Fitness Watch

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heatherfrancis
heatherfrancis Posts: 100
in Fitness and Exercise
I am training for my 1st half marathon and am in need of a watch that tracks calories, HR, pace, mileage both indoors and out. Recommendations would be helpful in my many hours of research.

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  • liscar
    liscar Posts: 311 Member
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    Garmin or Polar have monitors that do all that
  • BrianBier
    BrianBier Posts: 18
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    Having used both Garmin and Polar, I would recommend Garmin for your situation. Here are some of my thoughts on the ones I have:

    Polar RS400 - great for indoors and for programming workouts. The Polar ProTrainer5 software is fantastic in analyzing, creating and tracking workouts and HR info. For HR data, Polar wins hands down every day.
    Polar RS800CX - same as the RS400 but with the additional GPS sensor for running/cycling outdoors (and I also use it for my cycling with the Cadence and Speed sensors)
    Garmin 405 - I use this for all of my outdoor running. Where Polar wins in HR data, Garmin wins in GPS technology. One of the drawbacks of the Garmin is the "charge" time and the constant need to recharge it vs. the Polar. However, that is not that big of a deal when you consider that the Polar GPS unit is a whole separate piece of equipment and it takes a AA battery that needs to be changed constantly as well...so I don't fret too much about having to charge the 405.

    Here is a great site that has some very helpful reviews: http://www.dcrainmaker.com/p/product-reviews.html

    Good luck in your training and have fun!!!
  • JenaePavlak
    JenaePavlak Posts: 350 Member
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    I need to know this too! =)
  • Rinny_D
    Rinny_D Posts: 80 Member
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    I have a Garmin Forerunner 405CX. RRP $500 AUD, though I got mine on sale fro $400 AUD. It does all of thet, and you can go through your history to see you calories burned, avg bpm, Avg speed & time for each lap (I have my "lap" auto set for 1km) for each individual work-out session. It has GPS and you can transfer data to your computer to show you graphs of each workout. It can track about 20 different things from cal's burned to your speed, elevation (above sea level), all kinds of things and can display all of those + the time/distance/sun set time etc.

    You can set it to running and riding too. I use it for my inside activities like Yoga and on the treadmill etc- only thing it wont do is track distance on the treadmill as you are only in 1 spot GPS wise but will track your HR and cals etc.

    Also cant use in the pool- I am thinking of buying a Polar or something to use for the pool- maybe another Garmin as they are really good- but good = pricey sometimes so i will have to see!
  • Rinny_D
    Rinny_D Posts: 80 Member
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    I have the Garmin 405CX- It was pricey but thats probably the GPS and the rechargeable lithium ion battery taking up most of the cost! It's really a must have when it comes to outdoor running and running.

    What would you use in the pool (do you use one in the pool?)
    Having used both Garmin and Polar, I would recommend Garmin for your situation. Here are some of my thoughts on the ones I have:

    Polar RS400 - great for indoors and for programming workouts. The Polar ProTrainer5 software is fantastic in analyzing, creating and tracking workouts and HR info. For HR data, Polar wins hands down every day.
    Polar RS800CX - same as the RS400 but with the additional GPS sensor for running/cycling outdoors (and I also use it for my cycling with the Cadence and Speed sensors)
    Garmin 405 - I use this for all of my outdoor running. Where Polar wins in HR data, Garmin wins in GPS technology. One of the drawbacks of the Garmin is the "charge" time and the constant need to recharge it vs. the Polar. However, that is not that big of a deal when you consider that the Polar GPS unit is a whole separate piece of equipment and it takes a AA battery that needs to be changed constantly as well...so I don't fret too much about having to charge the 405.

    Here is a great site that has some very helpful reviews: http://www.dcrainmaker.com/p/product-reviews.html

    Good luck in your training and have fun!!!
  • heatherfrancis
    heatherfrancis Posts: 100
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    Having used both Garmin and Polar, I would recommend Garmin for your situation. Here are some of my thoughts on the ones I have:

    Polar RS400 - great for indoors and for programming workouts. The Polar ProTrainer5 software is fantastic in analyzing, creating and tracking workouts and HR info. For HR data, Polar wins hands down every day.
    Polar RS800CX - same as the RS400 but with the additional GPS sensor for running/cycling outdoors (and I also use it for my cycling with the Cadence and Speed sensors)
    Garmin 405 - I use this for all of my outdoor running. Where Polar wins in HR data, Garmin wins in GPS technology. One of the drawbacks of the Garmin is the "charge" time and the constant need to recharge it vs. the Polar. However, that is not that big of a deal when you consider that the Polar GPS unit is a whole separate piece of equipment and it takes a AA battery that needs to be changed constantly as well...so I don't fret too much about having to charge the 405.

