So, Why Should I Invest In A Running Watch?
Until recently, stopwatches were the main tool in tracking fitness. Athletes and fitness enthusiasts had to use stopwatches to chart their progress on graphs. That sounds like too much work that needs a lot of attention. Accuracy is also not guaranteed as you may not always remember to start and stop the stopwatch at the right time. Technology has, however, advanced and done away with the challenges of keeping tabs with our fitness progress. Nowadays, anyone can, with the aid of some gadgets, monitor their fitness activity and be able to adjust as appropriate. One gadget that has become popular among athletes and fitness enthusiasts is the running watch. Many beginner runners quickly get to the point where they ask, “Why should I invest in a running watch?
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I Don’t Need To Spend All That Money For Bells And Whistles… And Besides, I’ve Got My Phone!!!
Most people that run for fun or just to keep fit may have used a mobile app on their smartphone to track their running at some point. Although the mobile apps may function okay, they have their downside. They may lack the capacity for accurate capture of data as you go about exercising. The size of the smartphones is also a concern, as you would not want to be running around with a bulky gadget in your pockets. The challenges of using smartphones to track fitness progress have seen an increase in popularity for running watches.
Typically, a running watch performs three basic functions. It tracks your activity, measures your distance and alerts you when you have activity on your smartphone. Evidently, there are some functions that a running watch performs, which a smartphone may not aptly perform. For example, it may not capture your heart rate, elevation gains, cadence among others.
Different running watches serve different purposes. Each type of running watch has one function where it performs best. Some of the major brands in the current running watch market are Timex Ironman, Garmin, and G-shock. While the best running watches offer all-in-one solutions, they still have limitations in some areas. That is because their initial design focused on one key area and they are trying to improve on the other areas with new models.
There Are Many Ways To Meet My Needs
Most people that run casually may not see the need for a running watch. If you are one, you probably feel that the running watches are an unnecessary cost. You may feel that you are doing fine with whatever you have. However, a running watch offers more that could be helpful in your day-to-day fitness activity. It offers more flexibility and allows you to track your activity with less effort. The watches are barely noticeable on your wrist, unlike a bulky smartphone that would be slapping against you in your pockets as you run about. The running watch allows you to leave your phone at home or in your car as you focus on your run.
Avid runners tracking by phone will notice that it gets challenging to access functions of the phone while running. The screen becomes unresponsive to your sweaty hands as you jog and you may not be able to monitor your pace. There is also the risk of dropping the phone through your sweaty fingers as you fumble to check your pace. With a running watch, you do not have to go through all that. You can easily look at your wrist to check your pace without breaking the pace. There are also buttons for ease of access to different functions. The watch would therefore improve the consistency in your pace.
I Can Sense You’re Changing Your Mind
If you are still debating on whether you need to invest in a running watch, then you need to consider what running watches do and the benefits thereof. First, as I have already mentioned, a running watch would relieve you of the need to carry your phone. Other than being cumbersome, your phone can also be a distraction. For example, running with a phone may tempt you to listen to music, which can take your attention as you may have to stop or slow down from time to time to change the music. A running watch helps you avoid such distractions. Some running watches do, however, allow you to play music as you run.
Modern Running Watches Are So Much More Than Clocks
The best running watches are designed to record data on your activity. They monitor and collect data on your heart rate, pace, distance, elevation as well as where you ran the fastest. The best running watches GPS also show where you have been, allowing you to map out your runs and activity. You can later access the data recorded by the watch for analysis, helping you adjust your activity to align with your goals. The data is accessible via the watch’s screen or by connecting it to your phone using designated apps.
The best GPS running watches also have social sharing functions. As you go on your run, you can enjoy social media connectivity, allowing you to share your runs. The social media connectivity also allows live tracking. Your friends and family can easily see where you are at any moment during your run. Other than the social aspect of this feature, it can also enhance your safety as it can be used to track you in case you get into trouble.
For elite runners and professional athletes, running watches can be very helpful. The need to constantly check your heart rate, your pace and other aspects during the run is important during an athlete’s training. The running watch helps capture all this data, which the athlete can use to adjust their training regimes. Some of the best running watches GPS offer advice on recovery. That helps runners know how their bodies recover as they train and condition their bodies at different levels of fitness.
It Makes Sense!!! GPS Running Smartwatches Are A Great Addition To Your Running Journey
We often resist change, especially when there is a cost attached to it. It is thus understandable that people would still feel that they do not need a running watch for their fitness activity. However, a running watch is worth the investment. While a phone may offer some of the functions for monitoring your fitness activity, it may not capture the data accurately and is cumbersome. It may also not have some of the more advanced features of a running watch. Maybe getting a running watch may not be a bad idea after all.
Wow Kerry, you’re really good at convincing people! You got me sold onto GPS running smartwatches! GPS is good in case I get lost, which is so typical of me. I also particularly need one which sends me an alert signal when I’ve been inactive for too many hours, sitting in front of the computer, haha. Thanks for this very persuasive article, I will be looking out for any reviews that you may be writing on running watches.
Hi Joo, and thanks for visiting us. Glad that we could help out with some info for you. Be sure to visit back soon and see our Best of Garmin Watches for 2020 article – to be published very soon.
Thank you for this info! My husband is an avid runner and he’s invested in several Garmin watches. He started off with just an Apple watch and said real runners need Garmin watches…lol! Your post was insightful.
Hi Dana, Thanks for the comment and for the visit. I think the apple watches are great! And so many people are very used to their apps, setup, and look and feel of them. However, I’m in the same camp as your husband: I love my Garmin running specific watch because of all of it’s running plug in features. There is something for everyone, but I see quite a few folks out there on the road that still use their favorite running watch.
Thanks and please stop in again to check out our newer blog entries,
Regards,
Kerry B.
Some great advice here, especially the difference when comparing to my phone tracking. I have often wondered about that. Thanks for sharing, Phil
Hi Phil, Thanks for visiting. Specialized watches and more importantly specialized watch apps are being developed to help make a runners experience next-level as it pertains to running and monitoring. Although I prefer these specialized solutions, you really can’t go wrong either way if the phone meets all of your needs.
Please come back and join us again.
Regards,
Kerry
I for sure think running watches are useful. I use an apple watch, basically the same thing, but its just convenient in so many ways. Yes you are right you can use a phone, but if you have a phone its more bulky and annoying to carry. A watch is simple and light.
Hi AJ, Thanks for coming in for a view. I agree whole-heartedly, the Apple watches are a great device. There are really so many apps that can be used on your wrist now that there is something for everyone. I used to use my phone at first and thought it was great and “smart” solution, but the bulkiness of it all forced me to find the better solution, and my running watch is certainly that now.
Best Regards,
Kerry B
I myself only go for long walks, I don’t run, mainly because of my knee problems. Still I was thinking about some kind of tracking device instead of an app on my phone. Exactly for the reasons you described here-the size, it does slap constantly against me, even though only walking. It might easily slip from my hand or even from my pocket. It is a distraction, as every now and then a notification of whatever was received arrives. I tried to train myself not to want to check it while walking, but, curiosity is sometimes stronger than my willpower. Al in all I think it would be wiser to walk without a phone, but I like to measure my distance and my pace. Thank you for this wonderful reminder.
Hello Minaher and Thank-you for checking out our site. I definitely can see you point about not “interfering” with your walks but checking in on things like time and pace. I also recognized that in today’s gadget day and age there is no shortage of possibilities to gather all kinds of information. In my opinion, this is a nice problem to have as it provides something for everybody.
Please be sure to check in again and see more of our running related info as we publish it,
Best regards,
Kerry