on the left-side of the bed!
M
I don’t wear a watch anymore but when I did, I wore it on my left. I think I tried wearing it on the right a few times but since I’m a righty, I tended to bump it against things more. I’d like to wear a watch again so I’m not constantly looking at my phone just to find out what time it is and plan to wear it on my left wrist.
I sleep on the right side of the bed for as long as I can remember. The one or 2 times I got confused and thought I was sleeping on the other side of the bed at a hotel, my husband informed me that I was on the wrong side. LOL We are creature of habits, I guess!
Most of the time, I put socks on after I’ve put my pants on. I wear mostly short socks so even with leggings, I can put them on fine after I put my pants on.
Elisabeth
How is everyone not wearing watches these days?! I’m shocked!!!
M
I think the cellphone has taken the place of watches for many. At least for me — I usually had easy access to my cellphone…and when I was working (on the computer 99% of the time), there’s a clock there. Even when I couldn’t easily see the time, I could ask Siri what time it was. But now that I’m retired (4months ago), I don’t want to be taking my cellphone out to look at the time, and when it’s in my runner’s belt or in a purse, Siri couldn’t hear me so I couldn’t ask her the time. 🙂
Elisabeth
I find when I’m exercising or working in the kitchen (I guess there are clocks on the stove) that it’s VERY inconvenient to look at my phone.
Then again, until 4ish years ago I went for almost a decade without wearing a watch. I simply do not know how I managed!!! I’m so dependant on it these days.
ccr in MA
I don’t wear a watch; I use my phone to tell time. When I wore one on my wrist, it was on the left (and I’m right-handed), but for years I wore one pinned to my shirt instead. Ah, those wild college years!
Elisabeth
Pinned to your shirt! That reminds me of my mom – she was a nurse and every nurse got a pinnable watch to wear on their uniform. The only time I’ve ever seen someone wear a watch pinned to their clothes was my mom back in her nursing days!
ccr in MA
I had a Swatch that I loved, and the part where the strap connected broke, so I took the other strap off too, and threaded a safety pin through. Who knows why!
Elisabeth
Hey! It works!
Elinoora
I’m a rightie, and I wear my fitbit on the right side. I tend to get contact allergies easily, and apparently more so on the left side than the right 🤷 so I switched to wearing it in the right and got used to it. Worth it to not have hives!
Sleeping: whichever side is closest to the bathroom.
Socks: depending on what I wear, but often last because sometimes the thought of feeling socks on my feet just feels freaky.
Elisabeth
Yikes. Contact allergies are no joke. I’m so sorry you have to deal with that 🙁
Kyria @ Travel Spot
I am a righty and I wear my watch on my left. I was a sporadic watch wearer until I started running, then I wore one most days, and then they added HR and steps functions and I am a complete set of data kind of person so now I have to always wear mine. I have a friend who charges hers while she sleeps and I think, “but what about your sleep data!??” But really, when DO you charge your watch? (I do it when I am reading blogs as I am not burning too many calories, taking steps or sleeping while doing that!) I thought about the side a lot while reading through your comments and I think I wear mine on the left because it is easier to put in on with one hand with my right hand. I think if I tried to put it on my right, my left hand would be fumbling about helplessly trying to get the clasp done up. Same story with jewelry, although I now would consider either putting it on my right so I can keep my watch on.
I always sleep on the left of the bed, but like Lisa, if I am alone in a hotel and the bedside table and bathroom are both on the right I may sleep on that side so I can charge my phone and put my book somewhere. Although I may just charge my phone on the floor and put my book under my pillow… It depends. I even sleep on the left when I am sharing a tent or a bed in a hotel with a friend. Most of them either don’t care or don’t fight me!
Elisabeth
Yes! I think you are 100% right and it hadn’t crossed my mind but of course it’s so much easier to put it on the left using my dominant hand…
I charge my watch overnight. For a while I wore it while I slept to track sleep data, but I really didn’t like the feel and then it was never charged when I needed it.
John has an Oura ring and loves it, so he can get all his sleep data from that.
Anne
This is weirdly fascinating. Righty, wear my Apple Watch (LOVE) on the left. When I started wearing a watch as a kid, I put it on the right, but it got banged around too much with writing, etc., so I switched. Also, that’s where my parents wear their watches, so mimicry also supported that decision. 🙂
I sleep alone – queen sized bed – but am always on the right and don’t venture to the middle and/or left side. As a kid, I slept on the left because of nightstand placement, and it was the side closest to the door. (Oddly, the right side is further from the door in my current set up, which, hm, but whatever?)
Elisabeth
It is weirdly fascinating!
I also love my Apple Watch!
San
I am definitely a bit ambidextrous, I am right-handed (mostly), but do certain things with my left hand (eat soup) and I also wear my watch on my right hand primarily.
Elisabeth
My son is right-handed and got a new watch and prefers it on his right wrist. Really? Even looking at a watch on the right wrist looks…wrong to me. No idea why, because obviously it feels better for everyone that wears it on their R wrist.