Whether you’re trying to make your beer belly budge or train for the Olympics, a great fitness tracker can help you achieve your wellness goals in record time. Wearable exercise accessories are more popular than ever, and an increasingly crowded market makes for confused consumers. Not sure where to start? Check out our primer before you hit the online stores and see which tracker suits your needs.
Moov Now
It’s hard to believe that you can get real-time coaching and multi-functional fitness tracking for less than $60, but that’s exactly what Moov Now delivers. There’s no fancy digital display, no GPS tracking, and the features are somewhat limited, but instead you get a lightweight, breathable unit that is just as useful for swimming as it is for CrossFit.
Moov’s creators tripled the amount of sensors found in other trackers for faster, more accurate tracking and, hopefully, faster results. The biggest boon? Audio coaching that works to improve your performance even as you’re in motion.
Fitbit Charge 3
Fitbit’s portfolio of wearable trackers is always growing, but the Charge 2 is the model that’s currently everywhere. It serves as a good intro for those just beginning to embrace a healthier lifestyle, but a bevy of useful features makes this watch ideal for more experienced athletes, too. In addition to tracking heartrate, the Charge 3 also logs calories in and out, steps taken, and stairs climbed.
Catalog your workouts, calm yourself with guided breathing sessions, and see how you’re sleeping. The best part? If you’re trying to more active and less couch potato-esque, the hourly reminders to move will (hopefully) get you up and going.
Motiv Ring
Fitness trackers get fancy with the Motiv Ring, a stylish alternative to the typical athletic watch. The ring provides round-the-clock monitoring of everything from heart rate to sleep habits, activity and daily steps included. Rings are sized to order; buy Motiv, and you’ll get a ring sizing kit in the mail that you have to return before the company ships your actual ring. There’s no display on the ring itself, but a simple twist syncs data with your iPhone app (you can also set it to sync automatically).
TomTom Spark 3 Cardio + Music
TomTom offers a sport twist on wearable trackers with this watch that integrates music capabilities, and includes a pair of contoured wireless headphones so you can listen to up to 3GB of music without relying on your smartphone, Run, cycle, Jazzercise, and swim to your heart’s content—the TomTom Spark 3 is waterproof, so you can seamlessly track indoor and outdoor activities even when there’s a pool involved. A GPS feature helps track distance and speed and offers alternative routes, adding even more functionality to a watch that already logs sleep, calories burned, and other essential data.
Garmin Vivoactive 3
Meet the Rolls Royce of fitness trackers. The Garmin Vivoactive 3 tracks stress, heart rate, some running-specific metrics, and data generated by tons of activities, and thanks to high-quality materials and stylish design, it looks great doing it. A full-color screen provides easy-to-see readouts, so you can check up on your step count, stairs, or strength training stats whenever the mood strikes. Use move reminders to up your activity levels, receive smartphone notifications, and tap into smartphone capability to do everything from control podcasts to find out what’s up with the weather.