If your fitness exploits include challenges that get a bit more wild, what you need is a fully loaded adventure watch – here’s what to look for.

what makes a good adventure watch Men's Fitness UK

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These rugged multisport watches cover all the basics like distance, pace, heart rate and general fitness measures, but on top of that you get tools and features tailored to activities that take you further from the beaten track.

Here’s what you need to look for in a good adventure tracker…

Location, Location, Location

A good adventure watch needs to let you know where you are and how far you’ve travelled with reliable precision, no matter how remote you get.

Devices that do this best track your position using three international satellite systems – GPS, Glonass and Galileo – for better global coverage, even in far-flung places.

Staying Power

A watch that drops dead mid-challenge is useless. And while sports watch battery life is improving, adventurers should choose trackers that offer low-battery expedition or ultra track modes.

These let you instantly switch off power-hungry features, like pulsing the GPS satellites less regularly when longer-lasting tracking tops up-to-the-minute location accuracy, and switching off heart rate monitoring.

Strong and Stable

If you’re adventuring right, you – and your watch – will get into scrapes. For full confidence that your chosen tracker can withstand the lumps and bumps, look for a toughened glass display and pay close attention to the IP ratings, which tell you how much protection your watch has against dust, sweat, dirt and other nasties.

Also look at the ATM water resistance ratings, which reveal whether it’s OK to hit the deep end or if you need to stay in the shallows.

Easy as ABC

The moment your exploration takes you to the mountains, you’ll need the so-called ABC sensors.

An altimeter lets you track things like elevation gain and how high you are, the barometer helps you tap into the weather, and the digital compass powers features like point-to-point and back-to-the-start navigation.

 

Words: Kieran Alger