+++
date = '2025-10-09T00:45:44+02:00'
draft = false
tags = [ "running","watch" ]
title = 'Against the clock'
+++

I’m on my fourth run now.
And it feels better each time: I’ve found my easy pace, the one that lets me hold the distance without pain. My heart rate doesn’t spike as much, and I don’t have to stop nearly as often to walk.

**All good, right?**

Not for everyone.
There’s one who doesn’t agree: my Polar Pacer Pro. Run after run, it keeps scoring me lower and lower.

**Why?**

I honestly don’t know. Maybe it’s reading between the lines.

Has nothing to do with running itself, but I haven’t been sleeping well lately. Choppy nights, built-up fatigue… Maybe that’s messing with my heart rate. Maybe that’s enough to throw the numbers off and make me look worse than I feel. Could be.

Or maybe it’s just because I’m running shorter distances.

**So, who should I trust?**

The watch?
Or how I feel?

I’ve chosen to trust my body.
Because at the end of the day, the watch still does one useful thing: it forces me to slow down. No red-zone cardio, no unconscious sprinting. Just a steady rhythm I can hold without suffering.

If fatigue is skewing the numbers, then fine. That’s life. What matters isn’t impressing a watch.

What matters is not getting injured, building consistency, and keeping the joy alive.