Best Fitness Watch For Crossfit
Fitness watches for Crossfit are great for collecting data while training, this data can help improve your performance over time. But having the best fitness watch for Crossfit might be hard as there are many good watches out there but only one that is best suited for Crossfit training.
The Garmin Fenix 6 Pro is my choice for the best fitness watch for Crossfit, it has all the right applications for Crossfit training, accurate heart rate monitor, oxygen saturation monitor, sleep patterns tracking, customizing options, high durability, great battery life, and body stress data field that indicates whether you can push yourself even farther.
Finding the best fitness watch for Crossfit is hard with all the options that are available, but when considering the main factors regarding Crossfit training and tracking it the task can be much simpler. Having said that, understanding what is it that a good Crossfit watch should do will make your decision easier.
A great fitness watch for Crossfit should be able to track your movements and repetitions, accurately measure heart rate, be made out of durable materials, combine all the data into a clear fitness level picture, and have the option of entering new customized workouts on the go.
Now that the general picture is clearly defining what a fitness watch must-have let’s get into my best Crossfit fitness watch picks on 2021.
Best Fitness Watch For Crossfit
Garmin Fenix 6 Pro – Best Overall
This year Garmin has made the Fenix series wider than ever before, meaning more options for the same Fenix 6. There are different models from Fenix 6, 6S, and 6X, additionally, there are the Fenix 6 Pro, 6S Pro, and 6X Pro, and on top of all that a solar model.
So one could surely find the right fit for their needs among all those Fenix watches, especially when they all perform pretty much the same when it comes to Crossfit training.
But, I haven’t chosen the Fenix 6 series for the best watch for Crossfit because there are lots of types to it but for its ability to give us Crossfiters what we need to advance our training.
The Gramin Fenix 6 Pro has so much to offer starting with its set kit which allows for better wrist heart rate monitoring for every situation, even swimming. Furthermore, GPS tracking, a variety of activities to choose from for all of us how love to practice other sports, maps and social features, and even incidents reporting.
However, the Fenix 6 series can also use many new apps from the Garmin apps store, the best for us Crossfitters would be the Cross-training app or strength plus app. I can say that the Cross-training app works great on the Fenix watches as I have used it on my Fenix 5 for years.
Apart from all those things the newest feature on this watch is the pulse OX that lets you know what is the level of oxygen in your blood so you could tune up your training to fit your body.
Additionally, this watch is durable and can survive kettlebells impact to the glass or being banged up with the rings. Fitness watch for Crossfit training must be strong and be able to adapt to the changing environment of Crossfit.
Lastly, the Fenix 6 Pro looks awesome so can work perfectly as a daily watch as well, and have all the normal features of fitness watches that track your daily activities.
Pros
- Highly durable watch
- A lot of activities options
- Many new apps on the app store
- Pulse OX is great for understanding your body better
- Looks amazing
- Can track heart rate while swimming
Cons
- Could come across as a pricey option
- New apps might cost extra (some are for free)
Polar Vantage V2 – Second Place
The Polar Vantage V2 is a great choice for those who are looking for a premium brand, lots of activity tracking ability, and strong battery life. It is true that this watch is more oriented towards endurance-type training, but can work for Crossfit just as well.
It has a very strong battery life that can last for about 7 days taking into consideration your Crossfit training sessions.
Moreover, this watch is very lightweight, and if this is something that’s been bugging you during functional training it could very well be the watch for you.
Additionally, Polar has improved the fitness tests which even though we are only Crossfiters we could run the running test, just to get hung of it. Anyway, these tests are for you ladies and gents that love comparing fitness levels with others, but also for those who love the use of information to improve performance.
So as mentioned, Polar Vantage V2 can gather lots of information which will be beneficial for your progress later on. It works in conjunction with the Polar app and helps you analyze the information with body battery stat, sleep and recovery, and overall workout performance.
Like much other fitness watches the Polar Vantage V2 has a wrist heart rate sensor which typically works better for sports without lots of wrist movements. However, as in Crossfit, the wrist is moving non-stop it is recommended to use a heart rate chest strap for higher accuracy.
Lastly, this watch does have somewhat of customizability when it comes to moving and removing widgets on it, but not as good as the Fenix 6 offers.
Pros:
- Very good watch from a well-respected producer
- Very lightweight, doesn’t interfere during training
- Good price for what it offers
- Tracks heart rate with a wrist sensor
- Polar app for planning training etc.
Cons:
- No way to add specific Crossfit widgets
- Made with an aluminum alloy so could be less durable for Crossfit
Suunto 9 – Some Great Features
The Suunto 9 is the best Suunto for Crossfit, though there are many others on the Suunto shop the 9 will work best.
It has all the functions Suunto can offer for a fitness watch, it tracks many different activities and has many parameters it can track. For example, wrist heart rate, swimming pace, recovery time, and even VO2 max.
