It doesn’t matter if you’re just starting out or if you’ve been training for a long time. If you want to improve your performance, it is worth controlling basic training parameters. A sports watch will prove to be an invaluable piece of equipment in this regard.
For several years we have been observing growing popularity of various sports gadgets. Sport watches are becoming more and more popular among athletes, both those training at the amateur and professional level. Their great advantage is the ability to measure basic training parameters. Using a sports watch you can continuously measure the duration of physical activity, the number of kilometers covered, heart rate during exercise or the estimated number of calories burnt.
In principle, it is impossible to give a universal answer to such a question. Your choice should depend on what you need to monitor your daily activity and how high a budget you have for such an investment. Smartbands, also called sports bands, are undisputedly cheaper – you can buy such a product in the basic version for about a hundred zlotys, while for a basic sports watch model you have to pay at least several times more. However, the differences in available parameters can be seen at first glance. Do you want to exercise sporadically and do not care about precise monitoring of a number of advanced training parameters? In this case, a sports armband may prove to be the optimal solution. Otherwise, it is better to opt for a sports watch. Before you make a purchase, then think about your choice. This way you will avoid many disappointments.
If the decision has already been made and you know that your target choice will be a sports watch, it is time to look at specific solutions. There are many proposals on the market – the cheapest sports watch (new or used) you can buy for a few hundred zlotys. Used models will of course be much cheaper. The more functions a watch has, the more you have to be prepared to spend. You can approach the matter in two ways. Either you define a maximum budget and look for products that fit into a given price range or you specify the specifications you are interested in and bet only on models that have the right functions.
Deciding which sports watch is best is not the easiest thing to do, especially if this is going to be your first sports gadget of this type. If you already have a favorite manufacturer, the choice will be easier. Just as photography fans are usually divided into two groups – supporters of Canon and Nikon equipment, so among athletes (professional and amateur) you can distinguish the lovers of technology signed by Garmin, Suunto or Polar.
Another issue is technical parameters. Invest in such equipment that you will use. If you only run occasionally, you will not need a watch that recognizes a dozen or so physical activities (and costs a lot, by the way). And the other way round; if your range of sport interests is very wide, you want a varied workout, you are interested in measuring various training parameters, and the more detailed training data you get, the better; then don’t save on quality. If you have a very limited budget for buying a sports watch, and you care about its wide functionality, then bet on second-hand equipment.
Some people when choosing sports watches are also guided by the appearance of individual products or additional features, such as water resistance. The quality of workmanship is also undoubtedly important – in this case attention to detail is very important, especially if you train in changing and often extreme weather conditions. The watch should be resistant not only to rain or dust, but also to sweat.
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