MY LIFE IS a dichotomy, in that I’ve spent years in tae kwon do, love football and rodeos, but have an affinity for frozen yoghurt and watching Netflix with a good cabernet and wood wick candles next to my cats, Thelma and Louise. I attribute my temperament to genes and California hippy tap water.

The origins of personal traits, to include anxiety, can be biological, environmental, or inadvertently “seed-planted” by anxious parents. Male anxiety (a.k.a., “manxiety”) is clinically contagious if you’re around it long enough. My dad, a manly victim of indecisiveness, often had me second-guessing my own life choices, or not making one at all. To this day, I’m often paralysed by an Applebee’s lunch menu or a yellow traffic light.

Men are stalwarts of resolve with an uncanny ability to chug beer, char meat, and kill one another. We recognise that our cars and lawn mowers need tune-ups and diagnostic tests, but we rarely wash our feet in the shower, let alone visit a physician for our own check-ups – especially for anything regarding the brain. And when we don’t prioritise our own wellbeing, neither do others. If you’re a man with anxiety, however, the norms become skewed and irrational.

I grew-up a hypochondriac certain that every pain, rash, bump, or twitch was something malignant or terminal. I visited the hospital countless times per year while spending the equivalent of a Range Rover full of backup dancers on annual copays. What I thought was testicular cancer was an inguinal hernia from doing deadlifts. What I was certain was genital herpes was an ingrown hair. What I feared was Lyme disease was an allergic reaction to grass. And what I accepted as a heart attack turned out to be…anxiety.

Only twice did I not go to a hospital when I should have. The first was at 18 while suffering intense chest pains and laboured breathing because I had unknowingly collapsed a lung. In my defence, I thought it was heartburn. The second was when I intermittently peed blood over a 10-month stint. A rational man would interpret hematuria as the ultimate motivation for a hospital visit. But the only thing worse than my fear of potential hospice was the anxiety of a pending cystoscopy.

Consequently, I settled on platinum-level denial until I landed in surgery and chemo. Ignorance is a prickly muse. With chronic male anxiety, it’s torturous to determine what warrants an ER visit versus antacids. And when it came to my mental health, I handled it like most men: denial, distraction, and drugs. In that order.

“Men are MUCH MORE STIGMATISED by any admission of a psychiatric illness and are much LESS LIKELY TO SEEK TREATMENT”

Most men with anxiety have no idea what’s wrong with them – like Bill Bixby in The Hulk, they just feel “off.” Denial and distraction are why so many men walk around as functioning alcoholics or addicts. In the absence of knowing any better or a willingness to seek help regarding male anxiety, we plug the holes however we can. But if you treated any other ailment by ignoring or avoiding it, the outcome would be similarly grim. You can ignore asthma and diabetes for a while too. But every disorder has its dues.

Since anxiety, depression, and all disorders of the mind are still largely stigmatised among men, my first coping tactic was denial, lest I appeared weak and vulnerable among my peers. “While some may consider this a stereotype – that men do not seek help for mental health issues – it is statistically correct…men are much more stigmatised by any admission of a psychiatric illness and are much less likely to seek treatment,” says Sammie LaMont Moss, M.D., a psychiatrist at Kaiser Permanente in Denver.

This is particularly troublesome as depression and anxiety in men are more likely to manifest in substance abuse and suicidal behaviour. “We often see in the clinical setting that an attempt to address anxiety can manifest in different ways. For example, men will turn to substances like alcohol or cannabis for some immediate relief, which can cause long-term, harmful effects,” says Moss.

How anxiety presents in men

I’M AN EXCEPTIONALLY kind and empathetic guy, but anxiety makes me irritable and angry. If I’m forced to socially interact or deal with a rude stranger, I become a chupacabra with a flashpoint of WD-40. I expend great effort trying to determine when I’m feeling anxious before it defaults to a felony persona. But distinguishing between anxiety and irritability requires Maharajah-level introspection.

“Due to the social pressure that men experience based on the unwritten rule that men are to be strong and in control at all times, anxiety is not easily identifiable in men, even if that man’s anxiety has reached overwhelming levels” says San Diego psychologist Bruce Thiessen, Ph.D. “Many of the symptoms may express somatically, in the form of medical problems or conditions, such as ulcers, back pain, hypertension, and the like,” he says.

Dustin Siegel, Psy.D., a Chicago-based clinical psychologist and founder of the LEAP Center for Anxiety, agrees. “A lot of men have been told their whole lives to ‘man up’ or ‘be tough.’ It’s hard for many men to talk to someone else about their vulnerabilities, and one of the paradoxical truths about mental health is that the more a person – male or female – tries to bottle-up their feelings, the more likely they are to develop a problem.”

If I simply ignored my feelings of angst, I could pretend anxiety didn’t exist for me. But denial wasn’t designed nor intended to work long term. And when denying anxiety exacerbated problems, I turned to distraction. Distraction is an effective but equally short-term, noncurative technique in countering stress or discomfort, in that it avoids addressing the core issue.

How does chronic anxiety for men differ in anxiety for women?

“THE MOST OBVIOUS signs of male anxiety are the physical ones,” says Lindsay Israel, M.D., psychiatrist and chief medical officer at Success TMS. “Men might find themselves going to the emergency room or their primary care provider with complaints of chest pain, fearful they are having a heart attack,” adds Dr. Israel. As men, we need to save our hearts for red meat and break-ups.

Though anxiety is an equal opportunist, Dr. Israel shares that “women are twice as likely to develop an anxiety disorder as compared to men, and women are more likely to seek help for their anxiety symptoms. Therefore, men are more likely to develop severe symptoms of anxiety and possibly develop an additional depressive disorder due to the lack of treatment intervention.”

Thiessen confirms this assertion adding that, “men are also more likely to become aggressive, and to develop problems in their relationships, due to dysfunctional ways of expressing their anxiety. Many men turn to drugs, alcohol, gambling, and personally destructive sexual addictions to relieve chronic stress through escape,” says Thiessen.

In my case, I wielded distraction like artillery over my physical well-being. I over-trained in the gym, over-ran the trails, and over-swam in the lap pool. But I also over-imbibed alcohol. Drinking to distract is a futile endeavour. I would later harm-reduce to cannabis edibles, tinctures, and vapes. And on a few occasions, I casually overdid those too. Overdosing on THC edibles leads to a nauseous, frenzied panic that is ruefully memorable, with a hangover that rivals what you’d experience if you sniffed kerosene.

So, what to do with all this male anxiety?

MEN ARE FIXERS. We often try to fix things and people that aren’t broke. It’s important to note that acute anxiety that prompts us to do our taxes or flee a K-pop mob is healthy. Once it becomes long term or chronic, however, it’s detrimental to one’s physical and mental health.

“One of the best ways for a man to become comfortable with accepting that he has a mental health issue is to speak to other people,” says Moss. “Quite often a man will be surprised to learn how many other people are suffering similar difficulties. Finding out that you are not alone can go a long way to help normalise what you’re experiencing,” adds Moss. Anxiety doesn’t always love company, but it loves perspective.

Thiessen upholds this tenet. “Men need to feel accepted, and not judged, for showing both strength and weakness. Society might judge them; mental health providers will not,” he says. In almost every instance where I’ve revealed my anxiety struggles to another man, he has replied in commiseration with his own. It’s clearly indicative of the ratio and cross section of men silently suffering from anxiety.

You don’t need a panic room; you need a panic plan

THERE ARE SIMPLE and clinically effective things men can do to lower their anxiety:

• Talk to your primary care provider, who could potentially prescribe medication or refer you to other specialists who can help. “This is also an area where group therapy, segregated by gender, may help – particularly for men who are stigmatised and think they’re being seen as weak or as a victim. Learning what other men experience can help break that stigma,” highlights Moss.
• There are phone apps for anything from interpreting your dog’s barks, to fermenting mead in your man-shed, to treating your anxiety while preserving your privacy. Moss encourages his patients to leverage smart phone apps like Calm, myStrength, and Headspace. Digital therapeutics (DTx) are mainstream now.
• Biofeedback, medications such as SSRIs, SNRIs, and in more recent years, neuromodulation such as TMS (transcranial magnetic stimulation) are all effective options for treatment of anxiety disorders. “Typically, it is not any one modality that targets these symptoms for a person, it is more often a combination of various modalities that gives the most optimal results,” says Dr. Israel.
• Physical exercise is an exceptional way to relieve anxiety. “Exercise prevents an excessive buildup of cortisol in the body while increasing levels of epinephrine and norepinephrine, neurotransmitters that modulate anxiety and regulate mood and emotion, yielding a sense of peace of mind,” cites Thiessen. Hakuna masquata, fellow men. Moss suggests also integrating healthy lifestyle choices, nutritious eating, and limiting harmful substances like alcohol and cannabis along with your fitness plan.

More than just the “greatest hits” to contest male anxiety, this is my own triage to maintaining a career, relationships, and a life largely unfettered by the cerebral minesweeper of anxiety. Because there’s no place like “om.”

This article originally appeared on Men’s Health US.

