New Gadget - Polar F6

I started using my new Christmas gift from my thoughtful wife today. For the first time, I now understand how hard my heart is working during a run. This gadget measures heartbeat, time of runs and estimates calories burned. It does not know about elevation, so it cannot get the effort factor into the solution but it all generally averages out anyway. It keeps a weekly tally of workout times. I use my pedometer for mileage but also have several routes mapped out on MapMyRun.com to make sure the pedometer gives me what I need.

The Polar F6 has a chest band that I thought would bother me, but I rarely noticed it when running. It beeped a few times as I crossed the beat limit for my age as it automatically calculated for me. I am typically running about 6 beats over the recommended maximum for my age, and at times, get over 12 or 13 beats too high on elevation grades. The device helped me to lay back a little on the grades and put more into the level and downhill segments of the run. It is easy to use and a good reference since it is a watch, stop-watch and heartbeat monitor all on a watch-like device on your wrist.