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5 Best Fitness Watches For Men

Updated on September 21, 2015

The wrist heart rate monitor and smart watch

It's no secret that the next big tech gadgets to simplify our lives is going to be the smart watch, and the ones with a wrist heart rate monitor are sure to impress.

Not all smart watches are made equal, however, and some offer a ton of great fitness tools to help you get in shape. These fitness watches provide you with everything from step tracking to calorie burning to speed records to heart monitoring, making it idiot-proof to track your health goals (or remind you to start aiming for some!). On top it all this, many allow you to sync the data to your personal online account where you can track your progress and even compare with your friends.

As with any new, popular gadget, the market tends to quickly flood with options, which can make for a confusing time at the store. The best activity tracker is different for every person, but here are five of the top fitness watches for men on the market today.

Note: While all of these watches are fit for anyone who wants to get in shape and track their progress, these five tend to be popular with the guys.

Now, on to the watches!

1) Garmin VivoSmart

In a world of GPS-enabled smart phones, the guys at Garmin has found ways to stay alive. Their Garmin VivoSmart fitness watch is one of those ways. Tons of options make this one of the best heart rate monitor choices for anyone who needs to track their health, especially if you define "health" in more than just steps walked in a day.

The VivoSmart can be paired with a heart rate monitor, a bike speed sensor or even a VIRB Elite camera so you can keep track of all of your activities. Like many fitness watches, it can also monitor calls, texts, meetings and emails when synced to your Google or Apple accounts, which is nice for those of us who always like to stay connected. On top of all that, the watch can automatically sync with your online accounts when a fitness goal is met, such as number of steps taken or number of miles tracked.

One of the coolest options is the inactivity timer which vibrates the watch after one hour of inactivity, just as a friendly reminder to get up and get active! Now you have no excuse to not get up and move every once in a while. The watch is also waterproof, so feel free to hop in the pool or shower, no problem.

Despite all the tech flowing through the Garmin VivoSmart, the battery is powerful enough to last a full week without recharging. The thin, hidden style of the fitness watch makes it a great option for those who want something small and easy to manage. This way, you don't have to choose between your fave wristwatch and your new fave gadget.

Overall, if you want one of the best heart rate monitor watches with a slim design and HUGE battery power and tons of sync-ability, the Garmin VivoSmart may be for you.

Video Review

Garmin VivoSmart Photos

2) Microsoft Band

As with anything in the tech world, there is sure to be a Microsoft version. The Microsoft Band is the fitness watch from the tech superpower that features just about everything you could ever shove into a fitness watch.

One of the best heart rate monitor watch choices available today, the Band can track heart rate, steps taken, calories burned and even sleep quality (when worn overnight, of course). The company even teamed with Taylor Made (yes, the golf guys!) to integrate a golf game tracker, helping you improve your swing and lower your score. Microsoft Band also provides downloadable workouts so you can go above and beyond just keeping track of steps and speed.

On the tech side, the fitness watch provides email previews, calendar alerts, incoming call and text notifications, all on a full color screen, and a color screen is pretty rare so far in the smart watch market. A GPS allows you to keep track of where you are and map out your route, too. By the way, don't worry about phone syncing: the Band can sync with iPhone or Android, along with the Microsoft phone. Battery wise, you only get two days of power, but it's not that hard to recharge the battery every night anyway.

Overall, if you want a bluetooth heart rate monitor with tons of downloadable content, a full color screen and a way to track your golf game, the Microsoft Band is the way to go.

Video Review

Microsoft Band Photos

3) Basis Peak

So far, we have no "regular" looking watches, until now! The Basis Peak provides not only all the fun fitness stuff of the other fitness watches, but also looks like a regular sports watch, all while offering of one the best fitness tracker options around.

Tracking options include a wrist heart rate monitor, calories burned stats, step counter and a ton of sleeping info. Sleep duration, restlessness, quality of sleep, and even REM / deep sleep cycles can be recorded. This is a huge advantage, as the quality of your sleep can affect your health just as much as your waking hours workouts. If you have sleeping troubles, the Peak can help you figure out what's wrong.

The Basis Peak fitness watch can sync with iPhones 4S and newer, as well as select Androids, so be sure to check and see if your phone is on their list. Get notified of texts, calls, emails and calendar events throughout the day without even having to look at the thing. The software can integrate with Apple Health and Google Fit, making your health tracking and record keeping a cinch. Another waterproof fitness watch here, so feel free to track your swimming heart rate, or just shower with it just because you can.

Overall, the standard watch style and expansive sleep record keeping makes the Basis Peak a unique choice. If you really want the tech notifications, however, be sure that your phone will sync with it first.

Video Review

Basis Peak Photos

4) Fitbit Charge

When it comes to the fitness watch world, Fitbit is the big name. The Fitbit Charge is one of their newer watches and, much like their previous watches, it doesn't fail to impress as one of the best activity tracker watches according to thousands of happy customers.

The common areas are covered here: steps taken, distance walked or ran, calories burned. Putting themselves over the top, in my opinion, the Fitbit Charge can track stairs and even track floor climbed! This can be a great tool, especially for those who do a lot of stair exercising, or those who just wonder how many floors they have done. For those of you who want more data than steps and floors, the HR version of the watch offers a heart rate monitor as well.

Syncing to cell phones comes standard for over 150 of the most popular cell phones out there, and likely yours. Email, text, calls and calendar notifications provide up to date info on all of your favorite tech-life areas. The Fitbit charge is also one of those rare fitness watches that actually looks like a regular watch, which can be nice for those who want an inconspicuous way to track their fitness.

Overall, the biggest name in the game provides all that their competitors offer, as well as tons of syncing options and amazing stair / floor climb tracking not found anywhere else.

Video Review

Fitbit Charge Photos

5) Jawbone Up3

Quite possibly the best heart rate monitor watch of them all, the Jawbone Up3 is the ultimate tech guy's fitness watch. This one has tons of common options, as well as plenty of customization options to keep your tech excitement at a peak.

As usual, steps, distance and calories are all covered. The coolest part of the Jawbone Up3 is the fitness watch's ability to learn about your activities. It can learn if you are running, swimming, playing soccer and more, tracking your activities in the best way possible for each activity (After all, it's hard to track steps taken in the pool). Sleep quality tools include hours slept and REM tracking, providing vital data on how must rest your restful night sleep provides.

Unlike many other watches, the Jawbone can also track food, drinks, calories and nutrition info, making it the only watch on the list to help you with the other side of fitness. The smart coach integration brings personalized info to your workout and diet tracking so you know how well (or not so well) you are doing in any category. Another super powered fitness watch, the Jawbone provides a full week of juice, so no worries that the watch will run low on power before you do.

Overall, if you want the best fitness tracker with tons of customization and a sleek, thin style, the Jawbone Up3 could be your best option.

Video Review

Jawbone Up3 Photos

So which is the best fitness tracker?

Whether you want to lose weight, bulk up, or just have some friendly competition with your buds, any of these fitness watches can get you where you want to be and simplify your health goals.

Best of all, these little guys offer a constant reminder that it's time to get up and get active!

Do you own any of these fitness watches? If so, let us know what you think in the comments below! Even better, let us know if you own another one that should be on the list.

Which Is Your Favorite?

Which is the best fitness tracker in your opinion?

See results

© 2015 MikePL

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