Commercials on TV, online ahead of the viral video you want to watch, and even on the radio all reflect the theme in January. You surely don’t like your body the way it is, and it’s time to make a change! I always find that rather presumptuous – not everyone is unhappy with their body, and I can assure you that for the majority of people that are, it doesn’t magically go away in June. Yet, this is the time of year when advertisers focus on getting your money for their weight loss and fitness programs because they know you’re paying attention.
But what if you, like me, just want to have a better body, better health, and want to make a bunch of small changes to cumulatively create a lifestyle change long-term. We are the people that fad diets and fitness-in-ten businesses dislike. We’re in it for all the right reasons.
So, when given the opportunity to check out the new M200 GPS Running Watch, I thought it would be a great opportunity to learn more about the product, and my own habits. With changeable wristbands (sold separately) available in White, Fresh Blue, Mellow Yellow as well as Charcoal Black and Bright Red, this gives the user a way to personalize their product more too. I asked for a Fresh Blue band, but unfortunately was sent the black M200 with a Charcoal Black band, so not so much personalization for me.
After trying on the watch, it became clear that it was not something I would wear daily to match my own style. I found the face of the watch large (after having not worn a watch for years) and the look of the unit too “sporty” for me. The watch itself, however, is unisex so my husband was game to wear it and review it instead.
The Polar M200 is a waterproof GPS running watch equipped with Polar’s proprietary wrist-based heart rate technology, 24/7 activity and sleep tracking and of course those interchangeable color wristbands.
Designed for runners at any level, the Polar M200 provides key metrics such as pace and distance via its integrated GPS, and boasts Polar’s optical heart rate measurement, a unique algorithm developed and optimized by Polar to meet their industry-leading heart rate standards. Fully charged, Polar M200 offers six hours of training time with GPS and optical heart rate, and also tracks daily activity such as steps, burned calories, sleep time and sleep quality.
This is awesome too; Polar M200 keeps users connected by vibrating to inform them of incoming calls, messages, calendar alerts and social media notifications and reminds them to stay active with inactivity alerts. Comfortable and stylish, Polar M200 offers small/medium and medium/large changeable wristbands for the perfect fit.
Much more than “just a step counter” the Polar M200 is a mini-computer on your wrist with a crazy amount of options for not only tracking your progress, but improving it. You’ll want to download Polar Flow ASAP. It’s a free online service available as an app (iOS and Android) and as a web service. On Flow for web, users can join events and groups, watch their own or others’ training sessions via the Relive feature and search for and comment on others’ training sessions. Flow for mobile offers a glimpse into daily activity and provides suggestions to encourage users to meet their fitness goals.
The Polar M200 also offers the company’s unique Smart Coaching features such as the new Running Program, a personalized and adaptive training plan available for free in Polar Flow. As runners train, the plan offers easy-to-follow instructions to help them focus on what’s important for improvement. Users can upload training plans to the Polar M200 in order to follow targets and receive guidance before and during their runs. Other Smart Coaching features include Training Benefit and Running Index, both available in Polar Flow. They offer motivating feedback and ways to monitor running performance and progress.
All this, with two buttons on either side of the Polar M200. This, in turn, became frustrating for my husband who is the type of guy who doesn’t read instructions and just wants things to work. Yeah, that guy.
We determined that the Polar M200 is an amazing product for someone who is a runner, who participates in marathons and strives to improve their run. The Polar M200 will give that person everything they could have hoped for and more with Polar Flow, and they’ll truly be excitedly talking about everything they’re learning about their body and their workout (which, let’s face it, can be pretty intriguing when you get feedback like that). If, however, you or your loved one just wants to improve their general health, doesn’t like manipulating buttons and a computer on your wrist to give you more information that you need, this may not be the product for them – they may be better off with a step counter.
Look for the Polar M200 in Canada at Sport Chek, Sports Experts and Running Room for a suggested retail price of $189.99.
Great review! I currently have a Fitbit but have been eying up Polars for awhile.