From The Straits Times    |

FITBIT SPECIAL

 

Take your workouts to the next level with the Fitbit Charge 2 fitness tracker.

If you haven’t used a fitness tracker before, you may think it’s all about logging your steps, sleep and workouts – like a lifestyle diary of sorts, right?

These days, fitness trackers do so much more. Besides telling you how much you walk and sleep each day, they are also catalysts for making positive changes to your lifestyle, be it walking home from the MRT station instead of taking the bus, doing exercises you’ve not tried before, or going to bed earlier.

After all, being aware of your physical activities and quality of sleep is one of the greatest motivations to improve your life.

For an all-rounded fitness tracker, try the Fitbit Charge 2. It has all the qualities you could ever wish for, whether exercising is your hobby or your life. Other than doing a great job counting your steps and hours of sleep, here are three awesome features you probably didn’t know about.

1. It motivates you to work out


The Fitbit Charge 2 fitness tracker will push you to go further, stay inspired and make the most of your active minutes. Photos: Fitbit

Doing high-intensity exercises? Using the Interval Workout mode, the Fitbit Charge 2 fitness tracker guides you on when to go all out and when to recover, so you can toss the timer and stay focused on your workout. Plus, it’s equipped with a built-in heart rate monitor, so you’ll know how hard you’re exerting. Greater efficiency = better results!

Post-workout, whether you ran, cycled, lifted weights or did zumba, you will receive a summary plus detailed report in the Fitbit app, including your heart rate and calories burned.

If you’re exercising outdoors, link the tracker with the GPS in your smartphone to get even more precise stats, such as your pace and distance, plus a recorded map of your route. On days when you’ve no plans to sweat, the Fitbit Charge 2 will vibrate to remind you to move every hour, helping you hit your daily 10,000-step goal.

2. It improves your cardio fitness


Know where you stand and understand the impact of your workouts by using the Fitbit Charge 2.

Knowing your heart rate opens the doors to many things. Besides helping you reach your workout goals, you can even find out your cardio fitness level and score, plus where you stand compared to others in your age group.

Using your profile information, heart rate and exercise data, the Fitbit app does an excellent job in calculating your VO2 max, which is the maximum volume of oxygen you can use. The higher it is, the greater your endurance level.

Based on those stats, the Fitbit app will give suggestions to better your score or reach a healthier weight.

3. It helps you calm down and de-stress


Find moments of calm throughout your day by following the guided breathing sessions in the Fitbit Charge 2.

When you’re anxious or nervous, your heart rate shoots up. So does your blood pressure. Over time, this build-up of stress raises your risk of heart attack and many other diseases. With the Fitbit Charge 2, you can calm down instantly by tapping on the Relax function for two- or five-minute guided breathing sessions.

By assessing your real-time heart rate and using visual cues and animations, the tracker will prompt you to take slow, deep breaths at a pace that makes you feel more relaxed. During and after the session, you will receive feedback on how well you did.

Packing in these powerful features, the Fitbit Charge 2 maintains a sleek look with an easy-to-read display that’s four times larger than its predecessor Fitbit Charge HR. The clock face is interchangeable – choose from seven interfaces – so it’s easy to find a look that suits your style.


Styling with the Fitbit Charge 2 is a no-brainer when you have classic and trendy colours like these.

The Fitbit Charge 2 ($248) comes with black, blue, plum or teal bands, and is available at major retailers like Tangs, Challenger and Harvey Norman. For more style options, get the leather bands in blush pink, brown and indigo ($109.95, sold separately), or the special-edition bands in gunmetal and rose gold ($298, sold separately).

Visit Fitbit’s Facebook page for the latest news.