PM5 101

All Concept2 indoor training equipment is equipped with the Performance Monitor 5 (PM5). It’s the brains behind our RowErgs, the SkiErg and BikErg, and worth getting to know. In this simple PM primer, you’ll learn about the basics of the display options, and how the units of measurement can give more meaning to your workouts.

AUTO MODE:
While the PM is a powerful tool, it can also be used in a very simple automatic mode if you prefer not to push buttons. Just start rowing, skiing or riding, and it will spring to life automatically and give instant feedback on your time, pace, power output and [approximate] Calorie burn. It will also automatically save your workout to Memory so that you can review it later if you wish. It will also automatically turn off after a couple minutes of inactivity.

CHOOSE YOUR UNITS:
With the display options, you can change between different units of measurement at any time before, during or after your workout. Just push the Units button to choose between:

• Pace: Pace is expressed as time per 500 meters (or per 1000m on the BikeErg). The smaller the number, the faster you are going because it’s taking you less time to cover the 500m.
• Watts (power): The PM will display your current power output in watts, as well as your average watts for the workout. The higher the watts, the more power you are producing and the faster you are going.
• Calories: The PM will show you your current Calorie burn rate, as well as the total Calories you have burned so far in your workout. These Calorie readings are an estimate, since exact Calorie burn rate varies from person to person.

And remember, you can change the units at any time by pressing the Units button. For example, you can watch pace all the way through your workout, and then switch to Calories afterward to see how many you burned.

The PM5 offers five choices of display, and you can switch between them before, during, or after your workout by simply pressing the Display button. Here’s a quick summary of the display options and what they mean to your workout:

• All Data: This screen shows the most data: your current pace, time, distance, average pace, stroke rate (s/m). It will also show your heart rate if you are using a compatible HR monitor.

What’s so great about all this data? It tells you how far you’ve gone and how fast. It can tell you if you’re improving. The pace number gives you immediate feedback on how fast you’re going.

• Force Curve: This shows a plot of your power application during the stroke and can be a helpful tool for improving your technique.
• PaceBoat: you can set the speed of a PaceBoat (or PaceSkier/PaceRider) who will join you for your workout!

You can set an aspirational pace to challenge yourself or a slower pace so you know you can stay ahead!

• Bar Chart: this is a running plot of your pace over time, which makes it easy to see trends in your effort.

Are you getting tired and slowing down, or getting warmed up and picking up the pace? Bar Chart will tell you.

• Large Print: this display offers the key workout data in a larger font for easier viewing.

It will be much easier to see your PM in low light or if you have vision issues.

That’s the basics! Take some time to push the Display and Units buttons the next time you are working out. See what data and graphics are most helpful and interesting to you.

More on the PM5:
What's an Erg? Our PM5 is the Key
Setting up Workouts on the PM5