How to mix it up when you love too many outdoor sports Allround mountain sport athlete Anton Krupicka shares how he strikes a balance with the four sports he loves. ”Embracing a variety of mountain sports has made me a more well-rounded athlete. It’s also extended my running career - there’s no way that I could only run now and stay healthy enough to race and have it be sustainable. That’s the main benefit,” Anton says. Read more   Who’s having the most fun? Feeling is an excellent metric for recovery. If your feelings after exercise start to trend downwards, something is not right. You may be pushing too hard, not recovering well enough or might be getting sick. Consider taking a break or doing something different for a change. But in addition to helping you track your recovery, feeling data reveals more. Here are six interesting findings about Suunto community, based on the data from Suunto app database. Read more   5 reasons why endurance athletes should do high-intensity strength training To improve vertical speed and endurance, high-intensity resistance training should be an essential component of your training plan, says sports scientist, coach and athlete Susi Kraft. She is concerned many endurance athletes, whether trail runners, mountaineers or cyclists, believe they can skip the gym altogether or just do a little bodyweight training and that will suffice. “One of the most common myths in the endurance world is that athletes should avoid lifting heavy weights, as they don’t need that for endurance, or that it will cause them weight gain and may slow them down,” Susi says. “This is just a myth. Actually, HIRT will make you faster, stronger and less prone to injury.” Read more   Allyship in the outdoors: what is it and how to be a good ally for others? Strong allies make for safer, more welcoming outdoor spaces. In this article by Suunto athlete, ultra-runner and diversity champion Ryan Montgomery, he explains allyship and how we can all be good allies in the outdoors. “Not everyone feels welcome, nor safe, in the outdoors. Diverse communities – our queer, LGBT, people of color, and peers with disabilities – often experience limitations that prevent them from getting outdoors. Each of us plays a role in eliminating barriers to outdoor spaces for others; being an ally is what will make outdoor recreation safe and accessible for all people,” writes Ryan. Read more   15 tips for beginners to fall in love with snorkeling Dipping beneath the surface of the ocean opens up an incredible new world. It can expand our minds and bring us closer to our blue planet. With snorkeling, there’s no need for dive training or to carry heavy dive equipment. All you need is a good mask and snorkel, fins, a rash guard, reef-safe sunscreen, basic knowledge, and the new Suunto 9 Peak Pro so you can use the “snorkeling mode”. Read more   And there’s always something to learn! In addition to inspiring and insightful stories, several how to articles were frequently read. Check these out, for example. Living peak adventure – How to navigate with Suunto With a GPS watch from Suunto, a world of adventure is at your fingertips. Learn how to find, create and navigate routes that’ll keep you stoked. Read the five-part article series How to use Karoo 2 bike computer with Suunto Hammerhead Karoo 2 is a Suunto compatible cycling computer that brings advanced navigation features, Suunto heatmaps and intuitive software to your handlebars. But there’s more to it than that! Read more Suunto app goes big On a big screen device like an iPad or an Android tablet you can experience richer texture and detail while planning routes and analyzing your training data. Learn more Track your human powered commutes with Suunto Living a more sustainable life starts with small, everyday choices. And, when done often enough and by enough people, these small changes will add up and start to have an impact. To support you in this, we have added the ability to track your human-powered commutes with Suunto app. Learn more Plan your interval workouts with Suunto app Build a workout in Suunto app and let your watch guide you through your session! This is especially useful with complex sessions, like intervals. Use Suunto app to build the workout step by step from warm-up to cool-down. Learn more

Suunto athlete and outdoor sports junky Gregor Strasser has been using ActiveLook-powered Julbo smart glasses with his Suunto for a few months, but is already liking what he’s seeing. He’s been testing them in the mountains above Salzburg in Austria and loves the way the most important performance data is always right there, displayed on a lens. “I’m a technology freak and hoped they would make my everyday training easier,” Gregor says. “Of course, you have to get used to the new field of view, but once everything is perfectly adjusted, you can hardly imagine it any other way.”   Focus on what matters ActiveLook is a division of Microoled, the second largest micro OLED supplier in the world. ActiveLook produces an embedded head-up display technology that fits into sleek, lightweight frames and lenses. Marketing & partnerships director of ActiveLook, Xavier Bonjour believes smart glasses are going to revolutionize outdoor sports. “When you have the data displayed in your field of vision, you can better manage your effort and no longer need to look at your watch anymore,” he says. “We’ve tested our technology with athletes at the Copenhagen, Boston and Paris marathons. All the users beat their personal bests by two to five minutes.” All Suunto 9 and Suunto 5 watches are compatible ActiveLook is a display technology used by various sport glass brands such as Engo, Julbo and Cosmo. And now this technology is compatible with the all the Suunto 9 and Suunto 5 watches, including the the new Suunto 9 Peak Pro. It gives Suunto watch owners their key data directly in their field of view, on the inside of their lenses. “Thanks to the overhead display, you always have the most important training parameters in view,” Gregor says. “Especially in urban areas with a lot of traffic or on rough trails in the mountains, it's great not to be distracted by having to look at my watch or bike computer. This increases safety during the training sessions because you always have everything in view and can fully concentrate. I have never been able to track my performance data in such detail and always stay up-to-date. The glasses give me completely new insights that I didn't have before.”   