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The post The subtle signs you have high-functioning anxiety appeared first on Men's Health Magazine Australia.

A new report in the journal Human Resource Development International has found that, contrary to popular belief, massive multiplayer online gamers learn by gaming and their skills in the workplace are enriched by hours spent playing games like Fortnite and World of Warcraft.

“Online gaming often gets a bad reputation, but our study reveals a different story. We found that gaming can actually help people develop valuable workplace skills,” reports study author Melika Shirmohammadi. “These skills include problem-solving, teamwork, leadership, and even self-confidence. Our research shows that gaming, when done in moderation, can be a way for people to grow both personally and professionally.”

Why gaming builds job skills

Look around your office. It’s likely filled with online gamers. The reasoning is simple: millions of people play “massively multiplayer online” or MMO games, in which they play together in a virtual world. The top three games – World of Warcraft, Destiny 2, and Final Fantasy – claim 150.6 M, 49.7 M, and 60.3 M total players respectively.

“The purpose of the present study was to examine hobby – an understudied but prevalent part of the nonwork domain – to understand if and how MMO gaming positively enriches employees’ work domain,” says Shirmohammadi.

His team conducted a qualitative study among 23 employed MMO gamers who had an average of 20 years of video gaming experience and had played MMO games for at least 10 years.

The MMO games examined (including World of War Craft, EVE and Final Fantasy) require players to coordinate tasks to achieve collective goals, respect team norms (e.g., arriving on time for missions), collaborate with others as part of a team, and avoid reckless or uncalculated behaviours that would jeopardise the mission – in the workplace that might be when your marketing lead brings music into a client presentation.

Gamers are better equipped to manage stress

The reason gamers might be set up to succeed in the workplace is due to their mindset, the researchers found. Gamers reported viewing work as solvable puzzles, and their experience resulted in improved patience in encountering problems and encouraged them to persevere in solving them.

One participant, an engineer, said: “I just see a puzzle and I’m motivated to solve it. So, it’s affected, I guess, my mindset in that way, such that I look at things as solvable…”

Other players say they developed self-confidence through game playing because they feel good about their level of success in the online gaming world. And others reported developing self-awareness as they received feedback on their own skills and how they played alongside team members.

Gamers’ ability with coaching skills – such as evaluating performance, providing feedback, giving instructions and inspiring others – was also traced back to their experiences working with fellow ‘basement dwellers’ taking out trash in games like WOW. Several participants mentioned the similarities between gaming and work that made such skills transferrable.

An IT specialist, described it this way: “I deal with a lot of new people [at work]. Since I kind of go out of my way in game to do all the coaching, I’ve become ahead of some of colleagues in explaining how to do certain things [to new employees] …”

Gamers have resilience

One famous gaming quote underlines the positive mindset gamers bring to the workplace: “Failure doesn’t mean the game is over, it means try again with experience”.

And eventually, levelling up.

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The post Why online gaming pays off in the workplace appeared first on Men's Health Magazine Australia.

Just because he’s big, doesn’t mean he’s clever.

Well, that’s kinda debatable. After all, you can’t build supersized muscle without knowing at least a little bit about… building supersized muscle. But that’s not to say all bro-isms should be accepted without scrutiny.

Let’s put 10 common muscle mantras under the microscope.

Bro wisdom #1: No pain, no gain

‘I don’t start counting until it starts hurting’

What the science says:
There’s a difference between ‘bad pain’ – the kind that signals injury – and the satisfying ache of a good workout. But the bros were right about one thing: if you want to see results, you do need to be able to tolerate physical discomfort.

“We know that training to momentary failure – the point where your muscles are no longer able to move the weight with the correct form – is the fastest route to muscle gains,” says Nick Mitchell, coach and founder of transformation specialists Ultimate Performance, “while if strength gains are your goal, you want to push very hard but avoid actual failure.”

Think of it this way: once you’re able to hit all the reps in your prescribed rep range (for example, three sets of 12) with great form, add 1% or 2% more weight and start again.

When it comes to ‘normal’ soreness, everyone is different, he says. “Be mindful of your body’s feedback so you’ll know when your body is telling you “enough is enough” – without listening to the devil on your shoulder telling you to be lazy.”

If you’re new to training and unfamiliar with the harmless yet nauseating burn of a challenging set, Mitchell suggests this exercise: stand on the edge of the first step on a set of stairs and perform slow and rhythmic calf raises, going as high on your toes as possible and getting a deep stretch on the lowering portion of the exercise. “Within five to 15 reps, those suckers are going to burn like mad. By about 25, most people will have to give up… and then 30 seconds later all of the pain will have dissipated,” he says. “This is ‘good pain’.”

Our Verdict: 4/5

Bro wisdom #2: cardio eats up your muscles

“Bro, I don’t even know where they keep the treadmills.

What the science says:
Gone are the days when the mere mention of a 5K had weightlifters running for the hills. Mixed-discipline training is more popular than ever. A formal definition of the hybrid approach might be “the concurrent training of athletic disciplines that do not inherently support one another”, but generally what we’re talking about is athletes who lift heavy and run far.

“Just look at some of the top hybrid athletes to know it’s possible to maintain and even increase muscle mass when training for endurance,” says Kate Neudecker, personal trainer, nutritionist and Men’s Health fitness writer. “Multiple studies support this, with a large-scale review in Sports Medicine concluding that concurrent aerobic and strength training doesn’t compromise growth.”

But there are caveats. If your time and mental energy are limited, then “it can be beneficial to focus on one goal at a time,” she says. The time you spend on the treadmill is lost from the squat rack, after all. And if you’re expending a lot of calories and not replacing them, your body won’t have the energy to repair and build new muscle. If you’re struggling to see results, try scaling back.

Our Verdict: 2/5

Bro wisdom #3: there’s no such thing as too much protein

“You want the recipe for my 12-egg-white omelette?”

What the science says:
Public opinion has turned on this one. Once niche sports products spotted only in athletes’ kit bags, protein bars and shakes now line supermarket shelves next to the confectionery and Coca-Cola. Whether you get your grams from fortified foods and powders or from natural sources, most of us are at the very least conscious of our intake.

Bodybuilding lore has long dictated that around 2g per kg of body weight is needed to build muscle, while the NHS advises a more conservative 0.75g. So, who’s right?

‘Clinical studies concluded that consuming more protein than the recommended dietary allowance of 50g to 60g per day can improve body composition, even if not tracking calories,” says Men’s Health fitness director Andrew Tracey, a coach and nutritionist, who suggests a minimum of 1.6g per kg. “Protein is also muscle-sparing, meaning it will help you to avoid losing any of your hard-earned gains while chasing fat loss.”

Plus, it benefits blood sugar balance and satiety and is relatively hard to overeat when compared with foods based on fats and carbs.

And how much is too much? Regularly eating more than 2g per kg of your body weight per day has been linked to digestive discomfort, dehydration and headaches. “There’s also no real muscle-building benefit to it,” adds Tracey.

Our Verdict: 4/5

Bro wisdom #4: Monday is chest day

“And on the third day, he worked arms and back, and saw that it was good”.

What the science says:
There is a reason why many gym-goers still prefer to split up their weekly workouts in order to control the frequency with which they hit specific muscle groups – chest day, legs day and so on. Adding structure to your routine can help you reach your goals faster than winging it.

Training specific muscle groups on specific days naturally means you’ll work those muscles harder, too – although it also means you’ll need more time to recover before training those same muscles again.

But so long as you’re applying the principles of progressive overload – periodically increasing your weights, reps or sets, to ensure you’re not kicking back in your comfort zone – it doesn’t matter which body parts you work and when.

“Full-body workouts are never going to create a Mr Universe physique,” explains Mitchell, “but for most of the general public, I’d actively recommend them, if they’re limited to less than two hours of weight-training time per week.” It’s just more efficient.

Ultimately, however, adherence is what matters. It’s a platitude but nonetheless true: the best training plan is the one you’ll stick to.

Our Verdict: 1.5/5

Bro wisdom #5: don’t neglect the mind-muscle connection

“Your biceps can tell when you’re thinking about someone else…”

What the science says:
One of Arnie’s all-time favourite talking points, the original bro (Bro-G?) advocated for staying fully present throughout every rep, concentrating hard on the contracting muscles. He put it this way in a recent newsletter: “Have you ever tried to work out when you are distracted, and you pace around for too long between sets, and then when you lift the weight it feels heavier than usual? This is because your mind is not connected to your muscles.” Lifting, he goes on, should be “a form of meditation”.

Which all sounds very romantic – but so long as the bar is moving, does it really matter where your mind is?

“The mind-muscle connection is actually backed by multiple pieces of research,” explains Neudecker. In a study published in the European Journal Of Sport Science, participants who focused hard on their target muscle saw almost double the muscle growth during biceps curls as those who placed their attention elsewhere. Doing this, says Neudecker, can help “increase muscle activation and help us use our full range of motion”. It’s meathead mindfulness for the win.

