Polar F11 Heart Rate Monitor

The Polar F11 heart rate monitor is an advanced heart rate monitor. The Polar F11 is the next model up from the F6 in the Polar fitness series. Its features are built on top of those of the Polar F6. One significant enhancement on the F11 is the introduction of a training program known as Keeps U Fit. This function lets you plan your future sessions, taking into account your goals, workloads and available time.

Note: BPM = Beats per Minute. % of Max HR = Percentage of Maximum Heart Rate.

The main features of the Polar F11 heart rate monitor are:

• Continuous heart rate monitoring
• Polar Fitness Test: It is a simple test and it gives you a score called OwnIndex (comparable to VO2 Max) measuring your cardiovascular fitness.
• Polar Keeps U Fit personalised training program to help plan your workouts. More details below.
• Manual setting of heart rate training zones
• Two automatic methods of setting heart rate training zone: one age-based and the other fitness-based on the DAY of your exercise (OwnZone)
• Both automatic methods allow you to choose four exercise intensities to determine you heart rate training limits: Basic, Light, Moderate and Hard
• Heart rate can be set and displayed as BPM or % of Max HR
• Heart rate zone audio alarm beeps when you train above or below your target zone
• Visual zone pointer on the wrist watch keeps you training within your target zone
• Instant (and post-exercise) display of calories burnt (OwnCal)
• Instant (and post-exercise) display of time in target zone
• Stop watch to start and stop exercise session
• Short post-exercise summary: Duration, calories burnt, average heart rate, maximum heart rate
• Full post-exercise summary (Daily File): Time started, duration, calories burnt, fat percentage of burnt calories, maximum heart rate, average heart rate, time in training zone, training zone limits, and more info if you use the Keeps U Fit program
• It stores the last 12 Daily Files (exercise sessions).
• Current week summary (Diary). It gives the sum total of stats for this week: total number of sessions, total duration, total calories burnt, and total time spent in your light, moderate and hard exercise zones. It is saved every Sunday as a weekly file.
• It stores the last 12 Weekly Files.
• Cumulative stats of sessions since the last reset date: Total number of sessions, total duration, total calories burnt
• Seven different reminders can be set to remind you of important events.
• Display language can be chosen from: English, German, French, Spanish
• Basic time keeping: Time, day of the week, date, alarm
• Backlight
• Polar UpLink to transfer data from a PC to the heart rate monitor. (Requires a Windows PC with a sound card and loudspeakers or headphones.)
• Polar WebLink/SonicLink to transfer data from the heart rate monitor to Polar's fitness trainer website. (Requires a Windows PC with a sound card and a microphone. )
• Wireless heart rate monitor with a coded analogue chest strap transmitter (WearLink) and a wrist watch receiver. The WearLink chest strap's battery can be self-replaced.
• Water resistant up to 50m

The Polar F11 heart rate monitor incorporates all the main features of the Polar F6, with some very useful additions. The differences between Polar F11 heart rate monitor and the Polar F6 are highlighted in bold in the list above. Two of the most important ones are the Polar Fitness Test and Polar Keeps U Fit.

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Polar Fitness Test

It gets better. Each time you do the test, the OwnIndex test result is saved in a tool called the Fitness Test Trend. The Fitness Test Trend stores up to 47 OwnIndex results and presents the results as a graph. You can review your fitness progress through the months by looking at the graph. It can be quite satifying to see you OwnIndex increase as a result of your training.

Polar Keeps U Fit

In all the preceding models (i.e. FS1, FS2, FS3, F4 and F6), the assumption is that you plan for your training sessions, and the monitor simply keeps you training within the limits that you have set yourself. The monitor is acting in a passive role.

The situation is different for the Polar F11. By telling the monitor what your goal is and the amount of time you can devote to it, the Polar F11 heart rate monitor comes up with a detailed training plan, taking into account your own current fitness (as measured by OwnIndex), to help you become fitter. The plan suggests how many times you should train per week, how many calories you should burn per week and per session, how long each individual session should last, what intensities each session should consist of. Etc etc. The role of the monitor is now active. It works out the training details for you.

At the end of each week, you can review how well you have fulfilled each one of your individual training targets. Have you burnt enough calories? Have you exercised for long enough at the right intensities? ...

After about 1 month of training, you are asked to do another Polar Fitness Test to reassess your fitness level. The result of this test is used for Polar F11 heart rate monitor to come up with a new training program.

Summary

The Polar F11 heart rate monitor is a monitor for those people who are serious about their fitness training and disciplined enough to want to follow through the training recommendations. At $179.95, it costs $60 more than a Polar F6. If you don't plan to train in a regulated manner or if you have your own training plan, the Polar F6 may be sufficient. Having said that, the Polar Fitness Test is a useful feature and the WearLink chest strap is very comfortable.

This takes you to Amazon for some of the best selections for this model. Certain selections come with FREE Super Saver Shipping.

Useful Information

The next model up in the Polar fitness series is the Polar F55. It is the most advanced model in the series.

Not sure which heart rate monitor is right for you? Take a look at the Which Heart Rate Monitor page.