Purchased my Polar RS300x SD from Phoenix today. My Timex Fitness HRM has been giving me erratic HR reading ever since I changed the transmitter battery. So I decided to go for the RS300x SD. I haven't used it in training yet, will do early tomorrow morning. The amount of training data & info that can be extracted from the Polar unit makes me feel really excited.

Thanks Phoenix for being such a good seller. I was a bit late due to the rain. Sorry for that. I also bought the 2XU Calf Guard from him (it fits just fine Frank). Hopefully I can sleep well tonite...

Did my first run using my new training tool this morning. I must say I'm just overwhelmed by the amount of training data I can get from the RS300x. I missed some of the features of my old Timex Fitness HRM like countdown timer & the recovery timer, but the training data is just nowhere near la. With the Timex, I can just see the amount of time I spent in the specific training zone, but with the Polar, I can see the time spent within, below & above the specified training zones. I found it a bit complicated to use at first, but I'm sure, having used Polars before, it will all come together later.

But I was quite disappointed with the Polar Personal Trainer online software. I mean, with the huge variety of data collected from my HRM (or training computer), the feature of this software really let me down. I can't upload my lap times, my Sports Zones time. So I've to create an Excel file just to store these data. I've downloaded the Polar Pro Trainer trial software, but it can only be used for RS400 models & above. So, there's no point also.

The 2XU calf guard is another success story la. I've been struggling with pain in my tibialis posterior & calf muscle ever since I started training again last week. This morning, with the calf guards on, I was running practically pain-free. There was no pain in my calf even after I took it off. To be honest, I was pretty reluctant to buy it from Frank yesterday, but now I think it's one of the best piece of equipment/clothing I've purchased ever.

I plan to do a review on both products soon. A comparison with my old Timex is in order...

?? Racekit for Mizuno collect this week ah ? Not next week ?

Relax, I started running seriously this year, & I'm already 33. It's never too late to start.

About the sports watch, I'd reckon that Ur best bet would be the Nike Sportsband. The catch is that for it to function, U have to pair it with a Nike+ compatible shoes, & to make the most out of it, U need an iPod. All that & it still can't give U heart rate function. If U total up the cost for the Nike Sportsband, Nike+ compatible shoes & iPod, U might as well go for a Polar RS200 SD or RS300x SD, which can track distance, speed, pace, & then some.

Ok, noted.

Timex is my favorite watch. Currently I have 4 of them (I've used a total of 6 Timex watches). But the question U shud ask Urself is what feature U want from a sportswatch. Only the Timex HRM models is equipped with the footpod U need to measure distance. & I haven't seen any store in Malaysia that sells the Timex with the footpod.

Before I purchased my Polar RS300x SD (last Friday, from Phoenix), I was using Timex Fitness HRM. Coming from a renowned sportswatch manufacturer, the watch feature is all there (1/100th stopwatch, 23 lap memory, etc), but the HRM feature is a bit lacking. & even though U can replace the heart rate transmitter battery Urself, it began to give out erratic heart rate reading after U changed it (well, at least in my case).

If U need just a watch to store lap time, any digital chronograph will do la. Maybe with Timex U can store more lap times. But if U need a watch that can measure distance as well, then U're gonna need something else. One of the model U can search for is the Ironman Triathlon Bodylink. But basically, U need a footpod or a pedometer to measure distance.

The Mizuno route is inside UPM I think. & UPM is very much hilly, like rolling route la. Up, down, up, down.... The starting point is UPM's stadium & the ending I tell U.... to get back to the stadium, there's one very long straight hill.... about just under 1K long. Whoever wanna take picture, station Urself on top of that hill, sure syiokk one...

This post has been edited by tenno: Oct 13 2009, 01:22 PM

Sorry, I haven't done double hills, so I can't make any comments. But I'd reckon it's about 7-8% gradient. Before the hill there's a long downhill as well, so U sprint downhill, & hope U can carry the momentum to carry Urself up the other side la.

Next month ? This year got Setia Alam Half edi, another race ah ? Good la like that. Even better if they have it at Setia Alam, nice, flat course....

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Added on October 14, 2009, 12:18 pmI thought during the Men's Health run LYNetters did meet up before the race ? Come la, let's meet up during Mizuno. After race la, before might be a bit difficult...

This post has been edited by tenno: Oct 14 2009, 12:18 PM

U can register here. Closing date is 3/11/2009

Klang Pacers Blogspot

Question for ccube :

I'm seriously considering the Newton shoes, I've been running on my forefoot for quite sometime now & I guess with Newtons I can take it up a notch & get better performance. Question is, if I can afford only one Newton shoes, which one would U recommend ? The trainers or the racers ?

Thanks.

Ok boss, thanks. Will let U know later.

Well, it's more like an investment. Judging from Choi's blog about some of the testers' verdict during the McDonald's run & Siemens run, I think it's worth a try. Maybe he can let me try the shoes first before buying... can ah Choi ?

Now, I just need to find an excuse to tell my wife why should I buy a shoe that would cost more than all my current running shoes.. combined !!!

US11. I can wear same size like my current shoes right ?

U going for the Mizuno run ? Maybe I can try it there.

Train on hills... a lot...

The race will give out medals to the 1st 1200 finishers, then the remaining will get Mizuno shoebag... I'd rather get the shoebag la... or better still... both..

This will be my sorta comeback race, after more than 3 months.

No limit la. Just that the medals are for the 1st 500 finisher only. U sure can be in that 500 la... no sweat one...

Dun worry la, pizzaboy dun come in here, so to post this kinda question here is quite safe.

Come to think of it, we shud have this topic as a subforum, or at least pinned.

It depends on quite a lot of factors, like goal, budget, features, etc.

If U just wanna run for fun, not training etc, a simple sports watch with a stopwatch will do. This will enable U to keep the time ran on Ur favorite route, & if U run the same route everytime, U'll be able to tell whether U've improved simply by clocking a better time.

But if U wanna know how much effort U've put into Ur run, how much calories U've burned, if Ur training to achieve a specific goal, then U might wanna consider a watch with heart rate monitor feature. There are complicated ones, as well as simple ones. Well-known heart rate monitors like Polar, Timex, Mio, even Garmin, they have several models to suit different needs. Some models just display heart rate readouts. Some models allow U to set lower & upper limits so U can set Ur target training zone.

The ultimate ones of course have so many features that might not be that useful to casual runners (unless U have the budget, of course). These can record Ur workouts & allow U to analyze so many things. Some can also measure the distance U've run, some can also record mileage for particular shoes Ur using.

When I started running I just used a simple Timex 1440 sportswatch. After about a year, when I started entering races, I bought the Timex Fitness HRM. Now that I wanna go faster in races (plus the fact that the Timex is no longer reliable), I use Polar RS300x SD.

The device itself won't make U go faster. But the way U use it, U can train more effectively when U know how hard exactly Ur running. U can follow a training program & prevent from going too hard on easy days, too easy on hard days. U can learn to push Urself, discover the limits of Ur body. I can go on & on about this, but in the end, it depends on Ur running goal.

I think ccube uses Garmin, I think FR60 (right, ccube ?). Garmin Forerunner 405 also is am advanced model, uses GPS to measure distances.