Our Verdict: 4/5

Bro wisdom #6: bulk first, cut later

“It’s okay bro, I’m *chews noisily* bulking”

What the science says:
A favoured protocol of old-school lifters. The ‘bulking’ phase sees athletes eat surplus calories while training for muscle growth; in the ‘cutting’ phase, they switch to a calorie deficit, while grappling to keep those gains.

“For professional bodybuilders or athletes in weight classes, maybe there’s a justification for deliberately gaining and then losing large amounts of weight,” says Tracey. “But this doesn’t make sense for the average person. For a lot of people, it will mean you just end up gaining and losing the same 10lb (4.5kg) of fat each year, with minimal muscle growth to show for your efforts.”

Research suggests that overeating tends to result in weight gain around the abdomen, but weight isn’t as quickly lost from that area during dieting. Persistent yo-yoing could therefore make it more difficult to lose belly fat in the long run. So, should you stick to daily calorie targets with meticulous consistency? Also no.”It’s natural for your calorie intake to be higher at certain times of year,” says Tracey. “You may as well use these periods to power a concerted effort to gain muscle.” Don’t be afraid of weight gain to the point that you under-fuel muscle-building efforts, though. “What’s more intelligent than massive bulks and strict cuts is having a healthy, sustainable weight range to grow within.”

Our Verdict: 1/5

Bro wisdom #7: you need to shock your muscles

“That’s why I never follow a program – I’d lose the element of surprise”

What the science says:
It’s the subject of countless comedy Instagram Reels, but ask five gym-goers what ‘shocking the muscles’ means and you may well get five different answers. There’s no unified definition, but there are a couple of ways to interpret this idea.

Some people might see it as a directive to hop between workout programs – trialling one set of exercises one week, something entirely different the next. That’s unlikely to result in meaningful progress.

“In bodybuilding spaces, however, ‘shocking the muscle’ oftentimes means subjecting the muscle to a new stimulus to cause the muscle to grow bigger and stronger,” explains Neudecker. This doesn’t have to mean spinning the wheel every time you’re choosing an upper-body routine. It can simply mean the same boring-but-non-shocking stuff you’ve always done: incrementally exposing your muscles to bigger weights and more reps.

“The truth is you need to commit to a training routine for at least three weeks before making major adjustments,” says Neudecker. “This allows you to properly get the most out of a new program, and make measurable progress.”

Our Verdict: 3/5

Bro wisdom #8: you gotta chase the pump

“Arnie had it right – nothing feels better”

What the science says:
In recent years, ‘the pump’ – the feeling of engorged, swollen muscles one encounters when training with high reps and plenty of sets – has had mixed press. Many trainers have labelled it a vainglorious waste of time that does little more than temporarily swell the muscles up with blood.

Even if Arnie was pumping up for the pleasure alone, research shows that dropping the weight and upping the reps, especially after heavy lifting, can have serious muscle-building effects.

Research suggests that although a pump itself may not last, its effects can. One theory posits that the increased pressure on the cell membrane caused by the accumulation of blood in the muscle is perceived as a threat to cellular integrity. This triggers your body to reinforce the structure of the muscle, resulting in growth.

Or, to look at it another way: “It may be temporary, but a pump is one of the most fulfilling parts of training, and an insight into what your body could look like, permanently, if you keep up your efforts,” says Tracey. “This alone can lead to sustained levels of enthusiasm that keep you consistent in the long run, which is what really matters.”

Our Verdict: 4/5

Bro wisdom #9: you should hop on the creatine, bro

“I’m starting a petition to add it to the food pyramid”.

What the science says:
There was a time, not all that long ago, when training supps such as creatine were viewed as something almost akin to anabolic steroids.

Today, however, creatine is one of the most research-backed, benefit-stacked and widely used gym supps – not to mention one of the cheapest.

“This naturally occurring substance, found in meat and fish, stands up as an effective muscle-builder and strength-booster,” says Tracey. It speeds up production of adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which powers your muscles, allowing you to push beyond your usual limits. A review by the International Society of Sports Nutrition suggests it could help with injury prevention and post-exercise repair.

“Despite efforts by supps companies to market ‘new’ creatine products, there’s no need to reinvent the wheel,” Tracey says. “A 5g daily dose of widely available creatine monohydrate is just as effective as pricier equivalents.”

Our Verdict: 5/5

Bro wisdom #10: go heavy or go home

“Your mum called, she wants her dumbbells back”.

What the science says:
Well, that depends on your goal. A study in The Journal Of Strength And Conditioning Research found that while muscle gain can be achieved across all rep ranges (that’s more about total volume – see Bro Wisdom #1), lifting heavier weights is better for boosting max strength.

The lower rep ranges – such as lifting a weight you can only shift for, say, five reps with good form – help to build what is called ‘relative strength’, which means getting strong without adding extra muscle, says Mitchell. “This is obviously something that athletes need to consider, as many will want to maintain or improve their power-to-weight ratio and will gain zero benefit from extra body mass.”

But there are diminishing returns. “Most would do well to not go lower than three or four reps in a set unless specifically training for a maximal lifting contest,” he says. “Going too heavy (two-rep max lifts or heavier) can often be overkill and lead to overtraining.” That’s just showing off, anyway.

Our Verdict: 3/5

This article originally appeared on Men’s Health UK.

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If you want to optimise your workouts, reduce stress, recover faster, sleep better, and avoid burnout, a fitness tracker can be a useful weapon. Armed with these little labs, everyone now has access to elite level insights at the raise of a wrist or the swipe of an app. We’ve never had more information to help us fine-tune our fitness and stay on top form.

Evidence also shows the best fitness trackers can do wonders for your motivation levels and daily activity. Plus they’ll also help you handle the daily grind, tracking stress levels and helping you spot when it’s time to get stuck in or take a step back. Heck, the smarter fitness watches like the Apple Watch even offer tools to help boost your productivity.

Given the impressive capabilities of these new-gen models from the likes of Garmin, Apple, Fitbit, Polar, Coros and more, it’s no surprise the global smartwatch market is projected to hit a mega $58.1 billion by 2028.

However, choosing a tracker is now a trickier task. So to help you pick the best fitness watch for your training needs, our team of health and fitness experts strapped on the best fitness trackers you can buy right now and put them through rigorous testing, from roads and trails to the gym floor.

How to choose a fitness tracker

With all the choice on the fitness wearables shelves, finding the tracker that suits you best can be overwhelming. It pays to be really clear about your priorities and how you plan to train. If you’re hitting the gym three times a week for HIIT classes or strength sessions, you’ll want a very different watch to someone who’s planning big off-grid adventures.

The big brands to consider range from Garmin, Polar, COROS and Sunnto, who all tend to make devices primarily built for sport tracking first but with some smartwatch tools. Fitbit, Huawei and Amazift tend to offer more day-to-day fitness trackers while the very best smartwatches with fitness capabilities come from Apple, Samsung and Google.

In terms of budget, you can expect to spend anything from £99 right up to £1,000+ for the most capable multisport trackers and smartwatches. But there’s a whole host of devices from £200-£500 that cover the fitness tracking needs of most. Here’s 15 we recommend in 2024.

The 14 best fitness watches to buy in 2024

1

Apple Watch Ultra 2

If you’re after an adventure-ready smartwatch with excellent fitness smarts, the Apple Watch Ultra 2 blends the superior day-to-day use of an Apple Watch with rugged specs of the most expensive Garmin and Suunto watches.

With its longer battery life (versus the Series 9), more rugged design, boosted durability, and top-performing GPS and heart rate, it’s built to handle everything from regular gym sessions to more adventurous outdoor pursuits like trail running, diving and hiking.

This is the biggest Apple smartwatch. The 49mm case is significantly larger than the Apple Watch Series 9 but despite that bulkier frame, it’s still comfortable to wear 24-7. Helped by the big selection of interchangeable straps. The large frame houses a stunning, bright, super responsive pin-sharp screen that brings all your workout metrics to life and is easy to read in all lights. It’s also waterproof to 100m.

On battery life, the Apple Watch Ultra 2 doesn’t pack the staying power of the top-end dedicated sports watches like the Garmin Fenix or COROS Vertix 2 – those beasts run for days. But in our tests we got 20 hours GPS workout time in the highest accuracy mode, stretching to 45 hours in the lowest power/accuracy mode. That’s the best you’ll find and beats the rival smartwatches.

The GPS accuracy is also excellent and the optical heart rate is solid, feeding good information into a growing range of fitness insights. Apple recently added new Training Load tracking that lets you subjectively assess how hard you’ve worked, plus VO2 Max estimates and handy trends charts for running pace, exercise minutes, standing minutes, and your daily distance covered. Though you’re still not getting Garmin-level workout and fitness features.

Beyond fitness tracking, it’s also a powerful tool for daily life. With calls and messages, offline music and effortless contactless payments, there’s no disputing its practical superiority.

Reviewed by: Kieran Alger

Key specs

2

Apple Watch Series 9

The Apple Watch Series 8 was all about advanced health monitoring and tracking everything from steps to blood oxygen levels, but the Series 9 takes things a step further, making it, as Apple describes, ‘magical’.

