If you’ve ever been to a race, gone running, or even seen a runner somewhere, you have probably also seen nearly everyone looking intently at their wrists in stride. Perhaps you are wondering, “Do I need a Running watch to run?”

Absolutely not. All you need is a comfortable pair of shoes and the desire to put one foot in front of the other. But should you have one anyway?

Well that depends on why you’re running, if you are running jut to run, then no, just run.  All a running watch will do is make you crazy.

If you are like Adrian and I and already crazy, then you will probably want some kind of running watch.  We both like to know how fast we are going.  We use that to know if we need to speed up or slow down (because we both have specific time and pace goals in mind). I also like to know what distance I’m at.  Seeing that I have another 3 KMs to go motivates me because I know I’ve already run 12, and  I’m still feeling fresh.

Data and numbers mean something to me in terms of running and fitness. Even though running is what keeps me sane helping to manage my anxiety, I like to look back over my training data and see what I did well–and what I can do better.

A Brief Recap of My Fitness Watch Journey

I have been through many different fitness and running watches over the last twenty years.  I started by working my way through a few different  models of a  Polar Heart rate monitor.  As the title indicates I used them primarily for measuring my heart rate.  I eventually moved away from this style because I didn’t like the chest strap and bulkiness.  Next up was a Fitbit Charge which was great for measuring steps, length of activity, and calories, but over time I wanted something more.  I eventually found my stride with a Garmin.  This past Christmas Adrian got me the Garmin 245 Music which is a significant upgrade from my previous Garmin Forerunner 35.

Why did I upgrade?

The 245 Music has more advanced training features. These include:

• Training Status—whether your training has been productive; this one’s funny because it will actually say “unproductive” sometimes, which we both find kind of rude lol
• Training Effect—how your training has improved your aerobic and anaerobic fitness
• Recovery Time—how long to wait before a hard workout
• Race Predictor—predicted race times for 5k, 10k, half marathon, and marathon
• PacePro—creates a pacing plan for your races and runs, based on elevation and your goal time. You can also adjust the plan based on whether you want a positive, negative, or even split, plus whether you want to take uphill’s easy or hard.
  

  Photo Credit: Garmin.com

• The Forerunner 245 also has a few extra tracking profiles: pool swimming, strength, and indoor cycling. Which will come in handy for my next sprint triathlon.
• With twice the battery life.  The 245 gets you the same 7 days, but up to 24 hours in GPS mode!
• You can download and play music from your watch, as long as you’re connected to Bluetooth headphones or a speaker. The watch is also compatible with Spotify Premium, Amazon Music.
• You can get Audio Prompts while you run. This includes announcements during your workout on pace, speed, heart rate, lap number, lap time.
• The music version of the watch provides audio prompts directly from your watch while connected to Bluetooth headphones. Otherwise, you’ll need to have your phone with you and get the prompts from the Garmin Connect app.
• Finally, the Forerunner 245 has a pulse oximeter to measure blood oxygen saturation. This can be helpful when you sleep, or if you’re training at higher elevations.

The Bottom Line

If you are running jut to run, then no, just run and have fun!

If you want a better value watch with training metrics, the ability to track pool swimming, twice the battery life, and a music option, go with the Forerunner 245.

If you want a simpler watch that is cheaper and extremely comfortable to wear without all the bells and whistles go with the Forerunner 35 or Forerunner 45.