Running Watches - A Guide To Choosing A Running Watch

A Guide To Running Watches

There are a number of different running watches available for runners. In fact there are so many options available that runners can have a very difficult time selecting the watch which is best for them. Most novice runners are well aware that they should be using a watch specifically designed for runners but may not have a firm understanding of which features they actually need on a watch. They may also simply not be aware of the number of options available to them. This lack of knowledge makes the runner susceptible to purchasing a running watch which either is too advanced for the runner’s needs or does not contain all of the features the runner needs to do his training. This article will provide some information on the types of running watches available and will describe how these watches can be used in an effort to help the reader to determine which types of watches are best for him and which types of watches are not worth the investment.

nike running watch The most basic type of running watch is simply one which contains a chronograph and the ability to take and record split times. Many novice runners find this type of watch to be sufficient for their training. These watches are fairly inexpensive and come in a wide assortment of colors, shapes and sizes. This type of watch enables the runner to track how long they have been running and also to record information for different portions of the workout separately. This is especially useful during interval training. Consider a runner who is alternating between jogging one quarter of a mile and sprinting one quarter of a mile. During this type of workout the jog portion is used as a recovery period and the sprint portion of the workout is where the runner is really working to develop speed. A watch which is capable of preparing splits allows the runner to record splits for each jog and each sprint so he can see how much time he was taking to recover from the sprints and also to determine how quickly he was running the sprint portions of the workout. The ability to store this information for analysis after the workout is important because it allows the runner to record this information and track his progress.

Other runners may prefer to use a watch which includes the basic features but also acts as a heart rate monitor. With this type of watch, the runner is typically required to wear a chest strap which detects the electric pulses of the heart and transmits this information to the wrist unit. The wrist unit will typically have all of the features of a basic running watch but will also have the ability to display and record information about the heart rate throughout the course of the workout. This may include the maximum and minimum heart rate, the total amount of time the runner spends within a target heart rate range and the average heart rate for different portions of the workout. This type of watch and heart rate monitor combination is ideal for runners who incorporate heart rate training into their workouts.

garmin forerunner 101 Finally, runners may wish to invest in watches which are actually considered to be wrist top computers. These watches may have all of the basic features plus the ability to determine other aspects of the workout such as speed and distance, altitude, temperature and even allows the user to download this information from the watch directly to a personal computer where the information can be incorporated into charts and graphs for further analysis.