HRM on a budget!?!!

bethheyyy
bethheyyy Posts: 25 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Hi yall...


I am wanting to find a watch that will:

Tell me what my target heart rate is and monitor it while I am working out.
Beep when I go below my target heart rate to let me know I need to push harder so I don't have to look at it the entire time.
Easy to use
Show me my total calories burned through through the duration of the work out.
Preferably something inexpensive like $30
White or Black


Also, do you know if these watches will tell you the amount of calories you burned throughout the day? It would be cool just to see as I am a stay at home mom and dont get to much activity. If not, are there there any monitors that do? Would it be a pedometer? Its all so confusing! lol


In all honesty I have tried to research, but who better to ask than yall awesome people!? lol

Thankyou!

Replies

  • bethheyyy
    bethheyyy Posts: 25 Member
    New Balance 50071NB N4 Pearl Heart Rate Monitor

    I was looking at getting this one. But then i read a review where they said the calorie reading was WAY off which is the number one reason why I want to get it. Does anyone have this one? If so, how do you like it? Have you ever compared the readings to a polar or another brand?
  • rassha01
    rassha01 Posts: 534 Member
    Sounds like you want a Polar. Just a note though, you have to wear a chest strap that connects to it for it to work correctly.
  • _Waffle_
    _Waffle_ Posts: 13,049 Member
    A heart rate monitor is used when you're working out. If you want to know calories burned while walking around during the day you need to get a pedometer.

    If you're just spending $30 it's going to be hard to find something that works well. Don't get one that you have to touch with your finger to measure the heart rate. You're better off saving your money and just using MFP to estimate your calories burned. Just look up your activity and add in the number of minutes you performed said activity and that should get you fairly close to what an HRM will do.
  • MightyDomo
    MightyDomo Posts: 1,265 Member
    Unfortunately these are one of the things you pay for what you get.

    Go for a Polar, they are a cheaper brand and I bet you can find a used on out there for cheaper, but I would definitely suggest saving towards getting a quality one that has the ability to change out the battery yourself and has a fairly accurate read.

    http://heart-rate-monitor-watches-review.toptenreviews.com/

    This will definitely be helpful to you :) Best of luck finding one!
  • bethheyyy
    bethheyyy Posts: 25 Member
    ....
  • sandy_gee
    sandy_gee Posts: 372 Member
    http://www.ebay.ca/itm/New-Pyle-PHRM38SL-Heart-Rate-Monitor-Watch-W-Calorie-Counter-Target-Zones-/221148162607?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item337d752a2f
  • anemoneprose
    anemoneprose Posts: 1,805 Member
    cheapest (need a watch or phone that tells time): count your pulse for ten seconds, multiply by 6.

    write it down.

    do it once every ten mins or so and take an average.
  • MightyDomo
    MightyDomo Posts: 1,265 Member
    I think if you want an all day count that isn't just exercise you might want to look into a fitness monitor, they measure you expenditure during the day but are not accurate when measuring burns while running, strength training or low-level movement calisthenics. An HRM (chest strap I find is better) would measure those activites.

    I had to pair the BodyMedia Fit LINK with a Garmin Forerunner 110 with chest strap to get a full day's accurate read.
  • anemoneprose
    anemoneprose Posts: 1,805 Member
    I think if you want an all day count that isn't just exercise you might want to look into a fitness monitor, they measure you expenditure during the day but are not accurate when measuring burns while running, strength training or low-level movement calisthenics. An HRM (chest strap I find is better) would measure those activites.

    I had to pair the BodyMedia Fit LINK with a Garmin Forerunner 110 with chest strap to get a full day's accurate read.

    how close was it to activity factor estimates?
  • bethheyyy
    bethheyyy Posts: 25 Member
    Thank you so much for clarifying! I think im gunna go with a polar. I guess the all day calorie thing isnt really that important.
    Im about to start insanity so Im excited to see how many calories I burn vs going to the gym or zumba.

    & dang, that picture is making me want waffles! lol What a tease! lol It should be banned! lol ;)
  • ashleyoh33
    ashleyoh33 Posts: 85 Member
    You probably cannot get what you want for $30. A HRM I would suggest would be a Polar (probably FT4 for you?) which runs about $100 but can be found for $60ish on amazon or ebay. It will do everything you want it to for exercise. If you really want something that will tell you your daily expenditure you probably do not want a HRM...yes you could wear it all day but do you really want something beeping at you every 5 seconds because you're below your target heart rate? And I imagine this would greatly affect the battery life of the HRM. If you want something that monitors daily expenditure you are going to be spending a significant amount more...google BodyMedia.
  • mreeves261
    mreeves261 Posts: 728 Member
    Im about to start insanity so Im excited to see how many calories I burn vs going to the gym or zumba.

    Having done Insanity I can assure you...

    1 - You want a HRM
    2 - You won't drop out of your zone! You will more likely go way over it but not often below even on the rest periods.

    I'm all Garmin, watch, HR strap, Foot pod and speed/cadence. The watch is strictly a backup since I sync my sensors with my iPhone.

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