Picking out that perfect gift for someone who is the “Hard to Buy For” person is always a challenge, especially during the holidays. Knowing that they are new into fitness and that you want to encourage them so that they continue well into the New Year and beyond can make your gift selection a little easier. You’ve done some internet searching and know that one thing that can help contribute to keeping that person motivated so that they continue to meet and surpass set goals is important. Being able to verify that they’ve reached that goal is made a lot easier by using a Fitness/Activity tracker. This way, there is no guesswork about whether the goals have been met, in the time you allotted for them. You have that data available right there on your smartwatch, that hopefully uploads that data into an easy to view, and possibly share an environment that can be viewed anywhere and anytime.

One such Fitness Tracker is the Garmin Vivoactive 3 GPS Smart Activity Tracker . One short statement that about sums up this tracker is that it’s the subtle smartwatch that’s built for life as well as fitness! With smart notifications, GPS, sports tracking that rivals high-end devices, an onboard payment system, that takes away the need to carry your wallet or cards in a wearable device as you train out on a mountain trail is a big plus, and you can’t deny that it has a subtle, stylish design.

The Garmin Vivoactive 3 has a wrist-based heart rate sensor, GPS tracking and a selection of built-in apps dedicated to keeping tabs on a range of sports activities, from running and indoor/outdoor cycling to skiing and snowboarding.

Although the Vivoactive 3's focus may be on fitness, this versatile wearable also has plenty of other features to shout about, including smart notifications, an onboard payment system called Garmin Pay as well as both sleep and real-time stress tracking.

We've all heard that stress can be the "bane" of society today, learning to decrease your stress, even being aware of how much stress you’re going through each day and at what times is worth a lot to help you maintain a healthy lifestyle, not to mention a better outlook on your life! The stress level app of the Garmin Vivoactive 3 can help you be aware of what and when stress can impact your day, and then you can see about dealing with what has caused you to stress at this time and work to eliminate it!

Like any fitness tracker, the Vivoactive 3 will track your steps, distance, even your sleep. It has more than 15 preloaded GPS and indoor sports apps, including yoga, running, swimming and more, while its monitoring your fitness levels with VO2 max and gauging the data accumulated against your fitness age estimates that you programmed into your smartwatch. This data can be uploaded to Garmin’s community called Garmin Connect. So, what is Garmin Connect? Garmin Connect™ is your one-stop source for health and fitness data. Once paired with your Garmin Vivoactive 3 Smartwatch, tracking your activity is just the beginning of what Garmin Connect™ can do for you. You can create new workouts, build courses and even challenge your friends to compete, all within the app.

Depending on which version of the Vivoactive 3 you decide to get, one has the ability to store up to 500 songs that will help keep a person going, maybe just when they think of stopping. After all, you know the right song, at the right time, can make all the difference to your attitude and may just be the catalyst you need to get you to conquer that last 5 miles of your run.

Below are some of the watches basic design specs:
Lens Material
Corning Gorilla Glass 3
Bezel Material
stainless steel
Case material
Fiber-reinforced polymer and stainless steel
Strap material
Silicone
Physical size
43.4 x 43.4 x 11.7 mm
Fits wrists with a circumference of 127-204 mm
Weight
43.0 g
Water rating
Swim/5 ATM
Touchscreen

Display type
Sunlight-visible, transflective memory-in-pixel (MIP)
Display size
1.2" (30.4mm) diameter
Display resolution
240 x 240 pixels
Color display

Battery life
GPS mode: Up to 13 hours
Smartwatch mode: Up to 7 days
Memory/History
7 timed activities, 14 days of activity tracking data

So, you might agree that the Garmin Vivoactive 3 GPS Smart Activity Tracker just might be that perfect gift that will go right on giving that special person both enjoyment and satisfaction that they are able to monitor their progress as they continue to meet and beat their fitness goals now and for years to come. What do you think? Do you want to drop one in YOUR STOCKING as well?

From ALL of us here at HeartRateMonitorsUSA.com, we want to wish you a wonderful Holiday Season. Merry Christmas!

You know you're in pretty good shape, but you’ve had that nagging question in the back of your mind, wondering if you could handle the rigors of taking part in an Ironman competition. Well for starters lets see just what competing in an Ironman competition consists of.

According to Wikipedia: An Ironman Triathlon is one of a series of long-distance triathlon races organized by the World Triathlon Corporation (WTC), consisting of a 2.4-mile (3.86 km) swim, a 112-mile (180.25 km) bicycle ride and a marathon 26.22-mile (42.20 km) run, raced in that order and without a break. It’s widely agreed that this one day race is one of the most difficult races a person can compete in.

Please keep in mind that getting your body in the proper condition to be able to take part in an Ironman Triathlon, takes about a 2- year course of commitment to train for it.  There are many places to search for what it takes to get your body ready to undertake this strenuous challenge,  And its also a great idea to either get the facts and details from someone who has actually participated in such a competition, or go to a reputable trainer to get the specifics on what and how you need to train yourself to be able to handle this grueling event.