    Here is a great site that has some very helpful reviews: http://www.dcrainmaker.com/p/product-reviews.html

    Good luck in your training and have fun!!!


    Would you buy the foot pod, so that it works in doors on the treadmill. I live in Iowa where it is cold out half the year.
  • heatherfrancis
    heatherfrancis Posts: 100
    Options
    Having used both Garmin and Polar, I would recommend Garmin for your situation. Here are some of my thoughts on the ones I have:

    Polar RS400 - great for indoors and for programming workouts. The Polar ProTrainer5 software is fantastic in analyzing, creating and tracking workouts and HR info. For HR data, Polar wins hands down every day.
    Polar RS800CX - same as the RS400 but with the additional GPS sensor for running/cycling outdoors (and I also use it for my cycling with the Cadence and Speed sensors)
    Garmin 405 - I use this for all of my outdoor running. Where Polar wins in HR data, Garmin wins in GPS technology. One of the drawbacks of the Garmin is the "charge" time and the constant need to recharge it vs. the Polar. However, that is not that big of a deal when you consider that the Polar GPS unit is a whole separate piece of equipment and it takes a AA battery that needs to be changed constantly as well...so I don't fret too much about having to charge the 405.

    Here is a great site that has some very helpful reviews: http://www.dcrainmaker.com/p/product-reviews.html

    Good luck in your training and have fun!!!


    Would you buy the foot pod for the 305, so that it works in doors on the treadmill. I live in Iowa where it is cold out half the year.
  • dbier
    dbier Posts: 2
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    Go with the Garmin 405cx with the foot pod. The GPS takes care of outdoors, the foot pod will track indoors. Big thing to watch for is the calibration of the foot pod. I use two different treadmills and the calibration is off between the two. After running a while, you will kind of know your pace and the +/- 5% variance on the treadmill doesn't really matter. Also, 405 cx has much improved calorie burning compared to the 405.
  • BrianBier
    BrianBier Posts: 18
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    Yes, the foot pod would be a great accessory. So many treadmills are not calibrated correctly and the foot pod would help to accurately track your mileage inside.

    As far as swimming...I use my Polar RS400 (for the rare times I do swim...which will increase this year for triathlon training). The RS800's frequency does not work in the water.

    I believe the Garmin 310XT has the capabilities for water usage as well.

    Hope that helps!

    PS - I've come to LOVE running in the cold!
  • Rinny_D
    Rinny_D Posts: 80 Member
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    Go with the Garmin 405cx with the foot pod. The GPS takes care of outdoors, the foot pod will track indoors. Big thing to watch for is the calibration of the foot pod. I use two different treadmills and the calibration is off between the two. After running a while, you will kind of know your pace and the +/- 5% variance on the treadmill doesn't really matter. Also, 405 cx has much improved calorie burning compared to the 405.


    Where do i get the foot pod, that is something I should invest in as I have a treadmill in the living room, ps: would it work for cycling. Should I just go on the Garmin website?
    The only thing that annoyed me about the Garmin 405cx was that the strap (the elastic part) only comes in the one size and I had to keep pinning it until the other week I just cut it and sewed it shorter so it actually goes tight enough to fit me. :)
  • BrianBier
    BrianBier Posts: 18
    Options
    Go with the Garmin 405cx with the foot pod. The GPS takes care of outdoors, the foot pod will track indoors. Big thing to watch for is the calibration of the foot pod. I use two different treadmills and the calibration is off between the two. After running a while, you will kind of know your pace and the +/- 5% variance on the treadmill doesn't really matter. Also, 405 cx has much improved calorie burning compared to the 405.


    Where do i get the foot pod, that is something I should invest in as I have a treadmill in the living room, ps: would it work for cycling. Should I just go on the Garmin website?
    The only thing that annoyed me about the Garmin 405cx was that the strap (the elastic part) only comes in the one size and I had to keep pinning it until the other week I just cut it and sewed it shorter so it actually goes tight enough to fit me. :)

    You can get the foot pod on Amazon.com -- that would be cheaper than the Garmin site.

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