Why? Well, the Series 9 features a brand-new double tap function that allows you to control certain aspects of your watch in an instant. By raising your wrist and touching your fingers together, you can answer calls, view your most used widgets on the watch face, and start and stop music.

The watch itself is comfortable and lightweight, making it the perfect choice for both in and out of the gym. Apple has also made the straps using mainly recycled materials.

While there’s been no improvements in the battery life (18 hours and 36 hours on low power mode) since the Series 8, when you consider the brighter display, the new ECG feature, and the consistent heart rate and activity readings, it’s difficult to argue this isn’t a top-tier smartwatch.

Review by: Priyankaa Joshi

Key specs

3

HUAWEI Watch FIT 3

All too often smartwatches look a bit, well, not exactly smart, veering instead toward the rugged, utilitarian looks that match well with outdoor pursuits. There’s certainly a place for that kind of aesthetic, but if you’re after a wearable that serves as much on the style front as it does performance, then the HUAWEI Watch FIT 3 might be for you.

With an ultra-slim, fashion-forward design, the Watch FIT 3 is compatible with both iOS and Android devices. As well as solid GPS it offers comprehensive health and fitness management, with heart rate and sleep monitoring, calorie management, sleep breathing awareness and water resistance (so you can take it swimming) as standard.

On the activity tracking front, it boasts over 100 sports modes, including football, basketball and e-sports and a specific track running setting, while the ‘Activity Ring’ feature (essentially three coloured rings that fill in as you complete your goals) keeps you aware of your activity levels throughout the day. There’s even a ‘Smart Suggestion’ component, which recommends exercise based on your habits to help you reach your fitness targets. Clever stuff.

The aluminium alloy watch case houses a slim 1.82-inch (46mm) AMOLED colour screen that offers sharp graphics and a bright display that performs well in various light conditions. Meanwhile an impressive battery life — 7 days typical use, 10 days maximum usage — means you’ll never be caught short on the go. Running low? In just a ten-minute charge you can get enough juice to last all day.

Right now you can pick up the HUAWEI Watch FIT 3 for just £99.99 (the best price this year) and receive a free extra strap with purchase.

Key specs

4

Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra

The Apple Watch is off limits for Samsung and Android phone users. If that’s you, your best bet for a fitness-focussed smartwatch is the Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra. Samsung’s tracker takes everything from the last-gen Galaxy Watch and boosts it. Better staying power, brighter screen, more features and bigger build. It’s also packed with clever health and fitness features and adventure tools.

There’s a no-nonsense heft to the robust, military-grade design that’s a bit bulky for daintier wrists. The 47mm watch face has a well-built titanium exterior and a punchy, responsive (unless it’s wet) sapphire glass display. It’s also pumped up to 3,000 nits – that’s bright enough to rival the Apple Watch and great for mid-workout metric monitoring.

There’s a few other nods to Apple’s tracker here, most notably a handy action button for quick-starting workout tracking. There’s also automatic workout detection in case you forget and other new smarts include an Energy Score (a bit like Garmin’s Body Battery), body composition estimates and sleep apnea detection.

Samsung also added accuracy-boosting all-systems dual frequency GPS and a new 3-in-1 BioActive Sensor for measuring resting, daily and workout heart rate data, ECG capability (Samsung only) and powering the body composition analysis. In testing, the heart rate accuracy was generally good up against a Polar H10 chest strap. The body fat percentage reads we’ll take with a big pinch of electrolytes.

The battery life is also hit and miss. The GPS workout time was pretty solid. I ran 100 mile ultra using standard power settings and it lasted for 14 hours of the 22 hour run. The Apple Watch Ultra lasted 16 hours and my Garmin Enduro 2 still has 47% left three days later. But the general battery life was not only short but also incredibly unpredictable. Sometimes torching as much as 50% while I slept, often struggling to last more than 24 hours and taking a long time to charge.

Reviewed by: Kieran Alger

Key specs

5

Amazfit Active

For the price, Amazfit’s Apple-esque cut-price tracker mashes up an impressive array of fitness tracking, wellness tools and smartwatch skills. As a smartwatch it’s no match for Apple, Google or Samsung, and its fitness tools aren’t as comprehensive or well delivered as you’ll get on a Garmin, Polar or COROS. But you get a lot here for what you pay.

That includes all your mid-workout metrics for 120 different sports, plus the usual post-session training effect and training load readouts, VO2 Max estimates, and recovery time recommendations.

The Active is light and compact and really easy to wear 24-7 and despite using less premium materials than pricier smartwatches, it avoids feeling cheap and plastic. Much of that is down to the 1.75-inch HD AMOLED touchscreen that punches well above the price tag. It’s easy to read and nicely responsive.

Tracking smarts include all-systems GPS and the usual heart rate monitoring. Sadly in my tests, the GPS accuracy wasn’t great. It consistently underclocked my distances by more than the usual margin for error. The heart rate tracking was also hit and miss with lots of rogue heart rate spikes when you shift gears during stop-go interval sessions.

However, battery life is strong. I easily got 11 days usage with 7.5 hours GPS training time thrown in. While the average one-hour run with GPS tracking burned less than 8-10%. That’s not far off the Apple Watch Ultra 2.

There’s music controls for linked smartphones plus storage for phone-free playback with room for more than 30,000 songs. You can also make calls via Bluetooth and get all your app notifications.

When you consider what you’re paying, this is a competent fitness-tracking smartwatch that packs plenty of value. Even if the partner app and software lack the finesse of some rivals.

Reviewed by: Kieran Alger

Key specs

6

Garmin Epix Pro 2

The Garmin Epix 2 Pro is a rugged all-rounder that combines a robust, adventure-proof design with the best fitness and sports tracking features that Garmin has to offer with a smartwatch-esque, stunningly bright, AMOLED display.

This multi-sport tracking powerhouse offers a range of training, fitness, recovery, stress and sleep tools is about as comprehensive as it gets. It matches what you’ll find on a Fenix or a Forerunner. With advanced training metrics, recovery insights, HRV, sleep and daily stress tracking plus mapping, navigation and safety tools, whether you’re fast asleep, smashing out Hyrox runs or scaling peaks, the Epix 2 Pro keeps tabs and serves up insights to help you be at your best.

Running, swimming, cycling and golf are all covered, along with tailored modes for gym-workouts like strength training, HIIT and elliptical training plus AMRAP, EMOM, Tabata or custom workouts. If you need guidance, there are animated cardio, strength, yoga and Pilates workouts. Runners can tap into daily suggested workouts, run-coaching plans for 5km to the marathon.

It comes in three sizes, 42mm, 47mm and 51mm. It’s another hefty chunk on the wrist and not the most comfortable to wear through the night to unblock the 24-7 data but it’s well built and the nylon strap boosts the comfort.

In our tests, GPS and heart rate accuracy were solid. Battery life came up shorter than you’ll get on a Fenix or the Enduro 2, but that’s the sacrifice you’re making for that stunning screen. The built-in flashlight is also a touch.

Reviewed by: Kieran Alger

Key specs

7

Fitbit Sense 2

This timepiece does way more than just logging workouts, although it impressed in that department, too. It tracks 41 activities and shows detailed in-workout stats on its crystal-clear screen, including heart rate zones.

Beyond classic Fitbit health monitoring – blood oxygen, heart rate viability and breathing rate – the Sense 2 has a continuous EDA sensor that sends notifications to alert you when your body is under stress and mindfulness sessions to help you relax. We rated the extensive sleep data via the Fitbit app and liked the ‘daily readiness score‘, which tells you when to go hard and when a rest day is in order.

This watch is let down by its lack of third-party apps, music playback and a voice assistant, but it does offer six days of battery life and has a fast-charging feature. If you’re in the market for a holistic tracker to monitor your health and wellbeing and you’re not bothered about the lack of smart features, this is your guy.

Review by: Priyankaa Joshi

Key specs

8

Best hybrid fitness watch

Garmin Vivomove Trend

Not your typical rugged Garmin, the Vivomove Trend combines smartwatch functionality with a traditional analogue design. Just flick your wrist to access notifications and view fitness stats, including heart rate, blood oxygen, sleep and stress levels (there’s also plenty more on the Garmin Connect app, from hydration to respiration tracking).

It’s the first Garmin to support wireless charging – no need to rummage around finding the right adaptor – and a quick 15-minute charge will give you up to 24 hours of battery.

If you’re after a discreet watch you can wear from the office to the gym, it’s a top choice. The touchscreen was tricky to navigate with sweaty hands and we missed third-party app integration, but these are minor quibbles. It scored top marks for step count and distance accuracy in our tests.

Review by: Priyankaa Joshi

9

Polar Ignite 3

Let’s face it, lots of fitness watches fall short in the style stakes. The Polar Ignite 3 bucks that trend with a sleek, slick design that sets it apart. It fits right in when you swap your workout gear for civvies.

Polar flags the Ignite 3 as a ‘fitness and wellness’ watch and its features are definitely geared more to casual training and building good fitness habits than your really serious gym goers. But there’s a happy simplicity to the activity tracking, workout feedback, recovery and sleep insights and the workout recommendations.

