GPS Watches!
By peteh on Mar 01, 2010 with Comments 6
Why? Call me old fashioned if you like but can somebody tell me please why do so many runners have to wear a GPS watch.
Now I understand these watches or other such gadget tell you exactly where you are whilst you are running, how far you have run in a specific time and the profile of your route but why do runners feel the need for all this information – the most important thing that they need to know is missing – how they FEEL! They can be justified when in a strange place/country and you need to go on a long run it is important to have some idea of your bearings, but to wear them all the time and to write in your training diary such things as:
1.06 miles in 11 minutes 23 seconds
1.11 miles in 11 minutes 35 seconds
seems ludicrous. Where has the enjoyment gone? Of being out there in rain, hail or shine listening to your body tell you you are running too fast or too slow – runners have become slaves to gadgets!
Now don’t get me wrong, anything that can make running easier is OK by me but surely these are just making everything way more complicated. Another downside is when, as a Race Director you receive emails telling you your mile or km markers were inaccurate (according to their GPS Watch) and that I should have the course remeasured having just had it remeasued and receiving a Course Accuracy Certificate!
My advice would be to lock your GPS away in a drawer somewhere and simply go out for a run, enjoy the feeling, the pain, the joy and the euphoria of running – it is by listening to your body and not what your GPS says that is going to see you improve.
Remember, running is not complicated it just that some people like to make it so – there is profit in it!
Filed Under: Whinge of The Week
I’m the opposite opinion I want to know how much quicker I’m getting over different terrain. I want to get faster and with a GPS watch I can more accurately tell how I’m doing. I still get the buzz from the run itself but it’s good to see myself improving over more difficult routes and finding out what slows me down or where I peak along a route. I know they’re probably not everyone’s cup of tea but personally I think they’re great and cheaper than a gym membership in the long run
I absolutely agree with you! I have found leaving the GPS behind has been really liberating…and it really has increased my speed. I still wear it for my long runs and speed work when I’m marathon training but always leave it behind now for shorter runs and recovery runs. Running according to how you’re feeling and listening to your body makes running FUN rather than a chore.
As a newcomer to the running scene, I can only say thank god someone else thinks the same as me! I am due to run my first 5k charity run, at the ripe age of 57 and had got myself totally stressed over time/k, as everywhere I looked I was being assured that my time should improve almost by the minute! Being more of a tortoise than a hare, when this did not happen I had been on the point of giving up, as what started out as fun rapidly became a chore or test. I shall enjoy Sunday’s run much more now, safe in the knowledge that it really doesn’t matter, as long as I am happy!
I am also a slow, middle-aged runner but I do find my GPS watch really useful and when I go out for a slow run it doesn’t get in the way of my sheer enjoyment of being out there listening to the birds, saying hello to dog walkers etc. But I find it tremendously useful when I get back not to have to work out how far & fast I’ve run because it’s all there in the watch. And yes, I do keep a running diary and I type it all in, along with how I was feeling, what I had eaten beforehand etc etc. Maybe it’s nerdy but given that I’ll never be very fast, it’s very reassuring to look back over the months and see how far I’ve come. I’m a convert!
Perhaps I am a bit of a gadget freak but I love my GPS! I don’t stress over speed/time etc but find it useful to know how I’m doing and it has been brilliant for downloading other runners’ recommended routes in areas I don’t know.
I use a standed watch which tells me the time. What i do use is the Good Running guide website this site enables me to log all my runs tracks my weight tells me how many miles my shoes have done. All this for a samll subscibing fee!