Most Ironman events have a limited time of 17 hours to complete the race. The race typically starts at 7:00 a.m.; the mandatory swim cut off for the 2.4-mile (3.86 km) swim is 9:20 a.m. (2 hours 20 minutes), the mandatory bike cut off time is 5:30 p.m. (8 hours 10 minutes), and the mandatory marathon cut off is midnight (6 hours 30 minutes). Any participant who manages to complete the triathlon within these time constraints is designated an Ironman.

Now that you know what it consists of, do you think you're up to the challenge? Most trainers will agree that training for this type of competitive event is not a 6-month endeavor. It takes a year at least to get your body in the physical and mental state to be able to complete the race in the allocated time-frame. Most trainers will also agree that in order to be emotionally and physically prepared its better to take part in the training for this event over a two-year period of time. The reason being that in order to train correctly, you need to be able to devote a specific amount of time each day in order to have your body conditioned so that it can stand the strain that you're going to ask of it.

Competitors have a total of 17 hours to accomplish this feat. Top male Ironmen can finish in eight-and-a-half hours, while female winners generally take just more than nine hours. But the Ironman isn't just a race for superhuman beings in the peak of physical health. People with physical disabilities have completed the Ironman, including amputees, people in wheelchairs and one man who carried or pushed his disabled son the entire way. People in their 70s and 80s enter Ironman races (and finish them)! The fact is that there is a vast majority of competitors, Non-Professionals who are amateurs, who fit their training schedules around work and personal life.

Each Ironman event begins with the swimming leg. That's a 2.4-mile swim. The water temperature varies depending on the location of the event. It's actually better for the swimmers if the water is colder because if it's below a certain temperature, the competitors can wear wetsuits. Wetsuits add buoyancy to a swimmer, which makes the swimming leg easier.

Upon completing the swim leg, competitors enter the transition area. This is where they switch from one leg to another. There's usually just one transition area because the cycle course is a loop, but in events where the cycle leg isn't a loop, a separate bike-to-run transition area is required. The swim-to-bike transition is known as T1. Racers must find their bike in rows of racks with hundreds of other bikes, put on whatever clothes and footwear they need for the bike leg, walk their bike to the start of the bike course and start riding. At some point, they also need to put on a helmet, grab a water or sport drink and possibly eat an energy bar.

Both the biking and running legs take place on paved roads. However, some Ironman courses have more hills than others, so the terrain can be an obstacle.

The transition from bike to run (T2) isn't as difficult, but some triathletes experience leg cramps when they start running. Ironman races have support crews along the run leg that provides water, sports drinks and sometimes food. The only thing after the run leg is the finish line and the post-race party. Hopefully, your going to be in good enough shape to be able to stand up for the acknowledgments that come with your crossing the finish line, after all, you’ve just Earned IT!

The above lays out what makes up an Ironman / Woman competition, we are going to go into the specific training detail portion in an upcoming post. For now, know that the above takes a solid commitment by you and possibly your family since a large portion of your time is going to be spent preparing your body to be able to achieve the demands you're going to be asking of it. That being said, you're going to need to track your performance daily, weekly and monthly. From swimming endless laps to biking the same distance in your practice sessions that might have taken you to the top of Everest, if you count miles vs miles. And then there is the running, running until you think your legs just won’t be able to support you anymore. Then you run some more and will continue to do so right up to the day of the Ironman.

In order to track all of these activities properly while also keeping a weathered eye on your heart-rate a functional, accurate smartwatch can monitor your daily stats and provide the necessary data to let you know where you need improvement and what aspect of your training you need to key in on so that you can excel in your chosen sport. One such watch is the Garmin Vivoactive 3 GPS Smart Activity Tracker  When you head outside, the built-in GPS lets the Vívoactive 3 track the details of your chosen activity, with no phone connection required. From snowboarding to swimming and at least a dozen other options in between, this watch is the perfect training coach, right at your wrist to keep track so YOU keep on track of your training so that you're ready for that important day. You can keep your workout schedule fresh and invigorating, after all, with all the training you're going to be doing you need to change up the routines a bit, so your not bored.

Create your own custom running, cycling, swimming, and cardio or strength workouts, and download them to your watch. Then, your Vívoactive smartwatch will keep track of the exercises, reps, sets and rest time for you. Having a tool like the Vivoactive 3 can provide you with that coach that is always looking over your shoulder, one to make sure you do enough, and with its built-in “Elevate” HeartRate Sensor it can let you know when your doing just a little too much so that you need to dial down the training for a day or so. This is one training device that you just don't want to be without. So, there you have it.

From your Ironmen and Ironwomen buddies here at HeartRateMonitorsUSA.com