Polar History & Watch Functions in depth
WHO WE ARE?
Listening to your body is one
thing, understanding what it is telling you is an altogether different story.
Polar helps you get under the skin of your training. We put it down to a
combination of expertise in sports, physiology and electronics, coupled with a
deep understanding of customer needs. It’s no surprise then that we’ve been
leading the way in technological innovations and heart rate monitors since
1977.
And we cater for all levels of
fitness by offering a comprehensive product range, along with essential support
and advice. Everything from improving an athlete’s sports performance to
helping people enjoy a healthier lifestyle, and aiding rehabilitation and
weight management.
This desire to be the best is
made possible by ambitious and highly talented professionals who still believe
as passionately in what we do today, as we did over 30 years ago. And our
success is clear to see. Today, Polar employs 1200 people worldwide,
manufactures all products in its fully owned factories, has 26 subsidiaries
globally and manages a distribution network supplying over 35,000 retail
outlets in more than 80 countries. Now that’s what we call the power behind
Polar.
WHITE PAPERS
Our white papers offer you a thorough description of the scientific
background of our technologies and the proprietary features in Polar products.
They were written to give you a deeper understanding of how our products and
solutions work. Each white paper comes with a short abstract and
a full-length
downloadable PDF.
ACTIVITY TRACKING
Physical activity has many benefits to health and wellbeing.Tracking
physical activity is an effective way to find out how active one really is
throughout the day. Without tracking,
people tend to overestimate time spent in
vigorous intensities and underestimate sitting and light intensity activities.
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RUNNING INDEX
Running Index is a simple and convenient way to determine running
performance. Running Index takes speed and heart rate information and squeezes
it into one validated and
comprehensible number that reflects running
performance. It is a powerful tool to follow changes in endurance fitness and
to predict future performance.
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ENERGY SOURCES AND FUELWISE
This white paper on Polar Energy sources and FuelWise explains the
scientific physiological background of key energy sources that the body uses
during exercise.
These sources are carbohydrates, fats and protein.
Additionally, the optimal fueling guidance given by FuelWise is reviewed.
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CYCLING PERFORMANCE TEST
The Cycling performance test white paper describes a test that allows a
user to determine cycling performance. This test uses functional threshold
power (FTP)
as a main parameter and requires power sensors connected to a Polar
product.
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RUNNING PERFORMANCE TEST
Endurance running is a fundamental human skill that everyone can train
regardless of age, gender or fitness level. To obtain individual training
guidance, as
opposed to general training guidance that is the same for
everybody, some performance parameters should be known. To achieve
personalization of training
guidance, we have developed Running performance
test, which is fully guided and simple to take.
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LEG RECOVERY TEST
Athletes use vertical jumps to assess their explosive leg power. Other
benefits of the jump test are automatic assessment of the recovery status of
the
neuromuscular functioning of the lower body, as well as training readiness
guidance. Now, all these features are available from the wrist as a Leg
Recovery Test, without the need for expensive equipment or a laboratory visit.
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SERENE™ BREATHING EXERCISE
Occasional mental stress is a part of training, competitions, and
everyday life. Relaxation strategies involving deep breathing, typically close
to the rate of
six breaths per minute, can be used to increase concentration,
promote relaxation, and reduce stress.
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TRAINING LOAD PRO
Polar Training Load Pro consists of Cardio load, Muscle load and
Perceived load. These all are based on training measurements or subjective
evaluation
given by user. All loads are interpreted in numerical values as well
as verbally. This white paper describes the scientific background of Polar
Training
Load Pro, its functions, and validity.
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SLEEP PLUS STAGES
Sleep is vital to overall health and well-being, playing an essential
role in many physical and mental functions. In athletes, inadequate sleep may
slow down recovery and training adaptation, impair performance and increase the
risk of injury and illness.
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RUNNING POWER
Running Power is a Smart Coaching tool that allows runners to keep track
of the external load of their running. It is useful tool for interval
and slope
training.
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FITNESS TEST
Fitness has an important role in sports and exercise training. Exercise
training targets to maintain or improve fitness. Most of the training
prescription parameters (frequency, duration, intensity) depend on the fitness
level of a person.
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SMART CALORIES
This white paper gives the physiological and technical background of
calorie estimation in wrist-worn wearables. It also gives the Polar
approach to
energy expenditure estimation, called Polar Smart Calories, and the scientific
validity of the Polar Smart Calories feature.
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GLOBAL NAVIGATION SATELLITE SYSTEM
In order to meet demands for speed and location data, Polar has
integrated GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) into its wearable
devices
since 2009. Currently, location data can be determined with nearly every Polar
sport and fitness device.
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ENERGY POINTER
Training at different intensities has different benefits. Low intensity
training increases fat oxidation and has several health benefits.
However,
research has shown that there can be large individual variation in the ability
to oxidize fat during exercise and thus more
individual, tailor-made
determination methods are needed.
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NIGHTLY RECHARGE
Night-time recovery from training and stress is a central element of
performance development, optimal daytime functioning, wellbeing,
and health.
Nightly Recharge white paper describes the principles behind the feature as
well as benefits to user. Scientific evidence and
its validity are also
presented
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H10 HR SENSOR SYSTEM
The Polar H10 Sensor System represents the latest Polar heart rate
technology. Polar system measures each heart beat which is associated with
a
corresponding phase and characteristics on the ECG. This white paper gives the
technology background of the H10 sensor and reviews the
validation study
results on the performance of the technology developed.
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ORTHOSTATIC TEST
An orthostatic test is a simple way to evaluate the body’s recovery
status. Originally developed for medical use, the test has been used in sports
science for over 20 years.
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RECOVERY PRO
Polar Recovery Pro measures how user tolerates training. It also
considers other non-sports related stress factors such as poor sleep or work
pressure. Recovery Pro gives recovery feedback and training advice. This white
paper describes the scientific background of Polar Recovery
Pro, its functions,
and validity.
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OPTICAL HEART RATE
The Polar wrist heart rate white paper includes the physiological and
technological background for Polar’s optical measurement technology.
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PRECISION PRIME OHR
Developed in-house at Polar Electro’s Research department, Polar
Precision Prime OHR (optical heart rate) is the company’s latest solution
for
optical heart rate measurement.
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TEAM PRO SYSTEM
Polar Team Pro System is designed to help team sport athletes and coaches
to optimize their training and improve overall performance while
preventing
injuries and fatigue.
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SLEEP PLUS™
Getting a good night’s sleep regularly is critical to people’s overall
health and well-being. Over time, an insufficient amount of sleep increases
the
risk for several chronic health problems including cardiovascular, metabolic,
respiratory, and mental problems.
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