How the technology works ActiveLook display technology consists of the following components: A high-precision micro-projector: the data is projected to the right eye, and the perceived position is between the upper center and upper left. It varies from user to user based on individual morphology, head size, and distance between pupils. A low power display Dialog based ”Smart Wearable on Chip” Custom lens coatings to maximize visual experience Ambient light and gesture sensors A battery with up to 12 hours power A charge connection on the bridge A high brightness, 304 x 256 pixel, yellow data display Low power (1mW) thanks to a “memory pixel” that avoids the need for refresh scanning. Smart sport glasses weigh between 30 and 40g The miniaturized and invisible augmented reality technology displays essential performance data without obstructing the field of vision. A smart chip integrated into the eyewear projects data to a discrete near-eye display that “melts” into the optics. It gives access in real time to whatever data is monitored by athletes as they train or compete, such as distance, duration, speed, pace, power, or heartbeat. Train smart and boost motivation Activelook-powered smart glasses are the perfect gadget for activities when looking at a watch is difficult, such as mountain biking in technical terrain, running hard intervals, or cross-country skiing. The technology displays the essential workout data from the watch, such as heart rate, pace, power as well as turn-by-turn navigation information. “When you have visual data right in front of you it can be very motivating,” Xavier says. “Like your own personal coach.”   Getting used to them Xavier says it’s hard to explain how they feel to wear. “It’s a little like wearing a watch or a ring for the first time,” he says. “The first time you put the glasses on it’s a new experience , but once you start moving you forget about them and it becomes natural. When you look ahead, the display disappears - you intuitively learn where to look to see the data. And when you take them off again, you feel something is missing. Like misplacing your smartphone.” If possible, test them at a shop before you buy, Gregor advises. “Unfortunately, these glasses are not cheap and everything should feel good and fit perfectly.” How to use with Suunto After turning on your ActiveLook glasses, simply open the SuuntoPlus ActiveLook sport app in your watch and start your activity. If you don’t have ActiveLook sport app available in your watch yet, go to SuuntoPlus Store in Suunto app and select "Add to watch". During your activity, the app will send data to the glasses (types of data available varies model to model). When using navigation with waypoints, notifications will be delivered ahead of the waypoint so you don’t miss your turns. Note: Make sure your Suunto 9 or Suunto 5 watch is updated to the latest software. Discover ActiveLook-powered sport glasses ENGO sport glasses Cosmo Vision sport glasses Julbo's Evad-1 sport glasses   All images by Gregor Strasser

Avalanches are an integral part of the natural cycle in the mountain environments. The potential for avalanches exists on steep and even moderately steep snow slopes. When the terrain and the snowpack are right (or wrong for the backcountry travelers) avalanches can happen. While the snow changes throughout the season, the terrain doesn’t. For snow to slide, the slope must be steep enough. Most avalanches occur on slopes between 30 and 45 degrees. That’s why we have added a new map layer in Suunto app highlighting those critical slope gradients. You can use Suunto app and the Avalanche terrain maps on your phone, Android tablets, iPads and even newer Mac computers (Mac's with a M1 or M2 processor). You can find the Avalanche terrain map layer in Suunto app: Go to the map view, tap the map layers button, and select the Avalanche terrain map layer. The darker the color, the steeper the slope. This information will help you plan your routes in the mountains. While planning the route, you can change between the different layers, like a regular outdoor map, the Avalanche terrain map, a ski touring heatmap and more. A very important thing to understand about the Avalanche terrain map – and avalanches in general – is that avalanches may run out on flat and low-angle terrain. So, in addition to thinking where you are or where you plan to travel in the mountains, pay attention to what’s above you. Especially slab avalanches can be triggered remotely. A fracture in the snowpack can propagate along a weak snow layer until it reaches a part of the slope that is steep enough to slide. Antti Autti studying the snowpack in Northern Norway. Backcountry snowboarder and Suunto ambassador Antti Autti says he aims to plan his routes with as little exposure to avalanche danger as possible. “The further I can go without being in any avalanche terrain the better,” he says. After planning a route using Suunto app he syncs it to his Suunto 9 Peak Pro for navigation. “But no app alone is gonna keep me safe in the mountains. It is important to constantly educate myself and learn about snow safety so I can make the best possible decisions in the mountains,” he notes. Images by Jaakko Posti READ MORE 8 steps for planning trips in the mountains How to find your way in the mountains 8 avalanche safety checks to tick off before the ski season Follow Antti Autti’s adventures in his Arctic Lines video series where he ventures deep into the Arctic Circle in search of epic, unique and unridden lines in the frigid reaches of the Nordic north.