It covers all the basics like heart rate zone training and training load insights. There’s also FitSpark workout recommendations and voice guidance for recommended coached training sessions. We loved the handy work-rest guide for spotting when it’s time to do the next set.

At 35g, it’s light, compact and comfortable. Easy to keep on beyond your workouts to unlock the impressive array of 24-7 sleep, wellness and recovery tracking insights.

That includes Polar’s Sleepwise tracking with recommendations on your best times to hit the hay and Nightly Recharge recovery tool that rates the effectiveness of your overnight rest. Plus, you get Polar’s new nightly skin temperature tracking – a useful tool for spotting incoming illness.

When it comes to workout tracking and accuracy, the Polar Ignite offers dual frequency GPS. However, in our tests it failed to deliver the hoped-for accuracy boost. In short: the Ignite 3 struggles with distance and real time pace accuracy.

On the flip side, heart rate accuracy is okay for optical and the battery life is solid with 30 hours GPS training time extending up to 100 hours in low power modes. We didn’t quite get a full week’s training on a single charge but there’s more than enough juice to cover things like marathon-distance runs.

This isn’t as capable as a Polar Vantage V3 or Polar Grit X Pro but for general fitness it offers pretty solid value for money. Oh and there’s a pricier titanium option with a stronger, fancier frame but beyond the materials, performance is the same.

Reviewed by: Kieran Alger

Key specs

10

Garmin Forerunner 265

If you wince at the idea of paying £800 for a premium running watch, but you still want a training tool that does more than just the basics, the Garmin Forerunner 265 delivers. It’s a Goldilocks, sweet-spot fitness tool pairing a comprehensive suite of tracking and features with a beautiful AMOLED display, an ok battery life and a relatively compact build. And though it’s got runner in the name, it’s capabilities extend far beyond the plod.

The best part about the Forerunner 265: its library of features. There’s a wide range of workout modes – everything for open water swimming to HIIT. You can download and follow animated workouts for HIIT and strength. Strength training mode attempts to automatically count reps and sets. It’s not perfect but with a little input, makes logging gym sessions easier.

Beyond that there are very detailed performance and health insights. You get everything from mid-run performance condition estimates, to post-workout training effect, training readiness and VO2 Max fitness estimates. It’s easy to keep tabs on the impact of your sessions and the daily grind, too with heart rate variability (HRV), recovery and stress, Body Battery energy levels and sleep tracking.

GPS accuracy is excellent – about as reliable as it gets – while the optical heart rate accuracy was solid, too. Not infallible, sometimes it seemed a bit slower to adjust in real time versus a chest strap, but show us an optical sensor that doesn’t.

Throw in some smartwatch features like music and contactless payments and you’ve got a really good all-rounder with enough to suit most.

Reviewed by: Kieran Alger

Key specs

11

Polar Pacer Pro

The run-focussed Polar Pacer Pro packs many of the features you’ll find on the pricier Polar Vantage V and Grit watches but cuts the price by sticking to a basic design. The style is a tad dated but if you’re happy to trade premium materials for simpler old-school looks, there’s plenty here for running and general fitness for under £300.

That includes a pretty comprehensive suite of running, training, racing, sleep and recovery features. Polar’s running performance, walking and fitness tests are great for benchmarking your progress while VO2 Max estimates and a running index score lets you see how you compare to other runners. Runners also get tools like race time predictor, running power on the wrist while Polar’s Training Load Pro and cardio load monitoring tools offer useful training guidance. Sadly, Polar’s impressive Recovery Pro tools are missing.

When it comes to accuracy, the Assisted GPS all-systems satellite support was nicely reliable in our tests with super-fast GPS link-up. The heart rate was a bit more hit and miss but you can easily pair in a chest strap to improve your data.

With 35 hours of full GPS run time – extendable up to 100 hours in low-power modes – the battery life is very competitive. In testing it came up a bit shorter than thar but it’s still good.

There’s sadly no touchscreen but the button controls are easy to use and nicely responsive. The display isn’t anywhere near as sharp and vibrant as the killer AMOLED displays hitting the newer watches but it’s noticeably brighter than the cheaper Polar Pacer.

The built-in barometric altimeter, turn-by-turn routes powered by Komoot, route elevation profiles, automatic climb detection and back to start navigation are all bonuses at this price. So while the Pace Pro might lack the training insights and mapping and full navigation smarts of pricier rivals, the core fitness tracking is solid at a competitive price. This is a solid running watch for under £300.

Reviewed by: Kieran Alger

Key specs

12

COROS Pace 3

The COROS Pace 3 is a highly capable runner-focussed fitness watch that offers excellent bang for buck. It packs a big battery life, All Systems Dual Frequency GPS and a wide selection of sports modes – including a new trail running mode.

The Pace 3 is about function rather than flare. There’s no fancy AMOLED screen and the always-on touchscreen is no match for the brightest and sharpest displays but it’s perfectly legible in most light. It’s a bit plastic but that’s what keeps it impressively light at just 30g. The nylon strap isn’t as soft as some but I was happy wearing this day and night and for all my sessions from strength to swimming.

The COROS Pace 3 training, performance and recovery features are quite comprehensive with EvoLab training, recovery and fitness insights plus sleep and activity tracking. You also get an SPO2 Pulse Ox sensor for keeping tabs on your blood oxygen levels, Barometric Altimeter and improved navigation tools with route planning, turn-by turn navigation and breadcrumb navigation, plus a handy Back to Start wayfinder.

The killer app though is COROS’ trademark long battery life. In tests, we got around 9 days use on a single charge with 15.5 hours GPS training using a combination of Standard and Dual Frequency GPS. That included burning 8% from 2.5 hours in Standard GPS while 1 hour in Dual Frequency burned 4%.

The GPS performance was less impressive. Accuracy in Standard GPS mode was a bit hit and miss, with a tendency to read long. It was much better in Dual Frequency Mode and I found it often matched the much much pricier Garmin Enduro 2 and the COROS Vertix 2 Dual Frequency. Though you’ll sacrifice some battery life to use the more accurate setting.

On heart rate accuracy, the Pace 3’s optical sensor regularly struggled for the first 10 minutes of my workouts with a lot of high spikes early on. It was prone to spiking mid-session as well and often failed to follow drops in intensity when I stopped.

There’s not much here by way of smartwatch smarts. You get simple notifications, 4GB of MP4 music storage and playback (but no Spotify or Deezer support) plus some limited watch face customisation. But there’s no contactless payments.

Reviewed by: Kieran Alger

Key specs

13

Suunto Race

The Suunto Race joins the growing army of fitness watches packing those big smartwatch-style AMOLED displays. But this one comes in bigger – and crucially cheaper – than many of the AMOLED rivals.

The Race heroes in running but with 95 customisable sport modes, a full suite of advanced training metrics and a whopping 40-hour max accuracy battery, it’s not just a run tracker.

When it comes to general fitness insights, Suunto serves up pretty standard fare — all your usual mid-workout metrics plus training load, training progress and recovery advice. There’s also AI coaching advice, race pacing tools, HRV monitoring, sleep and activity tracking.

At 83g, it’s built more like a chunkier Garmin Fenix, Coros Vertix 2 and the Polar Grit X2 Pro. Though, if you want a similar set of skills just in a more compact design, you could look at the 45mm Suunto Race S.

The battery life is competitive for an AMOLED offering 40-120 hours. In my tests, a one-hour run using the highest accuracy GPS mode burned an average of 3%. That’s pretty stingy. Tracking your vitals overnight eats just 2% even with the battery-thirsty blood oxygen sensor on.

The accuracy-boosting all-systems, dual frequency GPS gets a big thumbs up, too. In my tests, in max accuracy mode, the dual band accuracy was at least on par with the Polar Vantage V3 and the Garmin FR965. No complaints here.

I was less convinced by the optical heart rate. Up against the Polar H10 chest strap on slow, steady workouts, the Suunto Race had a tendency to lag and lurch and during pace-changing interval sessions and runs where I shifted gears more, it suffered from delay. Basically, where optical sensors can struggle, it did.

Despite that, there’s a lot of watch here for under £400. Even if you opt for the pricier – and lighter – Titanium model, the Race is still significantly cheaper than the Garmin Forerunner 965 and the Polar Vantage V3. And keep an eye on that price. If it drops any lower in 9 months time, the Suunto Race will hit big bargain territory.

Reviewed by: Kieran Alger

Key specs

14

Best Fitbit tracker

Fitbit Charge 6

With five predecessors, Fitbit certainly knows a thing or two about activity trackers – and with a load of new features, the Charge 6 is a step up from the 5.

Aesthetics-wise, it looks pretty much the same; however, the Charge 6 boasts a haptic button on the side, meaning you don’t need to rely solely on touchscreen for navigation – useful after those extra sweaty sessions. The waterproof feature also comes into play here, as well as in the pool. Did we mention it tracks up to 40 different sport modes, compared to the six on the previous model?

