The best fitness watches track your performance and vary your workouts - we've picked the best for every budget and ability
(Image credit: PA Images)
The best fitness watches play a key role in getting many top athletes to optimum fitness. It’s not only state-of-the-art-bib wearing footballers that can track their performance data these days. No, even the man on the street can analyse his heart rate, calories, speed and much more with the help of fitness tracking watches.
Here, we’ve analysed some of the best available that will take your training to the next level.
A friendly heart rate and fitness tracker that helps you build healthy habits
Reasons to buy
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All-Day Activity Tracking
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Sleep Tracking
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Reminders to Move
Fitbit is such a successful brand in the fitness watch sphere, it’s more or less synonymous with the industry. It’s achieved this status thanks to its sleek and reliable products that won't cost you the world. While original models simply tracked heart rate and steps taken, later evolutions offer a ludicrous array of fancy features.
Users can use the FitBit Inspire HR to analyse performance in swimming and weightlifting as well as running. The calorie counter is one of the most accurate on the market and the nifty sleep tracker also lets you know how your body is getting on when your mind is getting some well earned rest. What’s more, ir doubles up as a stylish watch that won’t look out of place in the office.
Simply put, the Fitbit Inspire HR is just a fantastic piece of kit to help trainers of all ranges and abilities.
High-tech timepiece with more than 15 built-in sports apps
Reasons to buy
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Built-in GPS, sports apps and heart rate monitor
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High-resolution colour touchscreen display
Reasons to avoid
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A little on the pricey side
The watch for those that like to vary their exercise plans. With the Garmin Vivoactive, users can track their running one day, learn new yoga techniques to recover the following day, record their swimming speeds the next and even learn new weight lifting techniques after all that.
The watch’s sleek design makes it acceptable workplace attire, meaning you never have to take it off and can remain in the zone 24/7, while an easy to use interface will have you training like a pro within minutes of taking it out of the box.
It also doubles up as a regular smart watch, meaning you can reply to text messages, create memos and receive handy notifications throughout the day. A handier piece of kit than Kevin De Bruyne’s right foot.
If you’re the kind of person that can do without all the bells and whistles and just wants something that does what it is supposed to and doesn't cost the world then this is the fitness watch for you.
Letsfit offers budget versions to rival some of the big brand designs. With this piece of kit you can still track your steps, mileage, monitor your heart rate and analyse your sleep patterns, and all at a fraction of the cost of some of the other watches on the market.
Letsfit links to apple and android phones, the accompanying mobile app is simple to use and is still just as accurate, water resistant and stylish as anything else out there.
The major downside is the battery life - just 10 hours max - meaning it’ll need to be charged once a day, but when it comes to a reliable training watch you really can’t do a whole lot better if you just want to keep it simple.
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