5 Reasons to get a Fitness Watch
I’ll be honest, it was hard for me to make the switch from my metal Nixon watches to a nylon all-black fitness watch. I always thought big-faced, heavy, metal watches were the coolest, most-stylish, must-haves on the planet. However, now that I have been converted to the world of fitness watches I’m never going back! Here are some of the reasons why I recommend purchasing a fitness watch.
1. You’re more lazy than you think… well at least I am. I considered myself to be a pretty active guy. I worked out five days a week. What I failed to recognize is that despite the fact that I made it to the gym to exercise, the number of steps I took each day was much less than I thought. How many steps a day you walk can be a helpful indicator of just how active you really are. The average person has a stride length of approximately 2.1 to 2.5 feet. This means that just over 2,000 steps is equal to one mile. I recommend aiming for 10,000 steps a day (which adds up to five miles). A really insightful study from California State University showed that mood lifted in correlation with increased numbers of daily steps! A fitness watch makes tracking your steps simple, and simply tracking your steps makes you a happier, fitter person.
2. Track your successes. It feels good to see what you accomplish. I feel proud rolling into bed at night knowing I made healthy choices during the day- and the stats on my watch can back me up! “If you can measure it, you can manage it.” Technology is incredible and makes it easier than ever to measure our health. Fitness watches can now assess heart rate, quality of sleep, exercise intensity, and even stress levels! With so many health indicators at the palm of your hand, well even better, at the glance of your wrist, you will be able to easily pinpoint areas of improvement in order for you to see remarkable health results.
3. Running made easy. I recently retired my Garmin Vivoactive for the new iWatch 2. Let me tell you, I felt like I way betraying a best friend when I unstrapped my garmin… I’m being half serious here… The vivoactive introduced me to the AMAZING world of wearable fitness. The watch saved me time and made me a whole lot more active. My workouts became much more effective. I could see my pace, heart rate, and split times all on one screen. My watch knew when I was slacking in the workout and would vibrate to tell me to pick it up. That watch kept me accountable to performing my best in workouts which led me to seeing the kind of results I needed to qualify for the Boston Marathon.
4. Convenience. Every time my phone vibrates in my pocket I just glance at my watch for the notification. Having to take my phone out of my pocket for each notification- who has time for that?! First world problem, I know. But honestly, the notification feature alone saves type-A psychos, like myself, hours. So let me talk a bit about the iWatch 2. Am I glad I made the switch? Definitely. IWatch2 takes convenience to a whole new level. I used to wear a heart rate strap around my chest to sync with my Garmin Vivoactive and that is no longer necessary. Also, I step out the door for a run and NO PHONE NEEDED to track my GPS coordinates which is a huge plus! The screen is high def and I can see photo text messages clearly. MUSIC! I no longer need to pull out my phone just to hit the “next track” button or adjust the volume. I manage the music in group exercise class with my watch as a remote- which makes it extremely nice that I don’t have to run to the corner of the room to adjust the music throughout the fast-paced, sweaty class.
5. You’ll never lose your phone again! There is a feature on the watch that enables you to ping your phone. It’s embarrassing how many times I have lost my phone somewhere in my apartment and have spent sometimes hours trying to find it. You just tap the ping button on your watch and whala! its discovered in no time. One time I even lost my phone in a huge park (and the darn thing was on silent mode). I just walked around tapping the ping button on my watch until I found it. Phew!
If you’re someone who gets motivated with a new pair of running shoes, you’ll DEFINITELY get motivated with a fitness watch. Yes, fitness watches are pricey, but I have no regrets WHATSOEVER with this investment. My health means a lot to me, hopefully it does to you too, and the advanced technology in today’s fitness watches makes it more convenient than ever to shape up and reach health and fitness goals!
