Polar Product Day - M400

Product: M400
Designed for: Runners/Walkers and people who want to keep an eye on their fitness
Price: $199.95 w/o Heart Rate Sensor; $249.95 with Heart Rate Sensor
What Comes In The Box: M400 Unit, H7 Heart Rate Sensor, USB Cord, Getting Started Literature (No Heart Rate Sensor if purchased without it)

Say Hello to Polar's newest training computer, the M400. This little guy/girl is a truly all-in-one unit, especially if you are a runner or walker.

Since around September, I have been using a Polar Loop and the Polar RC3  in conjunction with each other. The Loop is an all-day activity tracker; it tracks your activity, sleep, calories burned & steps, and if used with the H7, can be used during workouts (see my previous blog post). The Polar RC3 is a GPS and heart rate monitor, that I used during workouts & races, including my half marathon.

But this little baby, it replaces both of those! How? Because the M400 is an all-day activity tracker & a GPS all rolled into one sleek, great looking watch. Now you might be saying "Man, this Polar ambassador is really laying it on thick", but I swear to you, I'm not making ANY of this up. I am seriously in LOVE with this watch. Since the day it was announced (which of course escapes me at the moment), I've been waiting to get my hands on it! And now that my hand is on it, I'm not taking it off!

So, lets get some nitty gritty details shall we? The M400 has built-in GPS, so you can track your distance, pace, and altitude. And if you are looking for new routes on your runs, the Back to Start feature is awesome! The M400 tracks your daily activity, including calories burned and steps taken. But what I love about the unit is it tells you how much more "activity" you need to reach your daily goal (the photo above is an example. The activity can be standing, walking, or running. It's not just steps, it's any activity, which I love. This unit is magic somehow (kind of like the Loop) and can judge your movement super accurately. I hear there are tons of little sensors in it, but it got kinda technical ;)

As with the Loop, the M400 syncs up to Polar Flow (web) and to the Flow mobile app (iOS users only right now. Polar expects Android service to be up and running soon, to which I am patiently waiting)

The M400 comes in Black and White and the compatible heart rate sensor, the H7, comes in a variety of fun colors!

As always, let me know if you have any questions!

Polar Wednesday - H7 Heart Rate Sensor & Polar Beat App

Product: H7 Heart Rate Sensor & Polar Beat
Designed for: Various Sports/Training
Price: $79.95/App is free
What Comes In The Box: H7 Heart Rate Sensor and Strap

If you are looking for a reasonably priced training aid, the Polar H7 Heart Rate Sensor is perfect for you. The H7 is a heart rate sensor that is bluetooth enabled and links up with several of the Polar products.

But what sets this heart rate monitor strap apart from the others is the integration with the Polar Beat The H7 will turn your phone into the training computer, creating a pseudo watch/heart rate strap experience. Turn on your phones GPS, and you have a GPS device, turn off your GPS, you have a cross-training device. It work for all types of exercises and fitness.The Polar Beat app is available for both iPhone and Android\and is completely free. But the information you get from it is invaluable.

You are able to plan, train, analyze and share (because a workout isn't a workout unless it's posted on FB, #amiright?)

Polar Beat will allow you to plan your training sessions, allowing you to set  calorie burn or distance goals. In the Training mode Polar Beat with give you "real-time graphical and voice guidance" to ensure you are reaching the goals you set. Once your session is done, you can analyze your heart rate zones, distances, calories burned, etc, with great charts and easy to read outputs. Finally, you can share your training results to Twitter or Facebook, showing your family and friends how totally awesome you are!

The H7 is also compatible with several other Polar products, including the new V800 and the Polar Loop (which I will be doing a write-up on soon, as I've been wearing it for a couple weeks now).

The H7 comes in three great colors, Pink, Blue and Black and is waterproof and can be used in conjunction with other waterproof Polar products.

If you have any questions - let me know! Are you currently using a the H7 or the Polar Beat app?

Polar Wednesday - FT4

Polar FT4 in Purple/Pink
Photo from Polar's website

Product: FT4 Heart Rate Monitor
Designed for: Fitness and Cross Training
Price: $99.95
What Comes In The Box: 

• Polar FT4 training computer 
• Polar H1 heart rate sensor 
• FT4 Getting Started Guide

The Polar FT4 is your basic heart rate monitor, as it counts calories burned and tracks your heart rate in relation to your Target Heart Rate Zone. The Polar FT4 is perfect for any type of cross training or fitness, and is even suitable for swimming. 

Setting up and using the FT4 is simple. Upon receiving, just input your basic settings, like height, weight and gender and you are set to go! 

For heart rate tracking, the Heart Rate Sensor will need to be worn. The FT4 will link with this to accurately keep track of your heart rate during workouts.

Currently, there are 4 colors available, Pink, Silver, Green, and Black. 

The FT4 was my first heart rate monitor, so I can personally vouch for it's usefulness and ease. It is a quality product and once I moved on to a new device, I passed it along to a friend, whom is still using it today (she also loves it!). 

For more information on the Polar FT4, you can visit the Polar website at http://www.polar.com/us-en/products/get_active/fitness_crosstraining/FT4. Or, feel free to ask me any questions you might have!

Guess Who Is Now A Polar Ambassador??

I'll give you ONE guess!

I am turly humbled that Polar is giving me a chance to be their ambassador. It means a great deal to me!

So here is a little about the company...

From their website "At our heart we’re all about getting people fit and improving their physical performance, but more than that, we’re about pushing boundaries in everything we do. Take a look through the About Polar section and see for yourself. Who we are, what we do, our history and the innovations that make us unique – it’s all here waiting for you to discover." Polar was founded in 1977 in Finland and by 1982 they had their first wireless wearable heart rate monitor. They have a pretty cool timeline on their site of the accomplishments they have had.

My first HRM was by Polar and I purchased it about 2 and a half years ago. I went with the FT4. It came highly recommended by many people on FB and it did what I needed it to do, track my calories while working out.

Once my needs started to change (ie, I started running), I wanted something that would track my distance as well as my calories burned. I asked around and although people suggested a Garmin to me, I went with my gut and got another Polar, the RCX3 GPS and I certainly didn't regret it. The GPS was spot-on, it fit me well, it allowed me to use it for crossing training as well (something some of the Garmins don't really allow for) and I already knew the basics of using it (which BTW, these products are SO easy to use).

Now, I am once again upgrading, I will now be using the RC3 GPS and will be trading in my Fitbit for a Polar Loop. In the coming weeks, I'll give you some reviews on those, since I am just starting to use them.

So what does this mean for my readers? Well, I am going to be doing weekly Polar posts on here, introducing different products, giving you info, etc. You will start to see more of my photos with the hashtag #teampolar, which won't affect you, but, you'll see it. And I have some more things up my sleeve, but you'll have to wait!

So, tell me, does anyone have any Polar products?