GPS is just one of many. It stands for Global Positioning System and is a US based global navigation satellite system (GNSS). There are four other GNSS and counting. With more of them connecting to your navigation device you’ll get better accuracy, more often, than with one only. That’s because it’s more likely a satellite will be directly above your position and able to send and receive clear, fast, unobstructed signals. How GNSS work It almost seems like science fiction: hundreds of satellites in orbit around the planet sending and receiving signals from billions of devices. But how does it all work? A GNSS system is a group of satellites strategically placed in orbit to generate and relay geospatial data via radio signals to connected sensors on the earth – including your Suunto watch. GNSS satellites orbit the planet once every 11 hours, 58 minutes and two seconds. Each satellite transmits coded signals containing the satellite’s precise orbit details and a very stable time stamp from an atomic clock. GNSS systems have three parts: Space: the satellites orbiting our planet. Control: This part includes ground stations located around the equator to control, monitor, track and communicate with all the satellites. Users: That’s you and your Suunto watch. Or your mobile phone. Your car’s navigation system. The entire IoT! Each device includes a GNSS receiver which comprises an antenna and a processor. The former receives the signal, while the latter decodes it. Five systems is better than one With the release of the Suunto 9 Peak Pro, navigating with a Suunto watch and accurately tracking the route of your activity has never been better. The GPS, Galileo, GLONASS, BeiDou and the QZSS global navigation satellite systems all work with the new sleek and versatile watch. Moreover, the watch’s navigation system is controlled by a new Sony chip that requires less power, resulting in less drain on the battery. “The increased number of visible satellites that can be utilized simultaneously will improve the likelihood your watch positions you accurately,” says Markus Kemetter, product manager at Suunto. “This is especially the case when you’re in areas with obstacles, such as a city with skyscrapers or between steep mountains where part of the sky is blocked. “In addition to being more accurate, the Suunto 9 Peak Pro’s navigation system consumes less power giving the user longer battery life.” “Another super important thing affecting your tracking accuracy is the assistant data coming from Suunto app every time you sync,” Markus continues. “Keeping that up to date is crucial for accuracy – so sync regularly.” They work together by default With all those satellites orbiting the planet and connecting to your watch, it doesn’t matter whether you’re running in Manhattan or mountaineering in the Himalayas. You can count on the best accuracy of any Suunto device we’ve ever made. And there’s no need to fiddle with the settings to make any selections. In the Suunto 9 Peak Pro all five GNSS are simultaneously active by default. You don't need to do anything" Change your navigation settings to extend your battery life You can change the Suunto 9 Peak Pro’s navigation settings to extend its battery life. Performance mode This is the setting for optimal accuracy. In Performance modem, the Suunto 9 Peak Pro’s battery can last for 40 hours before requiring a charge. Endurance mode Selecting Endurance mode in your Suunto 9 Peak Pro puts the watch’s navigation chip into “duty cycle mode” – it sleeps half a second and switches on for half a second to get a fix. This extends the battery life and provides a less accurate, but still reliable track. The accuracy will, however, become poorer in more difficult terrain. Tour mode In this mode, the watch’s battery can last up to 300 hours. The mode extends the battery life by having the navigation chip on for 1–2 minutes every 30 minutes. This reduces the accuracy and is usually used by people who are traveling light and fast, can't regularly access a charge and don’t want to carry a battery pack with them. Lead image: © Philipp Reiter

Feeling is an excellent metric for recovery. If your feelings after exercise start to trend downwards, something is not right. You may be pushing too hard, not recovering well enough or might be getting sick. Consider taking a break or doing something different for a change. But in addition to helping you track your recovery, feeling data reveals more. Here are six interesting findings about Suunto community, based on the data from Suunto app database. 1. Activity type does matter: The best feelings on average are recorded after dancing, downhill skiing, horseback riding, badminton and snowboarding. 2. Two activity types stand out as exceptionally poor: The feelings after running and trail running are clearly below other activity types. 3. Weather does not have a big impact on the feeling – unless it is a torrential downpour: The activity type, for example choosing cycling over running, has a much bigger impact. 4. Gender makes a difference: Women have more (or at least as much) fun as men in all other activity types except soccer. 5. Age does not matter: The age of the athlete did not have a correlation with the mood after exercise. 6. Country heavily impacts the mood: People exercising in Austria, China, Croatia, Poland and Serbia are generally feeling exceptionally well after a training session, while France, Italy, Japan, Spain and Sweden are in the opposite end of the list with much poorer feelings after working out. In addition to fun facts, the data also reveals interesting trends: As an example, the feeling in cycling, swimming and walking rose to a new, higher level in March 2020 and has stayed on that higher level. Changes in other activity types since Covid pandemic started have not been as clear. Happy adventures – and keep on tracking your activity feelings for your own wellbeing and our shared interest! Lead image: Harald Wisthaler Bikewash image: Anthony Bonello