It claims to have the most accurate heart rate monitor yet, which you can connect to treadmills, rowers and bikes via Bluetooth for extra visibility. As well as heart rate, it can flag any irregular heart rhythms with an ECG monitor, and there are electoral dermal activity (EDA) sensors that measure stress levels, plus personalised sleep data to help with stress management.

No pockets for your phone? Worry not, thanks to another new software feature – simply link up your Google account to use Google Pay and Maps on the go. This is great if you already have a Google account but will take some extra setting up if not. It’s also compatible with YouTube music to keep your tunes pumping day-to-day (well, across a seven-day battery life period, at least).

Review by: Priyankaa Joshi

What is a fitness tracker?

Fitness trackers cover a wide range of devices, from entry level band-style simple trackers like Fitbits that monitor the activity basics, right up to do-it-all, adventure-ready Garmin sport watches that handle everything from step counts to scaling mountains. Then there are fitness-focused watches from Fitbit and Amazfit that increasingly pack smartwatch skills while regular smartwatches from Apple and Samsung now offer serious fitness credentials, too.

What to look for when buying a fitness tracker

Fitness trackers now serve up a vast array of fitness, health and wellbeing features. Here are some of the key tricks and tools to look out for.

AMOLED Screen

When it comes to bright, crisps, responsive touchscreens, smartwatches like the Apple Watch set the pace but fitness trackers are increasingly following. The kicker here is that you tend to trade battery life for sparkly screens but the best devices are pushing those limits too. But if you want the sharpest display, AMOLED is the way.

Dual-Frequency GPS

Dual frequency GPS lets devices receive satellite signals from multiple frequencies – in theory helping to plug gaps and weed out inaccurate reads in more challenging environments like built up urban areas. Just because a watch offers dual frequency doesn’t guarantee better accuracy but it’s a good sign you’ll log better training traces.

Heart rate (HR)

Keeping tabs on your BPM during a workout is one of the most effective ways to make sure you’re getting the most from your training. The majority of fitness trackers will monitor heart rate and offer heart rate zone training, but the rate at which it’s recorded (outside of workout tracking) can vary from device to device.

It’s not all about your fitness or calorie burn, though. Many fitness trackers now continuously measure your resting heart rate (RHR) — the number of beats every 60 seconds at rest – as a reliable way of checking your heart health. They also used it to feed stress readouts. If heart health is a focus, it’s also worth looking for devices that offer ECG readings and irregular heart rate alerts.

Readiness, sleep, recovery and HRV insights

The rise of readiness redouts has been pretty swift. These attempt to crunch things like your sleep quantity and quality, skin temperature and your heart rate variability into one estimate that helps you understand how hard you should push that day. But be warned: once you start combining estimated metrics into singles scores, it increases the room for error. Taking a simple, same time, same protocol heart rate variability reading daily is a far more reliable way to get a window into how your body is handling the stresses of training and life.

Other smarts

When it comes to the tools for handling daily life, music, contactless payments, weather and chat/messaging, bona-fide smartwatches like the Apple Watch and Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra win this battle hands down. But we’re seeing brands like Garmin playing some catch up offering offline music, contactless payments, camera controls and even chat.

How we test fitness trackers

Our team has put more than 50 fitness trackers and smartwatches to the test to find the best. We lived for weeks at a time with each watch, ran, swam, hiked, biked and worked out, testing each feature of these powerful training partners, before rating the results.

For each model, we looked at the design, comfort and durability, conducted detailed side-by-side tests of the GPS accuracy, battery life and optical heart rate performance up against a chest strap. We sized up the in- and post-workout insights and recovery recommendations, including all the features that help you make progress.

Why you can trust us

All the products featured in this guide have been personally tested by our team of health and fitness journalists. Ever product listed has been editorially selected and personally tested. Retailers, brands and PRs never dictate the products we cover in our content. The products we personally receive for review are supplied courtesy of brands, but we never guarantee inclusions in return for samples. We occasionally feature promoted content in these guides, in which case they are clearly signposted for full transparency.

This article originally appeared on Men’s Health UK.

Related:

Why Olympic runners are wearing luxury watches on the track

The post The 14 best fitness watches, tested by Men’s Health appeared first on Men's Health Magazine Australia.

WEARABLE TECHNOLOGY IS quickly becoming a fitness trend, especially for those Australians looking to increase their physical activity. Not only can tools like smartwatches and smartphone applications work to improve one’s physical performance, but they can also help create a better sense of well-being.

Platforms like HealthyCoin are part of the trend that provides incentives for healthier lifestyles, all by merging fitness with tangible rewards.

The evolution of fitness wearables

In recent years, smart devices have evolved beyond simple step counters. Today’s devices offer a large suite of health management tools that can help monitor everything from sleep patterns to heart rate variability. A prominent trend for 2024 has been a focus on AI integration within these devices, which allows wearables to deliver hyper-personalized fitness advice and offer real-time feedback on workouts. They can even guide people on mental health practices such as meditation.

Smartwatches and fitness brands are incorporating even more features that help users track stress levels and sleep quality, which promote a more holistic approach to monitoring one’s health. Devices such as the Oura Ring and the Apollo Wearable go beyond just basic tracking; they use AI to suggest recovery times, relaxation techniques, and sleep optimization strategies.

The trend of hyper-personalisation

Hyper-personalization is transforming the fitness routines of people throughout Australia. Thanks to AI-powered applications, users can now receive workout plans that are tailored to their fitness goals. Whether looking to lose weight, gain muscle, or increase endurance, AI-driven personalization in fitness apps enables real-time adjustments and feedback based on an individual user’s performance.

The added integration of virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) is another trend that is appearing in smart devices and apps. These immersive technologies can help make workouts not just more powerful but more engaging and offer everything from virtual cycling races to even obstacle courses. Platforms utilizing AR or VR can create interactive environments that push users beyond their traditional gym routines, thereby allowing them to experience newer, more motivating workouts.

Gamifying fitness

One new trend is the rise of platforms that gamify fitness. One of these platforms, called HealthyCoin, taps into this idea by incentivizing users to meet their daily fitness goals with rewards, which make healthy choices not just beneficial for the body but financially rewarding as well.

The fitness industry is likely to see even more AI advancements that include even deeper VR integration and continued focus on personalized wellness solutions. By adopting fitness wearables, people have become empowered to take charge of their health in ways that were not possible before. Platforms such as HealthyCoin, while not focused on the cryptocurrency angle for all audiences, will likely continue to merge the worlds of fitness and reward, which may make the pursuit of health an engaging and potentially even profitable endeavor.

Fitness in 2024 has been more about just hitting the gym. It has been about leveraging technology to create personalized, engaging, and rewarding paths to well-being.

Whether you’re tracking your heart rate during a run or participating in a virtual fitness challenge, the future of health is becoming increasingly in your hands (or on your wrist.)

For more information about HealthyCoin, you can visit their website at http://healthycoin.fit/

Switzer Media newsroom and editorial staff were not involved in the creation of this content

The post Wearable tech and fitness in 2025: How innovation will change health appeared first on Men's Health Magazine Australia.

WITH GLADIATOR II currently in cinemas, news feeds are awash with iron clad sword wielding images of Paul Mescal as he takes on the role of Lucius Verus. And while he has disclosed some of his training for the role, how did the gladiators of the Roman Empire actually train?

Men’s Health have trawled through the history books to take a closer look and create a Gladiator inspired workout. After all, the gladiators of the time were pretty stacked, so it warranted further investigation.

What was the gladiator workout?

According to essays written by historians, gladiators trained in schools called ‘Ludus Gladiatorius’. The training that would take place was mainly combative, but they also trained with wooden weapons to avoid injury and weights such as the ‘Halteraes’ (stone dumbbells).

It is thought that gladiators of Ancient Rome adopted the Tetrad workout plan, which originated in Ancient Greece. After their incorporation into the Roman Empire, the physicians of the time spent their hours training gladiators to be in peak condition with their tried and tested techniques, one of which was something called the ‘Tetrad’ workout plan. This was a four day cycle to encourage strength and muscle gain and was one of the first recorded versions of periodised training.

What is the Tetrad workout plan?

The Tetrad (or Tetrades) was a 4-day training cycle for gladiators. Philostratus, a philosopher of the time, explained it quite simply: ‘By the tetrad system, we mean a cycle of four days, each one of which is devoted to a different activity.’

He outlined the 4-day cycle as:

• Day 1: Prep – ‘The first day prepares the athlete. Regarding exercise of the first day, it is made up of short, intense movements which stir up the athlete and prepare him for the hard workout to follow on the next day.’ This could be short intense bursts of exercise, similar to high intensity interval training and plyometrics.
• Day 2: Trial – ‘The second is an all-out trial. This strenuous day is an all-out test of his potential.’ This could be your heavy compound lifts.
• Day 3: Rest – ‘The third is relaxation. The third day employs his energy in a moderate way,’ This does exactly what it says on the tin, a rest day. Ancient Greeks also practiced breathwork on these relaxation days.
• Day 4: Skill – ‘The fourth is a medium-hard workout. While on the day of the medium workout or last day, the athlete himself practices breaking holds and preventing his opponent from breaking away.’ This could be accessory lifts or working on your weaknesses or technique.