This watch can improve your knowledge and understanding of how fit you are and what you should be focused on in the future.
The price of this watch is not that intimidating and gives great value to your money.
It can also work with a chest heart rate strap which can improve the heart rate accuracy reading. This feature is highly important as not all fitness watches can work with a chest HR sensor (like the Suunto 7).
Lastly, it is an adventure watch as well, so if you like to trek outside and track your route this watch can do it with great ease. Additionally, it has many outdoor activities it can track, like biking, climbing, and open water swimming.
Overall, this is a great premium watch that doesn’t cost much and can be a great entry watch for beginner Crossfitters.
Pro:
- Great price for what it offers
- Wrist heart rate sensor
- Can track HR while swimming
- Maps and navigation are included
- Strong and durable casing
Cons:
- Can’t build a costume workout
- Does not support music player
- Battery life can be short
A Poll On Facebook For The Best Fitness Watch For Crossfit
I have made a poll on a 12K facebook Crossfit group I’m part of, and asked people to give their opinion regarding the best fitness watch for Crossfit. This is the result of the poll I have made.
The Garmin Fenix 6 Pro got 66 per-cent of votes while the Suunto 9 got 29 per-cent and the Polar Vantage V2 got only 3 per-cent.
So overall, the Garmin Fenix 6 Pro is not only my choice for the best Crossfit fitness watch but also the choice of lots of Crossfitters.
How To Choose The Best Fitness Watch For Crossfit
In order to make the best decision for a new fitness watch for Crossfit, you should consider the following factors. Those factors will help with eliminating the watches that fit your needs less and find those that will serve your fitness needs best.
Durability Of Fitness Watch For Crossfit
Crossfit training is very hard on our wearables and in particular fitness watches. How a watch will survive is up to each one of us but there is a clear line as to the durability of a watch.
This will be determined by the materials used and especially the glass and the casing, as some watches are made with normal glass and plastic casing.
Look for a strong fitness watch that is made out of durable materials and not from plastic, it can be made out of aluminum or even titanium and gorilla glass, or even sapphire.
Either way, bare in mind that the best fitness watch for Crossfit must be highly durable out of the box.
Activities Tracking Ability
A suiting fitness watch for Crossfit must have activities programmed in it, and the ability to program custom training sessions.
As Crossfit is made out of many movements and combinations between them having the option to create a workout is awesome.
However, many of us are doing other sports activities apart from Crossfit so having cycling, swimming, and golf activities on the fitness watch will be a great benefit.
Customizability For Crossfit
Some watches have the ability to really change their face appearance, while others can customize very little. A worthy fitness watch for Crossfit will have as many as possible customization options.
As mentioned above creating workouts, and new activities are crucial for a Crossfit fitness watch. This is why the best fitness watch will have a lot of options to change and fit the user’s needs.
Connectivity To Other Devices
Most fitness watches these days are either fully smartwatches or only in part, either way, this is highly important for the watch to connect with phones and HR chest sensors.
The purpose of smart fitness watches is to improve fitness using the information collected while training, and learning where to improve. This is done by connecting with other smart devices while working out both to collect data and store data.
If a watch can’t connect with other devices this might limit the use of the data gathered during Crossfit training.
Fitness Data Collection
The more data the faster your fitness will improve, each watch has its own platform of data presentation which helps understand all the parameters. Some present it better while others don’t have this functionality at all.
A combined platform with the watch will make your fitness decisions better that will be based upon real-world data.
Chest Heart Rate Sensor Compatibility
I have mentioned the chest heart rate sensor above, but I must say that this factor is highly important if one wishes to receive the most accurate heart rate readings.
The reason being that while training in Crossfit there are many wrist and arms movements, thus, the wrist HR sensor in most watches are having a hard time getting the right HR. This happens especially in Crossfit thanks to the movement but also because the heart rate is going up and down during training rapidly.
As fitness watches are mainly a tool to track heart rate during training sessions chest heart rate belt is a must if you wish to get the best readings while doing Crossfit.
Battery Life
The bigger the better, not the watch though, but the battery life. Having to charge another electric device each day could become a burden, therefore, my advice is to pick a fitness watch that can perform long hours, track workouts, and still be used on your day-to-day tasks without being charged so often.
Moreover, a fitness watch that has to be charged very often will most be abandoned as most of us will forget to charge it and in time will look for a fitness watch that has better battery life.
In conclusion
Finding the best fitness watch for Crossfit is not an easy task, but from my experience and knowledge, the Garmin Fenix 6 Pro will provide your needs with flying colors.
It is just the best fitness watch for Crossfit and will help you advance your fitness to new and better achievements.
Lastly, I know many are forced to train and stay fit at home as the worldwide situation is evolving and it is hard to see the end. I have made a post listing recommended equipment for Crossfit and functional training at home, if you are on the look for improving your training environment I highly recommend you check it out.
Feel free to leave a comment and share this post if it helped you.
Until next time
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