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Getting your ‘arse’ off the couch and starting a running program is not easy.

• How many days of the week do you run?
• How long do you run?
• What is the allotted time needed for recovery after a training run?

The Suunto M5 aims to answers these questions and help the running-impaired experience an endorphin popping running program. The Suunto M5 helps turn a lazy ‘arse’ to an active one.

The Suunto M5 is easy to configure. After cracking open the package, it needs configured with your weight, height and age data. Then your current fitness level and fitness goals need to be entered.

Three buttons operate the M5 and little is needed to configure and customize it. The electro-luminescent display is easy to read, and the Suunto M5 gives you several display choices to tailor the display for your training sessions.

The M5 tracks your progress through workouts and displays the percent achieved, heart rate, calories burned, and workout time expended. Once a workout is completed, the Suunto M5 summarizes your workout and what time is needed for recovery.

The Suunto M5 is easy to use, and its goal setting features does motivate you to workout consistently. Its intuitive configuration is the strongest point of the M5. It’s not complicated to set up and is easy to operate.

The M5 can be integrated to your PC and the web to record your exercise or running program. Using an optional Movestick, your exercise logs can be transferred to Suunto’s Movescount.com Web site. Movescount.com is a way to track your fitness progress and to connect with others that are pursuing fitness goals. Suunto offers an optional footpod that can be paired with the M5 to track running distance, speed, and pace.

The Suunto M5 is highly recommended for those that need the motivation to get off your couch and exercise and take some pounds off your ‘arse’. It can be beneficial for experienced runners in their goal setting. Advanced runners may be put off that it cannot be extensively customized. It retails for $209.