Gladiator workout plan

Here is a 4-day workout routine inspired by the gladiators of the Roman Empire to include in your training.

DAY 1: Prep

Box Jumps

x3 reps, 5 sets

You’re aiming for explosive and high reps here, instead of endless box jumps for cardio. Stand in front of a box, with your feet hip-width apart. Jump on top, landing with both feet as softly as possible and bending your knees slightly to absorb the impact. Step back down, ready to repeat.

Plyo push-ups

x5 reps, 5 sets

Hit a strong plank position, with your core tight and hands under your shoulders. Bend your elbows to bring your chest to the floor. Keep your elbows close to your body as you push back up explosively so that your arms straighten and hands leave contact with the floor. As you descend, go straight into your next rep.

Medicine ball slams

x10 reps, 3 sets

Squat down and grab a ball with both hands. Stand up explosively and lift the ball overhead. Extend your hips and knees and come up onto your toes. Contract your abs and slam the ball down to the ground as hard as possible. Repeat, keeping each rep explosive.

Sprints

x 20 seconds on, 40 seconds off, 10 sets

Complete an all-out-effort sprint for 20 seconds. Take your recovery time, you should need it.

DAY 2: Trial

Deadlift

x3-5 reps, 5 sets

Walk your shins to the bar with your feet underneath your hips. Send the hips behind the heels and reach your hands towards the bar. Your shoulders should be over the bar and middle foot underneath. Keeping your back and head in line, retract the shoulder blades while holding your torso rigid to create tension between you and the bar. Push the floor away from you while keeping the bar close. Lock out the hips without sending the weight back and reverse the movement.

Bench press

x8-12 reps and 3 sets

Lie back on a flat bench holding a barbell in the rack above you with a shoulder-width, overhand grip. Breathe in and lower the bar slowly until it skims the middle of your chest. Push the bar back to the starting position explosively as you breathe out, ready to repeat.

Pendlay row

x3-5 reps, 3 sets

Hinge over and grip the bar. Keeping your back straight and parallel to the ground, explosively row the bar up and into your hips, before lowering the bar back to the ground. You don’t need to control the weight on the descent, these should be heavy and powerful.

Back squat

x8-12 reps, 3 sets

Stand with your feet a little wider than your hips. Keep your chest proud and your core locked. Sink your hips back and descend into a squat while the knees travel in line with the toes. At the bottom of the squat, the thighs should hit parallel or lower and your elbows should come in between your knees. Drive back up, driving through the heels and tensing your glutes at the top. Repeat.

Overhead press

x3-5 reps, 3 sets

Hold the barbell in the front-rack position with your elbows high. Take a breath and brace your core. Press the barbell overhead, while keeping the chest open. Lower under control to your shoulders and repeat.

Farmer’s carry

x30 metres, 30 seconds rest, 5 sets

Complete with olympic rings and plates, or a set of heavy dumbbells. Stand tall with your weights in each hand. Let your arms hang freely at your sides, take a deep breath into your core and begin a fast, deliberate march. When you reach a 15-metre mark, get your composure, turn around without letting the weights swing and head back.

DAY 3: Rest day

Check out our guide to breathwork here and guide to meditation here. If you would really like to do some low(ish) intensity movement, try rucking.

DAY 4: Skill

Pull-ups

x 8-10 reps, 3 sets

Grasp a pull-up bar with an overhand grip over shoulder-width apart. Lift your feet from the floor, hanging freely with straight arms. Pull yourself up by flexing the elbows while pinching your shoulder blades together. When your chin passes the bar, pause before lowering to the starting position.

Pistol squat

x5 reps each side, 3 sets

Stand with your feet in a narrow stance and lift one leg off the floor. Bend your standing knee to squat down as low as you can while keeping your back straight. Push back up to the start position through your heel, ready to repeat.

Dips

x 8-10 reps, 3 sets

Grab your bars with your palms facing inward and your arms straight. Slowly lower until your elbows are at right angles, ensuring they stay tucked against your body and don’t flare out. Drive yourself back up to the top and repeat.

Biceps curls

x10-15 reps, 3 sets

Stand tall with the dumbbells hanging in front of you, palms facing away. Curl both dumbbells upwards until your thumbs almost touch your collarbone, keep the elbows close to your waist. Lower both bells ready to repeat.

Medicine ball wood chops

x 5 reps each side, 3 sets

Stand with your feet wider than shoulder-width apart, knees slightly bent. Hold the medicine ball at one hip with both hands, the torso twisted and keep your arms straight. Use your legs to power the movement and rotate at your waist while you explosively lift the ball up above your shoulder to the opposite side. Control it at the top and reverse the movement, ready to repeat.

This article originally appeared on Men’s Health UK.

Related:

How to train like Paul Mescal did for ‘Gladiator 2’

Watch This Trainer Try a Workout Inspired by Ancient Gladiators

The post Train like the gladiators of the Roman Empire for strength, stamina and size appeared first on Men's Health Magazine Australia.

Despite his strong start, Lawson was ultimately overlooked by AlphaTauri – which has since rebranded as RB – for a permanent seat in the 2024 season. Instead, the team went with the more experienced Ricciardo and Yuki Tsunoda. Then, after a half-season of inconsistency from Ricciardo, Lawson was again called upon and was more than up for the challenge, with two points finishes in his three races so far.

Now there’s three races remaining in the 2024 season and Lawson’s seat is anything but safe. His is the only place on the grid that hasn’t been officially decided for 2025, as his position beyond this season isn’t guaranteed. The pressure to perform has never been higher for the 22-year-old. Nevertheless, he remains even-keeled.

“Even if I had a contract locked in for next year, it wouldn’t change how I approach each race,” he tells Men’s Health from Los Angeles during a video call, one week out from the Las Vegas Grand Prix. “Everything is race by race. You don’t get guaranteed a full year and if you’re not consistently performing, you won’t be in the sport for long.”

Credit: Red Bull

With two point-scoring finishes in his first three races of 2024, Lawson’s second F1 stint could hardly have gotten off to a better start. Still, the New Zealander isn’t one to rest on his laurels. “It was obviously a very good start in Austin [at the United States Grand Prix] and since then we’ve been figuring out things with the car and making little improvements, but we can always go better,” he says. “You can always improve. It’s very rare that you’ll have a perfect race.”

He attributes his fast start on the track to the work he’s been putting in off it. “When you’re not driving you can train all you like – and this year has been the hardest I’ve ever trained – but it’s still hard to get into the car for a race when you haven’t been driving,” he says. “They say you have to be ‘race fit’, which comes as you just naturally get comfortable in a car. I felt like that from the first race, to be honest.”

Race fitness is a necessity in F1, where drivers can feel G force equivalent to six times their bodyweight. “Austin was a super high G [force] track. You’re under a lot of load, it’s very hard on the neck and when you’re pulling that kind of G, it’s hard to breathe,” explains Lawson.

Credit: Red Bull

Lawson’s place in F1 has been a long time coming. He’s been in the Red Bull system for six years, but his journey to racing’s pinnacle began early in his childhood. “I started racing when I was very young. I first did go-karts at six years old and when I was 12 I started testing for scholarships to race in entry level cars,” he says. “I actually started racing a circuit car on a full-size circuit at 13 years old.”

Riding his potential into a third-place finish in the 2022 F2 championship, Lawson was quickly elevated into the conversation as a future F1 driver, and he soon became Red Bull’s go-to reserve ahead of Ricciardo. Lawson believed that during his 2023 cameo he had shown enough to earn a permanent seat for 2024, having outperformed teammate Yuki Tsunoda in four of their five races together. But with five drivers on the Red Bull roster – Max Verstappen, Sergio Pérez, Ricciardo, Tsunoda and Lawson – but only four seats available, Lawson was the odd man out.

An episode of Drive to Survive captured the moment Lawson was told he wasn’t being given a full-time role for 2024, with the visibly upset New Zealander saying “It’s tough knowing that I don’t get the seat even though I’ve beaten a guy that’s getting a seat.”

This level of candour has become a trademark of Lawson’s. He’s still adjusting to life as part of the F1 circus, and after a number of confrontations with other drivers last month, he was quoted as saying “I’m not here to make friends”. When we bring this up, he makes a clarification. “Well, I’m not here to make enemies either,” he says. “I’m learning that stuff can get taken out of context. We have to be careful about what we say and how we say it and that’s part of being a racing driver.”

It is true that Lawson probably isn’t the most popular guy in the locker room right now, with the driver drawing the ire of veterans Fernando Alonso and Sergio Pérez in separate incidents in October. That unfriendliness doesn’t extend to Lawson’s Australian neighbours from across the ditch, however – with the exception of Ricciardo perhaps, who lost his seat to Lawson.

