Gear review: polar M400

I was so blessed to have won a polar giveaway contest this week. It seems a dream come true as a running watch is something I've always wanted but they are all so pricey and there are so many options. How do you choose? Easily. Win one! 

So it was announced Tuesday and I passed along my mailing address in anticipation. 

To say this week was crazy is an understatement. The last 2 weeks before Christmas the kids are crazy, filling in for missing staff, a crazy snowstorm Thursday which led to running kids out to the road to their parents as cars were in ditches and across the road, add in finding out my pregnant best friend was having an emergency c section in Waterloo as baby girl's heart rate dropped, to having to push my car out of the snow...yeah. It was a week. So getting home Friday from work and seeing a package at the door was so exciting. 

First, before all else, I had to take a selfie 

I knew I wanted to get in a run (treadmill as it was 6 by then and pitch black) before I got too hungry. 

Post run I opened my watch and started playing. 

It's so simple and easy to use. I'd read a few reviews online once I found out id won it and I mirror a lot of what I'd read. 

It's light. A little large on a slim female wrist such as mine but I like big watches. 

It's comfortable, I could easily wear it 24/7 as intended. Not certain about during showers, but I slept in it last night and that was fine. Though I may not do so regularly. 

It's more than just a running watch. It tracks your activity levels and syncs with an app on the iPhone with just the press of one button on the watch. 

It is neat to see just really how often you are sitting and standing. 

Disclaimer: Before you judge my amount of time sitting I have to let you know today I drove the 2 hours to Waterloo to see Ashley and baby Harper for the 12-2 visiting hours and drove the 2 hours back. I am so in love with my neice. 

I had originally planned on taking my watch for its first run this morn but when I got the text from Ashley to come at 12 that took priority. So we got back around 4:30 and with minimal daylight left I quickly suited up to run my subdivision 5k. 

It was about -1 so decent weather but for some reason the roads hadn't been properly plowed since our Thursday snowstorm and that snow has turned to slop on the road so my run wasn't overly speedy or straight or dry...but a run is a run! I love how big the screen is and so easy to read. It also beeps every "lap" which I've set to 1km to let me know my splits. 

It's nice to have the freedom to run without my iPhone if I want. I used to use mapmyrun and hear I can sync my watch with my mapmyrun so I can keep tracking with the app. The downfall to that is I will miss my music and the safety of find a friend when I'm lost and so my parents can track me in a race. But be read the polar M400 has a "return to start" feature when you're running and lost it helps you get back to where you started. I also know I can still bring my iPhone if I wish but I don't have to. Come winter I try to run headphone free anyway for safety. 

My watch won't freeze like my iPhone or take on water (water resistance to 30m). Consistent, visible feedback, much more accurate Gps than mapmyrun. 

Workout summary 

I like the reminder of my daily activity and how to reach it with suggestions such as walking or jogging for a set time. 

I love how personalized I can make it with 4 different options for main watch face, personalized sport profiles for what I normally partake in. Personalized goals. 

I mean, it's the first and only watch of this  type I've ever had but I have no complaints, I love it. 

It also came with a heart rate monitor that I'm excited to try out. It came with a usb cable to connect to my computer to sync workouts, set goals, track activity, personalize sports and favourites. And that's just what I've learned so far in less than 24 hours. 

It's so simple yet smart, user friendly yet complex, big and easy to read yet light. I can't wait to learn more and play more.