Ultimate meaning "best watch for me". I started off with a basic running model, and it was ok, but didn't have the "Own Code" feature, so would pick up everyone else's heart rates as well as mine, and most annoyingly - didn't have a back light! It was very annoying to be training in low light and have no idea what was happening - the screen was a different colour than the watches with a back light, and it also made it hard to read.
The battery died on it ages ago, so since I'm getting back into exercise, I decided it was time for a new watch. I got the Polar F11 - a cute fitness watch which had a backlight (yay!), and seemed to do the basic heart rate monitoring features I figured I'd need. Only as it turns out, it doesn't do laps which is REALLY annoying while swimming as I can never keep track of laps, and once you start exercising, it will only tell you whether you're in the pre-determined OwnZone limits (it's a pain in the butt to tell it you're doing low HR exercise rather than high HR exercise or whatever), or it will tell you your total exercise time, and nothing else.
If I'm swimming, I want to know laps, I want to know lap times, or I just want to know the actual time! None of these I can do with my current watch. Sigh.
So now I'm thinking of selling the F11 (which is a nice basic HR watch if anyone wants it), and buying a watch that has:
Backlight
Laps
Own Code
Min., max. and ave. HR over the total exercise
"Heart Touch"
Foot Pod would be nice for when I start running again
And doesn't cost a fortune
So I'm looking at the Polar RS200SD which I believe has all of these things. Has anyone got one of these, and have any opinions on it?
Do you have a watch that also does these things and would recommend? I'd be open to suggestions for the Garmin Forerunner as well. Any opinions would be appreciated!
Sunday, June 15, 2008
Quest for the ultimate Polar watch
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2 comments:
Sarah, I have the RS200 - which is the same as the RS200sd but without the footpod (you can buy that separately if you wish to 'upgrade').
I find it perfect - own code, does laps (records AHR and MHR for the laps), has a memory, backlight etc
The only thing I have to be careful with is pressing the correct buttons to stop and record a session (and not pressing it twice, which deletes the session!) - I'm good at that now!
Re the Garmins - I don't think they're as good as HRMs. They're fantastic for measuring distance etc. I have a Garmin, but without a HRM, so I wear two 'watches' - no big deal.
By the way, the footpod part of the RS is NOT that accurate. Garmin is much better on accuracy as long as you're not running in cities with tall buildings.
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