If you are a man who wears a suit to work but runs half-marathons on the weekend, you probably have a penchant for analytics. There is no shortage of devices available to track all of your fitness and health metrics these days, but where do they fit into the business style of a man who needs to set the right tone at work through his professional attire?
Can a man closing million-dollar deals in a Tom Ford suit get by with a plastic and rubber watch that beeps or vibrates when he reaches his Zone 2 cardio threshold?
How can you pull off the style of a media titan while still being able to track your fitness stats?
Two Wrists, Two Watches
One solution for getting in your steps and tracking them too is to simply wear two watches. One watch is for show, and the other is for showing you your steps.
The typical watch meant for impressing others through style, is hand-crafted or assembled and consists of a mix of leather and exotic metals. They’re heavy. Substantial. One look lets you know that the man wearing that watch needs to know the time because he uses all of his time to get business done.
The typical watch for fitness tracking is usually made of plastic. They’re meant for connectivity, not for being imposing. The fitness watch wearer is usually working up a sweat, so consideration for keeping the watch clean is reflected in the materials used.
One might think that wearing two watches could encourage some side-eye from others, but if you live in both worlds of functional style and factual data, you are already a fashion and fitness rebel. Are the opinions of others going to deter you from making things happen and reviewing the results of your resting heart rate while doing so?
Go Incognito
If two watches at the same time are too extreme, there are alternative gadgets that can give you the hard data you crave without encroaching on your status as a style icon.
These days, most smartphones have built-in features that track your activity level, steps walked, or flights of stairs climbed. You have to have your phone on you at all times, however, for the information to be accurate. Sitting it on the desk while you make laps around the executive floor at your office means losing valuable steps from your overall total. If you are someone who cares about tracking your data, you are most likely serious about ensuring that the data is accurate, so the stand-alone phone option may not be the best.
The best option to capture your metrics without cramping your style with a cheap-looking watch is to go with a wearable device that will help gather all the data you need while tucked away underneath your custom-tailored button-up shirt and coat, or disguised as a ring or other wearable decoration. These choices n may feel a little strange when you first start wearing them but you quickly adjust to them being there, and soon you don’t even notice except for when pulling up the data from your phone or laptop.
Form and Function for the Win
The final option, for now, is to choose a fitness watch that tracks your movement and shaking while actually looking like the timepiece of a mover and shaker in the business world. While the standard fitness watch may look for sweat-resistant than style-forging, there are options available that include metal or leather bands and faces that mimic the standard large dial trendsetters of your high-end men’s watches.
The other option that can help you dress up while still looking business-ready is to go with the Apple Watch, which is accepted as high-end wrist-wear even if it doesn’t exactly mimic the Rolexes and Patek Philippes of the watch world. An added benefit of choosing this accessory is that you appear tech-savvy as well as business-savvy.
As the fitness tracker industry grows more lucrative, the market will continue to grow and adjust to meet the demands of the consumers. One day soon we may have neural uplinks that make the idea of a fitness watch seem passé. But until Elon makes that a reality, choose your fitness tracker and watch style with confidence that you can kill it in the gym, while still looking like a closer in the board room.
