Smartwatches have upgraded the way we train and do life. These gadgets on our wrist have become powerful tools that whip us back into shape and sometimes become better accountability partners, than we realise. Through technology, smartwatches have been designed to clock our sleeping patterns, the steps we make and even encourage us to stop being glued to our chairs at the office, with the daily reminders that help us move more.
The Women’s Health team tried and tested the following watches, that could take your fitness levels up a notch:
1/ Suunto 5 G1
This is a GPS-equipped fitness watch with a variety of features and a long battery life that make it great for working out with. Apart from the basics, like running, cycling and weight training, the Suunto 5 will also track over 60 different workouts, including cricket, CrossFit and windsurfing. The strap is comfortable to wear and the watch is really easy to use. It’s a brilliant watch.
READ MORE: 6 Women Share The Craziest Things They’ve Done To Hit 10 000 Steps
2/ Fitbit Versa 2
The recently launched Fitbit Versa 2 is a motivating lifestyle smartwatch with a battery life of up to five days. New to the device is a microphone, which enables voice-to-text on Android phones. The Versa 2 screen display lets you play around with your clock face, as you desire. Need a moment to yourself at work? Make use of the guided breathing function to calm your nerves. Or you can hit the tar and pump up your heart rate with a Spotify playlist that stores up to 300 tunes. Monitor your sleep stages through the Fitbit App and receive a report on your sleeping stages. By downloading the app (available on Google Play and Apple), you open up a world that connects you to an online health and fitness community. No time to hit the gym? The on-screen exercises are there to keep you moving!
3/ Garmin Vivomove Style
This watch is so unassuming until you get to know it. It looks like a beautiful analogue watch, which it is as well, but once you get it on you see just how much it can do. The face turns into a digital touchscreen that lets you read messages, buy groceries with Garmin Pay and track your exercise with its wrist-based heart rate. It also has hydration tracking, advanced sleep monitoring and menstrual cycle tracking. It’s a real winner.
READ MORE: No One Would Guess This Watch Is Actually A Sophisticated Fitness Tracker
4/ Garmin fēnix 6X Pro
This watch is big, but despite its size it’s very comfortable to wear. The silicon strap adjusts easily and will fit snuggly (even if you have a small wrist). This watch is geared towards the outdoors and has some serious navigation and high-altitude tech (you know, for when you want to casually climb Mount Everest). It has a battery life of up to 21 days. The watch offers you RacePro Technology (helps keep you on pace as you run a course). If you run in the mountains, ClimbPro gives you real-time info on your current and upcoming climb, including distance, elevation and gradient. Another game-changing feature is that it can track your heart rate underwater (up to 100m), without a heart rate strap. This watch is recommended to those who are keen adventurers or those who are very serious about training (because of all the stats you can dial into).
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