Evan White

I love feedback loops, or at least the idea of them anyway.  New technology has opened possibilities and created new products but we are a long way from the day when we think to gather and analyze meaningful data.  Think of all that improvement that we are leaving on the table!

My sister gave me quite a thoughtful Christmas gift of a Polar RS800CX heart rate monitor and GPS kit.  I run a lot.  More than most, less than others, but often enough.  So this device fits my lifestyle quite nicely as a replacement for the free iPhone apps that I had been using which were convenient but severely limited.  Logging the miles is important, yes.  The Nike+ app gave pace information and integrated with google maps, but all too often would include an errant data point that would teleport me ever so briefly a good distance away.  This record setting sprint would really pad my stats, but being honest and rigorous I would have to trash an entire runs.  For a while I stuck with Runkeeper mainly because it integrated with Fitocracy and avoided duplicate data entry. With all these solutions though, the data is inaccessible and is essentially owned by someone else. MY data.  Having a Polar watch solves that.

There was a bit of a learning curve.  Never before had I occasion to use a computer’s infared port.  The watch comes with a usb infared transmitter which I didn’t at first understand how to use, thinking the watch needed to be near the transmitter (incorrect) rather than pointing at it (correct).  The watch’s setting for the year was wrong and I didn’t detect it so after transmitting data I was left wondering where it went (back to 2009 it turns out).

One of the nice things about starting to track something is that at first you become super conscious of the metric you’re tracking.  Suddenly its much easier to run in the morning to make sure the numbers look good.  Slacking is harder to do when a graph stares back at you reminding you how you let yourself down!

The software provides flexible journaling and has several graphs of weekly data to gauge progress.  I was surprised that data is collected on altitude and temperature.  The concept of sports zones is an advanced topic in running fitness that I never have heard about but have never been empowered to consider.  Most gym exercise equipment includes the capability of you hold the metallic pads while exercising.  Now this data is analyzed for me.  I have noticed that when I make sure to keep my heart rate within the moderate intensity range I can easily cover more distance and improving my speed at lower heart rates is the best way to improve my marathon time.  I can incorporate this dimension into my training plan, with HIIT and fartleks and the like to become a better racer.

There are many nice features–too many to go into too much. I can set up a training plan and get reminders.  There is a fitness test that I didn’t explore yet but need to do soon. The watch is waterproof so the whole system can be worn for the swimming portion of a triathlon (though I read that data underwater is unreliable).  Unfortunately, the battery is already low and so I will need to have it replaced.  Since the water proofing is important to me I will take the manuals advice and get it replaced at an authorized service center if there is one around. And hopefully this winter there will be many more nice days to go running!