Question 1

What is Watta?

Accepted Answer

Watta is a free AI-powered rowing workout tracker for iOS. It lets you photograph your Concept2 erg screen after any session and automatically extracts your workout data using AI OCR. Every session is scored with a proprietary 0-100 Effort Score that combines cardiac load, work output, pacing, and economy into a single number.

Question 2

How does the AI OCR capture work?

Accepted Answer

After finishing your workout, open Watta and take a photo of your PM5 screen. The AI OCR engine reads the display and extracts distance, time, average split, stroke rate, and interval breakdowns automatically. No manual entry, no Bluetooth pairing, and no extra hardware required.

Question 3

What rowing machines does Watta support?

Accepted Answer

Watta supports any Concept2 ergometer with a PM5 monitor, including the RowErg, SkiErg, and BikeErg. The AI OCR is trained specifically on PM5 screen layouts to ensure accurate data extraction across all three machine types.

Question 4

Is Watta free?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Watta is completely free to download and use. There are no premium tiers, no paywalls, and no feature gating. Every feature, including AI OCR capture, Effort Score, heart rate zone analysis, clubs, squads, and Strava sync, is available to all users at no cost.

Question 5

Do I need a heart rate monitor?

Accepted Answer

No. A heart rate monitor is optional. Watta tracks your workouts and calculates work output, pacing, and economy scores without one. However, if you do wear a heart rate monitor and enter your average and max heart rate, Watta unlocks the full Effort Score including Cardiac Load analysis and personalised Karvonen heart rate zones.

Question 6

What is the Effort Score?

Accepted Answer

The Effort Score is Watta's proprietary 0-100 rating that captures how hard you actually worked during a rowing session. Unlike metrics that only measure distance or speed, the Effort Score combines four dimensions of performance into a single number that reflects true training intensity.

Question 7

How is the Effort Score calculated?

Accepted Answer

The Effort Score is a weighted composite of four components: Cardiac Load (40 points, based on time in heart rate zones weighted by intensity), Work Output (35 points, total watts normalised against your baseline), Pacing Strategy (15 points, measuring split consistency and negative split detection), and Economy (10 points, power output per heartbeat). The maximum possible score is 100.

Question 8

What do the Effort Score zones mean?

Accepted Answer

Effort Score zones classify your session intensity: Recovery (0-25) for easy, regenerative sessions; Building (26-50) for aerobic base and steady state work; Training (51-75) for structured intensity and interval sessions; Peak (76-100) for race-pace efforts and maximal output. These zones help you balance hard and easy days across your training week.

Question 9

Why is the Effort Score better than just tracking heart rate?

Accepted Answer

Heart rate alone only captures cardiac stress. The Effort Score goes further by also accounting for the mechanical work you produced (watts), how evenly you paced the piece, and how efficiently you converted each heartbeat into power. Two sessions at the same average heart rate can produce very different Effort Scores depending on your output and pacing.

Question 10

How does Watta calculate heart rate zones?

Accepted Answer

Watta uses the Karvonen method to calculate five personalised heart rate zones. You enter your resting heart rate and maximum heart rate, and Watta computes zone boundaries based on your Heart Rate Reserve (HRR = max HR minus resting HR). This produces zones that are tailored to your fitness level rather than generic percentage-of-max estimates.

Question 11

What is the Karvonen method?

Accepted Answer

The Karvonen method is a heart rate zone formula that uses your Heart Rate Reserve (the difference between your maximum and resting heart rate) to set personalised zone boundaries. The formula is: Target HR = Resting HR + (HRR x intensity%). For trained athletes, Karvonen zones are significantly more accurate than simple percentage-of-max calculations because they account for aerobic fitness.

Question 12

What is UT2 training and how does Watta help?

Accepted Answer

UT2 (Utilisation Training 2) is the foundation of rowing training, a low-intensity aerobic zone where you build your cardiovascular base. In Watta, UT2 corresponds roughly to Zone 2 on the Karvonen scale. Watta helps by showing you exactly where your heart rate sits relative to your personalised zones, so you can keep your steady state sessions in the correct intensity band rather than drifting too high.

Question 13

Can I train without a heart rate monitor?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Watta works without a heart rate monitor. You can still log workouts via OCR, track distance, time, split, and stroke rate, view pacing and economy scores, and compare sessions over time. Adding heart rate data unlocks the Cardiac Load component of the Effort Score and enables personalised zone analysis, but it is not required to use the app.

Question 14

How do clubs work?

Accepted Answer

Clubs in Watta are shared spaces for rowing communities. Any user can create a club, and once it is verified by a platform admin, members can join via an invite code or by requesting access. Club members appear on a shared feed and leaderboard. Each club can have up to three admins who manage membership and settings.

Question 15

Can my coach see my workouts?

Accepted Answer

If you and your coach are in the same club or squad, they can see workouts you post to the club feed. You can also mark your coach as a close friend, which gives them access to more detailed training data. Workout visibility is controlled by your profile privacy settings.

Question 16

Does Watta sync with Strava?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Watta syncs your rowing workouts to Strava automatically. Once you connect your Strava account, each new workout you log in Watta is pushed to Strava as a rowing activity so it appears alongside your other training in your Strava feed.

Question 17

What are squads?

Accepted Answer

Squads are sub-groups within a club. They let you organise members into smaller training groups, such as a novice squad, a senior squad, or a HYROX training group. Each squad has its own feed view so members can focus on the workouts most relevant to their group.

Question 18

What data does Watta collect?

Accepted Answer

Watta collects the workout data you log (distance, time, split, stroke rate, heart rate), your profile information (name, email), and optional social data (club memberships, follows). Photos taken for OCR are processed to extract workout metrics and are not stored permanently. Full details are available in our Privacy Policy.

Question 19

Is my workout data shared with third parties?

Accepted Answer

No. Your workout data is not sold or shared with third-party advertisers or data brokers. If you choose to connect Strava, your workouts are synced to your Strava account at your request. Club and squad members can see workouts you share on those feeds, based on your privacy settings.

Question 20

Can I delete my account and data?

Accepted Answer

Yes. You can request full account deletion at any time by contacting support@polarindustries.co. When your account is deleted, all associated personal data and workout history are permanently removed from our systems in accordance with GDPR requirements.

Frequently Asked Questions

Getting Started

Effort Score

Heart Rate & Training

Privacy & Data

Every erg counts.