When you decide to make your lifestyle healthier, you might face a lot of challenges – extra time for workouts, a healthy diet, enough sleep etc. So many things to keep on track. However, if you are wearing a heart rate monitor, there’s nothing to worry about.
Nowadays heart rate monitors are very useful gadgets – both for professional athletes and for those who are only beginning to make healthier choices. Thanks to the many functions/features they offer, it’s so much easier to take steps towards a more active life.
In this article we gathered the most popular features heart rate monitors have, as well as the most popular sport and everyday watches to choose from.
A built- in heart rate monitor
So, what is a heart rate monitor? To keep it short – it is a function that is able to read the frequency and rhythm of the watches’ owner heartbeat. A heart rate monitor is a sports watch that reads this information (heartbeats) to determine if a workout is going effectively and if it is safe for the person’s level of preparation.
The pulse is read from a wrist and it helps to follow your pulse in your daily life – both when you are moving and relaxing. This is especially useful for those whose physical preparation is at beginner’s level. By monitoring your pulse while working out, the watch will help you not to overdo.
Step counter/tracker
Every gadget has an option to count steps now, however, we don’t always carry our smartphones with us. It is important to have an accuracy when it comes to determining your activity – if you know exactly how steps you have walked, you will improve your self-esteem and set new goals.
There is no right amount of steps that you should walk every day. Some people say it is 6000 steps, however, others say that the minimum should be 10’000 steps You should keep in mind that you should focus on how you feel rather than focusing on goals that can be measured in numbers. It is especially true when you are just starting to be more active.
Sleep tracker
A healthy and sufficient sleep plays a big role when it comes to wellbeing. Everyday heart rate monitors have a built-in sleep tracker that records time you spend sleeping. It also assesses the quality of sleep – when you wake up, you can immediately check your sleep report. The watch records both the time spent sleeping and the movements you have done.
When we are in the stage of deep sleep, our bodies are in a state of paralysis and are not moving. That way a body can fully rest and restore the energy lost during daytime. In long-term, sleep monitoring can be very useful – it can help to solve various problems, such as sleep disorders.
Counting burned calories
Every sport watch offers to count calories burned. By entering the activities and steps walked during daytime, the watch will show you exactly how many calories you have burned. This data is collected alongside the other features mentioned before – for example – a heart rate. Plus, during a day, you will be surprised how many calories a long walk alone can actually burn.
Stress monitoring and relaxation timer
Just like sleep, stress plays a huge role in our well-being. Sports watches offer a feature that monitors stress. It is mainly based on breathing. By checking how smooth your inhales and exhales are, the watch will determine your stress level. In case of an increased stress level, the watch will activate the relaxation timer, so you know that you have to stop and relax a bit.
Recording of physical fitness
Most everyday sports watches offer a feature that calculates your VO2 max – your maximum oxygen consumption. That way the watch determines level of physical preparation of the watches’ owner. The device also determines your fitness age that can differ from your actual age. Fitness age shows how strong and resilient you are. With the help of this reading, you can compare your state of fitness with a fitness level that of an average of your age.
This feature is useful, and it is worth to keep an eye on it during the development of your fitness journey. The main goal is to reduce your fitness age. Thus, this feature works as healthy competition with yourself.
Connection with smartphones
Many sport watches can be connected to smartphones. You do not have to worry to miss a message or a notification, while you work out. All the data from your mobile phone is transmitted to your watch so you can move freely. Convenient and useful.
Which watches to choose?
There are many kinds of watches to choose from, depending on your needs and lifestyles. Two of the best choices for everyday life is a sports watch or a smartwatch.
Sports watches
One of the great choices are sports watches. They are mainly meant for working out and have many useful built-in features, including GPS and fitness animations. However, every watch has its own features that you should read through carefully before ordering one.
Garmin is one of the leading manufacturers of GPS technology – both in navigation and sports. That is why Garmin watches are guaranteed as a good choice for a more active lifestyle.
Garmin Vivoactive 4
Garmin Vivoactive 4 features a 1.3-inch 260 x 260 transflective MIP screen. This screen emits light, therefore you can easily see the display even in a low-lighted room. It doesn’t use much power – despite the content being displayed 24/7.
Garmin Vivoactive 4 is resistant to water, has Gorilla Glass 3 screen protection, features exercise tracking, with full GPS, has on-watch music streaming and stacks of stats. It’s a great watch for those who would like to follow their workout routine, especially if it’s happening outdoors.
Polar Vantage V2
Light, elegant, multifunctional – that’s Polar Vantage V2 for you. It features training and recovery insights, music controls, 130 sport modes, optical heart-rate tracking and GPS routing. You can set your daily activity goals, which can motivate to move more. It also has the Polar Flow app – you can see and analyze your progress easily.
Polar Vantage V2 is definetely focused on sports. It doesn’t offer much else, for example, you can’t use this watch for payments. However, if you’re looking for a great fitness “companion” – Polar Vantage V2 won’t let you down.
Phone manufacturers smartwatches
Often phone manufacturer’s smartwatch looks more elegant and suitable for everyday life. When it comes to features and quality – they are similar, therefore this option is also quite advantageous. Smartwatches can be connected with smartphones, therefore you won’t ever miss a message or a notification. If that is important to you, then a smartwatch is the right choice.
iWatch 6
Featuring Apple’s significant look – squarish design with rounded corners – iWatch 6 has a lot to offer. The Series 6 is available in red hues, navy blue, space gray, gold and silver. The strap is changeable; therefore you can freshen up the look when you want to and never get bored with it.
iWatch 6 has a lot to put on the table – it measures blood oxygen saturation (Sp02) on demand; has always-on altimeter for real-time elevation tracking; wrist-down screen brightness is improved. WatchOS7 adds a handwashing countdown timer and sleep tracking. Improved, faster processor, wide third-party app selection. However, the battery life is only slightly improved, and the price is quite high. But keeping all the things iWatch 6 offers, it’s worth to pay for.
Samsung Galaxy Watch
Stylish from the outside and impressive from the inside – Samsung Galaxy Watch is a very reliable option. Its biggest advantage is its battery – it lasts up to four days. It has a stainless-steel case and stylized bezel. The bezel rotates to cycle through the many options on-screen menu has.
It offers 39 sport modes, an accurate sleep tracker and waterproofness. You can change ‘the look’ by changing the strap – colours available are: onyx black, deep ocean blue and basalt grey. The screen is easy to see even when running outside. There are 60,000 watch faces to choose from and you can also use Spotify offline playlists. It works the best with Samsung phones (or any other android); however, it will lack many options (such as calls, messaging, email) with iPhones.