Why gps watch

Sleep is the single most important recovery tool at your disposal. Getting enough sleep read: roughly 8 hours a night can help stave off injury, decrease stress hormones, and lower anxiety. Despite knowing this, I used to be terrible at sleeping; I have no excuse except college. Many watch models, including mine, even diagram your sleep stages every night, so you know how much deep sleep vs.

From resting to running to watching a scary movie with your significant other, your heart rate fluctuates considerably every day. These fluctuations can provide some key insights into your fitness.

Luckily, heart rate tracking is a feature of most GPS watches. Having a built-in heart rate monitor strapped to your wrist makes tracking your beats per minute a no-brainer. I used to keep a little clip-on heart rate monitor from Walmart next to my bed so I could take my resting heart rate every morning and enter it into an excel spreadsheet for my coach. I think I maybe remembered to do this three times, tops. Now, my watch does the hard work for me, and I can make sure that my recovery days are truly recovery.

Having the GPS available is awesome. As long as you can afford one, having a smartwatch is a great training tool. If numbers send you into panic mode, turn off the GPS tracking; if data makes you feel more comfortable, take advantage of all the measurements. Really, the best part about using a smartwatch is having options.

Oh, and did I mention that it holds music? Want more running tips and gear recommendations sent right to your inbox? Turn on your JavaScript to view content. Some of it you can use for personal fitness. You can also compare your hikes if you want to get a little faster climbing that hill, or reduce or increase your heart rate to the range your doctor recommended. I found this video really helpful in demonstrating some of the features:.

What is the elevation of that lake where you love to go camping? Was that hike really only five miles like the sign at the trailhead said? It felt like ten for sure! In combination with a map, this means you can navigate your way more safely in the wilderness. I studied the data from National Parks and found that around Search and Rescue operations SAR are initiated each year for those who are hiking. Fortunately, her story has a happy ending nytimes. Furthermore, if you have a modern smartphone then with the help of a couple apps, you can actually get many of the GPS features on a watch on your phone.

GPS watches definitely have a better battery life, and are meant to be as accurate as possible and have more adventure-ready features than smartphones, but smartphones can definitely be used to navigate even in extremely remote areas. Some high-end models especially triathlon watches track swims more accurately, both in the pool and outdoors. They use a combination of the accelerometer and GPS outdoors — and just the accelerometer indoors. Running usually takesd top billing. Depending on the watch, many also track swimming, skiing, and paddle activities rowing, kayaking, canoeing.

Most GPS watches available now also double as a Fitbit-style step and activity tracker. They will count steps, create daily step goals, and monitor sleep. This is another benefit of a GPS watch—you can monitor your heart rate mid-run and throughout the day. Since training at different heart rates provides different type of fitness gains, this monitoring is essential.

Now, your watch can help you be more disciplined. As is the case for my watch, an app can connect most watches to your mobile device. You can see your raw data laid out in a more user-friendly version on the app or website. This is a great way to have a running journal without having to keep one by pencil and paper. Finally, you can set up most GPS watch to receive phone notifications. This is the type of GPS watch that I have. Although I will occasionally swim or bike, my main focus is running, so I wanted to get a running watch.

These models often cater to runners and include an accelerometer so that you can get information on indoor runs. A cycling GPS watch is not going to be as fancy as a bike computer , but it will give you the option to track your rides specifically, will have a longer battery life than other GPS watches for long rides, may have music options, and might even have turn-by-turn directions.

These watches are swim-centric and focus mainly on your pool workouts. Different algorithms applied to the data also create minor discrepancies. Any extra steps you take — whether to an aid station or a pit stop in the bushes — count directly on your watch. That is, unless you pause it. By pausing your watch, you no longer receive GPS signals, so the only way to make up any distance lost when you forget to un-pause is to manually edit the activity in the app.

Furthermore, Spirent is a company who makes equipment designed to simulate conditions capable of potentially interfering with GPS devices. Obstacles like heavy foliage and skyscrapers also reduce or completely block GPS satellite signals.

This phenomenon is called multi-path, and even though there exist algorithms which try to deal with multi-path interference, it still creates errors. Experts agree the best method for avoiding interference is to run in a clear, wide-open area.

Most devices remember the last location used and therefore find you faster upon turning on.