All photographers have been there: you’re heading up into the mountains to capture that long sought after moody landscape, but arrive just as the light gets that touch too low or too bright. It can be so frustrating, right? Pro adventure photographer Maximilian Gierl knows the feeling well. He says that’s why it’s so exhilarating to finally capture the perfect shot. It takes patience, time, often disappointment, which makes it that much sweeter when he nails it. Take for example the shot below of him jumping on a trail in Chamonix with Mont Blanc in the background. He had it in mind for years, but the conditions never played ball when he visited. And then finally he got the sweet taste of success.“This is a shot when everything just aligned,” Maximilian says. “I love being in Chamonix in autumn - the clouds, lakes and forest are so special. When we got to Chamonix, I saw I could finally get this mood I had been searching for for years. I ran up 1400 m as quickly as I could to get it.” Climbing 4000ers and mastering timing From Germany and living in Switzerland, Maximilian has recently finished an alpinism challenge he began in 2015: climbing all 48 of the alpine nation’s 4000 m mountains while documenting the adventure. “It’s pretty good for someone who didn’t grow up with mountaineering,” he says. “I started mountaineering in 2015 and climbed most of them in the last two years.”For Maximilian, the best outdoor shots are moody with a mix of cloud and light. “I love to shoot landscape scenes you can’t shoot one day later again,” he says. “It’s a challenge and hard to plan. If it happens and you nail the shot, it’s super crazy.”With timing being everything, Maximilian uses his Suunto 9 Peak to manage his photography adventures.His watch helps him get to his shot locations on time for the best light conditions. Here are four ways his Suunto helps him nail epic shots. Navigate in the dark The last of Switzerland’s 4000 m giants Maximilian climbed was Lenzspitze (4294 m), which is famous for its imposing north flank - a 50-55-degree ice wall. Maximilian and his climbing partner followed a route on their Suunto watches to climb the face and reached the summit before sunrise. “When going to shoot in new places, I plan the route in Komoot and transfer it to my Suunto,” Maximilian says.” This is especially helpful when I’m ascending in the morning when it’s still dark out. Then I use the navigation and it’s super helpful and easy and means I get there on time.” Read more: How to find routes that rock How to create your own routes Set sunrise and sunset alarms Maximilian uses his watch to make sure he’s on location for the golden hour (the last hour before sunset and the first hour after sunrise) and the blue hour (one hour before sunrise and one hour after sunset), when the light is best for photography. His watch also shows him how long the blue hour, his favorite time for photography, will last. Maximilian sets sunrise and sunset alarms to help with time management so he’s in the right location at just the right time. “Knowing the time of sunrise at my location helps me to get as much sleep as possible while still being on time at the planned spot,” he says. “I time the alarm 10-15 minutes before I need to go.” The sunrise/sunset alarms in Suunto 9 watches are adaptive alarms based on your location. Instead of setting a fixed time, you can set the alarm for how much in advance you want to be alerted before the actual sunrise or sunset. Read more: how to set sunrise and sunset alarms. Get key info at a glance with Suunto’s Outdoor watch face The Outdoor watch face for the Suunto 9 Peak, Baro, 9, 5 and 3 watches allows users to track conditions and daylight hours with just a quick glance. No need to press buttons or scroll – the essential info is presented on the main screen. Maximilian uses it to help him stay on time and to determine when is the best moment for a shoot. “Just a quick look on my watch tells me all the important information like the current altitude, moon phase and time until sunrise or sunset” The watch face features a sun gauge that displays the number of night and daylight hours before sunrise and sunset. Tap the screen once, and the watch face displays the number of hours until sunset or sunrise, plus the battery life remaining, or the moon phase, which is helpful because on a full moon night you know you’ll have extra light to stay out a little longer. Read more about the Outdoor watch face here. Following the moon phases Maximilian uses the Outdoor watch face to track the moon phases on his watch so he knows when is a good night and time to shoot the night sky. “It tells me when the night sky will be at its darkest,” he says. “I can then plan when to shoot the Milky Way.” Read more about tracking moon phases here. All images: © Maximilian Gierl Photography