I recieved my chistmas present early this year and couldn't be happier. Being a gadget freak I had searched out this watch sometime ago. Its called the Timex Bodylink System. It uses GPS to track speed, pace and has a Heart Rate Moniter as well. All wireless. This watch can be setup to take splits automaticly...predict finish times, zone alerts (speed & HR) interval training (with HR zones) and a lot more. Oh yah their is a fourth component in the "link" called the Data Recorder..it can be used to collect the data and then export it to PC which in turn can be anylyzed, graphed and mapped (drool). I can't wait to get that as well.
I was so excited of course I had to try it out so I fiddled with it long enough to set it up to time a 1 mile run with a pace under 10 minutes (a personal record for a slow ass like me) set it to take quarter mile auto splits...laced up the shoes and headed outside. Of course it was dark out (like that will stop me) so I had to put it in "night mode" ...it helped to see the watch but not the greatest of features (better then nothing) anyhow I pressed start (the center button) and the watch immediatly started beeping (translation get your ass moving) so I start running down the street...the beeping subsides...cool I'm on my way about a .25 mile (exactly actually) the watch beeps once....I start hauling ass even more thinking I'm running to slow..but the watch shuts up. I then realize that was just a split..I'm still good. A half mile in my neiborhood is down the street to the local pool (least according to the odometer in my Ford) so as I approached the end of the first half (the stop sign on the corner near the pool) a black dog out of know where runs at me from someones yard...as I contemplate if I'm going to kick this bastard (the dog) the watch beeps again (30 yards shy of what I thought was a half mile). I slow to a walk not to piss off the dog and then the watch starts to go bonkers!! I'll be damned if I'm going to let this mutt ruin my run. So I do a 180 and haul ass towards my house ...lucky for me fido didn't take chase. The watch quit beeping about 30 seconds later so I figured I was close. I just kept on trucking, HR was going through the roof, sweart pouring out like rain...ETC. As I ran into my yard the watch made a new sort of noise notifying me the race WAS OVER!! Yeee Haw!!! how did I do?
Well it turns out I was bit paranoid and eclipesed my original goal by almost 30 seconds as I ran a 9:31 mile....LOL..a new record for this turtle..what a great toy...I don't know how I would of done this kind of training without such a tool.
Anyway as my training goes, I'm up to running about 30 minutes with 1 minute walk break in the middle (just because the book says so) I'm very happy that I can now run more then a minute without calling the paramedics (actually 30 minutes) and look to change up my race traing schedule as the way below is to easy.
Stay tuned....
