SI Swim Model Ellie Thumann Tracks Her Screen Time For 1 Chaotic Week
The 23-year-old shares all her behind-the-screen moments.
In Chronically Online, Elite Daily asks people to get real about their phone habits by tracking their screen time over seven days. This week, Sports Illustrated model and content creator Ellie Thumann shares the apps she used the most during a busy week of traveling, capturing content, and watching F1.
Models and content creators seem to have pretty charmed lives. It’s easy to envy their frequent getaways, photo shoots, and PR gifting, but it’s not all glitz and glamour (even if it mostly *is*). Behind the scenes, there are plenty of long travel days, chaotic schedules, and content mishaps — like sudden rainstorms. For Ellie Thumann, a content creator who also models for Victoria’s Secret and Sports Illustrated, her day-to-day life is a bit of a balancing act.
Thumann has been making content since she first posted on YouTube back in 2014. Eleven years later, the now 23-year-old has over 2 million subscribers on the platform, where she shares vlogs about her latest adventures. But content creation is not her only focus. Thumann has also found success as a model. Back in 2023, Thumann made her Sports Illustrated Swimsuit debut. This year, she’s celebrating her third SI feature, which went live on May 13.
In the weeks ahead of the SI Swim issue, Thumann gives Elite Daily a peek inside her phone — tracking her daily screen time and the apps she uses most during a hectic week of traveling and attending F1.
Occupation: Model, content creator.
Age: 23.
Location: Charleston, South Carolina.
Weekly Average (April 27-May 3): 8 hours, 6 minutes.
Day 1: Enjoying A Bachelorette Cruise
I spent the weekend on a cruise ship in Florida for my best friend’s bachelorette. On Sunday, I spent a lot of time lying by the pool, exploring the boat, and helping the bride take all of her pictures. (I also finished up a couple of emails, but that was less exciting.)
When I’m lying out, I typically listen to my favorite Taylor Swift songs on repeat or a good podcast. But with all the people around, I was not reaching for my headphones as much.
Most Used Apps: Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok.
Screen Time: 6 hours, 26 minutes.
Day 2: Dealing With Flight Delays & Heading Home
Flying back to Charleston on Monday, I ended up having a longer travel day than expected. I spent a good chunk of the day on my phone: booking flights, coordinating my schedule, and scrolling on Instagram and TikTok while I waited for the plane.
To keep my doom-scrolling to a minimum, I went back to my TikTok folders where I try to save inspirational videos about travel, cooking, and feel-good quotes. It always helps me pull myself out of that spiral when I’m stuck or stressed.
Most Used Apps: Instagram, TikTok, Messages.
Screen Time: 10 hours, 12 minutes.
Day 3: Hanging Out With My Mom & Catching Up On Work
On Tuesday, my mom was in town all the way from Arizona, so we spent most of the day together. We had some much-needed quality time and kept busy by walking around town and catching up.
I also made a point to finish some work — content and emails — that had piled up from my trip. Whenever I’m home in Charleston, I love tuning into my country playlist, so that played in the background most of the day. My favorite artists on it right now are definitely Kelsea Ballerini and Megan Moroney.
Most Used Apps: Instagram, TikTok, Messages.
Screen Time: 4 hours, 40 minutes.
Day 4: Getting My Hair Done For Hours
I spent so much of the day getting my hair done. I kept myself busy by scrolling while I got my highlights. I really want to start bringing a book for my long days at the salon, but I forgot it at home. Right now, I keep coming back to 101 Quotes to Live By. I like that you don’t have to read it page by page, but you can skip around and find things that resonate with you in the moment.
Most Used Apps: Messages, Instagram, TikTok.
Screen Time: 7 hours, 58 minutes.
Day 5: Traveling To Miami & Hitting The Town
Another travel day. This time, I was headed back to Florida for F1 Weekend in Miami. While waiting at the airport, I caught up on Farmer Wants A Wife, which I cannot stop watching.
During my flight, I tried to map out my schedule for May. I have seven trips coming up, so I had a lot of logistics to coordinate. I’m a type A traveler: I always tend to hyper-fixate on my itinerary and plan out every detail in my Notes app — sometimes I can go a little overboard, but I like to be organized.
After landing, I started getting ready for the two events I had on deck: one for Roberto Cavalli and another for Sports Illustrated.
Most Used Apps: TikTok, Messages, Instagram.
Screen Time: 10 hours, 40 minutes.
Day 6: Soaking In The Miami Sun
I had the morning and afternoon to myself in Miami, which I made the most of by going on a 10-mile walk. While I explored, I alternated between listening to music (more Kelsea and Taylor) and podcasts.
Right now, I’m really into The Mel Robbins Podcast. I love her. I also listened to the latest episode of The Rebecca Leigh Podcast. Her voice is so soothing, and I love her advice for keeping a positive mindset. I typically struggle with that, especially when my schedule gets super chaotic, so it really resonated.
Most Used Apps: Instagram, TikTok, Messages.
Screen Time: 7 hours, 47 minutes.
Day 7: Attending The F1 Race
I had the opportunity to watch the F1 race during my trip, but the weather did not necessarily cooperate. I spent the day running from the sporadic rainstorms and battling the on-and-off Miami heat.
When the weather allowed, I created content for the brand I was in town with: Nowadays, a THC drink. All in all, a super fun day despite the storms.
Most Used Apps: Messages, Instagram, TikTok.
Screen Time: 8 hours, 58 minutes.
Overall: I Want To Start Hanging Up & Hanging Out
Tracking my screen time definitely put into perspective how heavily I rely on my phone — not only for work but also for pleasure and basic communication. I never really thought about how much time I subconsciously spend plugged in. But this proved that even when I’m outside, thinking I’m enjoying fresh air, I still tend to fixate on my phone in some capacity. I even caught myself doom-scrolling while I was tanning on the bachelorette trip!
In an ideal world, I would love to get my screen time down — if nothing else, I’m hoping that I can spend less time on those apps I’m on most often. Hopefully, this experience will help me hold myself more accountable and *actually* unplug from time to time.
This diary has been edited and condensed for clarity.