Rather than building the standard Kiwi/Aussie rivalry, Lawson has become good friends with Oscar Piastri and Jack Doohan, the latter of whom has already nabbed a full-time seat at Alpine for 2025. “I’m close mates with both of them,” Lawson says. “Honestly, the rivalry between New Zealand and Australia is only a rivalry when you’re in New Zealand or Australia. When you escape that in an international sport like F1 and you’re on the other side of the world, I think we actually link together because we’re so far away from home.”

Credit: Red Bull

With three races left in the 2024 F1 season, Lawson’s career hangs in the balance. If he disappoints, he may not race at this level ever again. If he continues to impress, he’ll likely earn his first full season on the grid – or, if the rumours are to be believed, a promotion.

Midway through his six-race quarter season, Lawson is already close to surpassing Ricciardo’s total of points finishes in 2024. Ricciardo could only manage three top ten results across his 18 races this year, a strike rate of roughly 17 per cent. Lawson has already finished in the top ten twice and, albeit with a smaller sample size, has a points strike rate of 66 per cent.

Lawson’s run of form hasn’t gone unnoticed by the higher-ups at Red Bull who control his future. “There is always feedback from both Christian [Horner] and from [Helmut] Marko,” Lawson says. “They both play a big role in my future, so they always give feedback after each weekend. The expectation from them is high. That’s why they put me in the car.”

Getting in the bosses’ good books would be wise for Lawson if he is to secure a place at RB next season, but his ambition isn’t limited to the sister team, especially when an opportunity at Red Bull could soon open up.

Max Verstappen’s seat is unimpeachable. His teammate Sergio Pérez’s is not. Over the last 15 races, Pérez hasn’t finished higher than sixth. He is yet to win a race this season while his teammate has won eight. Pérez’s top ten strike rate sits at 71 per cent, only moderately better than Lawson’s 66 per cent. And let’s not forget that Lawson is driving a car that currently sits eighth out of ten in the constructor standings, while Verstappen is cruising to another championship in the same car as Pérez.

Pérez’s underperformance has long been a topic of discussion among F1 fans and pundits. Despite the Mexican driver being given a two-year contract extension earlier this year, rumours have been swirling that Pérez could retire at the end of the season or face retrenchment to RB. Red Bull have done little to quell these rumours, with the team still not announcing who will get the second seat at RB next year.

If a seat were to become available at Red Bull, either Lawson or Tsunoda would presumably fill it. Lawson knows the perils of assuming anything is a given too well to outright declare that the seat will be his, but he does concede that he’s aiming to get to Red Bull eventually. “My goal is to be a Red Bull racing driver in the future. That’s what my dream has been since I was a kid,” he says.

Does he have the talent to partner with a four-time champion? Lawson thinks so. “That decision comes from the team with Christian [Horner] and Helmut [Marko], but I would feel ready for that,” he says. He has three races left to prove it.

Credit: Red Bull

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We don’t want you to be duped out of your hard-earned, or into taking a DIY approach to something best left to professionals. So, before you turn to so-called testosterone-boosting supplements, here’s what you need to know about testosterone, how to know if you really do have low levels, and why higher isn’t necessarily better.

What is testosterone and how does it work?

Testosterone is a hormone required for development and function of the body, and is responsible for regulating sperm production, bone health, muscle mass and sex drive. It is produced mainly by the testes in men, but it is also produced in smaller amounts by the adrenal glands and a few other tissues in the body (including the ovaries in females).

Testosterone has profound effects on the body. Just look at the changes that occur during puberty in boys, when testosterone levels increase by a factor of 20. The extreme effects can be seen in the physiques of pro wrestlers in the ’90s (and the long list of wrestlers who died early from complications of testosterone abuse, like the Ultimate Warrior and Eddie Guerro); or the developmental problems, infertility and other health effects caused by testosterone deficiency, like for the one in 500 males who have Klinefelter syndrome.

The effects of too much or too little testosterone show why our bodies need to regulate our testosterone levels within a healthy range.

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How does the body regulate its testosterone level?

The body keeps testosterone at the right level for proper function using a negative feedback system to ensure levels don’t get too high or too low. Here’s how it works: a part of the brain called the hypothalamus monitors the body’s testosterone level. When levels are low, it signals the testes to make more. When levels are high, it tells the testes to make less.

In addition to testosterone, the hypothalamus is responsible for regulating lots of biological processes (such as digestion, metabolism, immune function, sleep and reproduction) and it integrates information from many of the body’s systems to optimise function.

What is a normal level of testosterone for men?

The normal range for levels of testosterone in the blood (in the morning, fasted) for young healthy males is around 10 to 30 nmol/l (approx. 290-865 ng/dl) and in healthy older men is around 6.5 to 26 nmol/l (187-750 ng/dl). Any level within these ranges is considered normal. Higher doesn’t necessarily indicate healthier. You can think of it like height, where anywhere between 163 cm and 194 cm is normal.

Does ‘male menopause ’exist?

The large overlap in ‘normal’ testosterone levels between younger and older healthy men shows that there isn’t a large decline with age. ‘Male menopause’ is a myth and it persists because its appeal can be exploited to sell people things they don’t need.

Some males do have low testosterone levels, but in many cases, it’s due to lifestyle-related disease, such as overweight or obesity, insulin resistance or diabetes, or cardiovascular disease. In these cases, testosterone treatment isn’t much more helpful than getting back to good health through diet and exercise.

Perhaps the myth of male menopause persists because the symptoms of low testosterone are so common. Who doesn’t have times when they lack energy, have poor concentration or trouble sleeping, are less interested in sex, or don’t feel as strong as they used to? But a low testosterone level isn’t the only thing that explains these symptoms. That’s why a precise diagnosis of hypogonadism (when your testes don’t produce enough testosterone) is needed before beginning testosterone treatment. Testosterone treatment is not appropriate for most of the possible causes of symptoms shared by low testosterone and other health problems, which include cancer or depression.

Diagnosis of hypogonadism requires at least two measurements of blood levels of testosterone and other hormones, taken in the morning, while fasting, and collected on separate days. To receive a government subsidy for the cost of testosterone treatment, serum testosterone levels must be below 6 nmol/l, or between 6-15 nmol/l in combination with other specific hormonal abnormalities.

Weighing up the ways to increase testosterone

If your body fails to make enough testosterone to function normally, you’ll need testosterone replacement therapy (TRT). We know the benefits of the treatment are substantial and outweigh the risks in these cases. TRT is provided by specialist clinicians, with careful monitoring to avoid the negative impacts testosterone treatment can cause. A fairly common consequence of TRT is polycythaemia, which increases the risk of blood clots, heart attack, stroke or death. While a large, recent clinical trial provided reassuring findings about some of the health risks of TRT, “[i]t does seem, however, that every positive testosterone study always comes with caveats”.

There are lots of caveats.

It’s important to note that most of the evidence about the effects of using testosterone comes from studies of older men, many with existing health concerns. The results from these studies can’t be applied to younger men because testosterone’s effects are age dependent. For example, testosterone can help maintain bone density in older males, but it limits height by stimulating the closure of growth plates in long bones in younger males. And side effects like infertility are less consequential for older men than they are for younger males.

Most clinical trials of testosterone treatment only last a couple of years, so long-term effects on cardiovascular health, and other systems, aren’t captured. Using testosterone to try and counter the effects of ageing is a long-term commitment. The withdrawal effects of stopping testosterone treatment often lead to starting again. That’s a consequence of that negative feedback system. Using testosterone shuts down the body’s production of the hormone and it takes months to recover.

Testosterone use for building muscle or enhancing performance often involves long-term use at high doses, so it’s reasonable to expect that outcomes will be different than after well-regulated use in a two-year clinical trial. Add to that ‘stacking’ (use of other substances in addition to testosterone), the unpredictable risks of using testosterone (and other substances) acquired from illicit sources, and risks from unsafe injecting, and there are a lot of unknowns contributing to what the overall effects will be. But we know steroid abuse is linked to cardiovascular disease, liver and brain damage, rhabdomyolysis and embolism with side effects also including gynaecomastia, acne and infertility.

What are the evidence-based ways to maintain a healthy testosterone level?

People who want to sell you things will tell you that you can ‘naturally’ boost your testosterone levels but evidence to support their use, in most cases, just doesn’t exist.

Remember, the hypothalamus takes in information from a whole range of systems when regulating the level of testosterone in the body. Testosterone levels fall when we’re unwell, so eating well, sleeping well, and being sufficiently active, all raise testosterone levels.

A ‘natural’ way to help maintain a healthy testosterone level is to maintain a healthy weight because being overweight lowers testosterone levels, particularly if you’re carrying weight around your waist.

The fundamental components involved in maintaining a healthy body, such as a nutritious diet and daily exercise, can be more effective and are certainly safer, than shortcuts to increasing testosterone levels.

Associate Professor Tim Moss is the Health Content Manager at Healthy Male – an Australian not-for-profit that provides evidence-based information on men’s health. Tim has a PhD in medicine and uses his experience and expertise from more than 20 years of work in medical research and academia to find and interpret reliable, evidence-based information, to challenge dogma, myths and misinformation. For information on everything from anxiety to fertility, exercise to erections, you can check out Healthy Male here.

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