HRM that measures distance/pace

tinboy

Do you have to get a HRM with a GPS to be able to get a readout of distance run/walked and the pace? I want to get one with those features, but looking to get something not more expensive than I need, but good quality. Haven't used a HRM before, except a chest strap (Polar) on a good home treadmill. I want to use it to measure calories burned when I work out, and my distance and pace when I walk...I would like to be able to change batteries myself, and would like military time capable watch...and I have a small wrist =( any suggestions would be appreciated!

AggieCass09

My garmin forerunner 405cx fits your wants list on everything but the price...i think it was about 400 bux BUT IT WAS 100% WORTH IT..i also have small wrists (6 in diameter) and it does the job.

cmriverside

Well you could buy a lesser expensive HRM (like a $90 Polar) and then buy a pedometer for $30. Why do you need to know the distance?

epj78

Yep - the Garmin 405. I love mine. It is pricey though. If you wanted something in the mean time, you could time yourself with a simple stop watch and then go to mapmyrun.com to figure out pace, distance, etc. Not completely scientific, but it would get the job done while you save up.

Tuckersn

I have the smaller Garmin. 110? I don't have it in front of me. With the chest strap, it was 260-ish. Love it! It doesn't have all the bells and whistles of the 405 though, just as a side note.

tinboy

I really don't need all the bells and whistles...I know I could figure it out without having it on a HRM, but I want it to just be an easy number to read and be able to document how far and how fast I went and the calories it used. Of course, I do like gadgets....I figured that I'm looking at around $300, because the less expensive ones don't do the pace and distance, looks like you need a GPS on it to do that, from what I can figure out in researching online. I see the 405cx available from Bodytronics for $250, would that be something to jump on right away at that price???

houlee

If you don't want to spend much money, you can get a basic HRM with a chest strap that calculates calories burned. Then, if you have a smartphone, you can download/buy apps like Runkeeper to get distance. Not sure about the pace though. But I am fairly certain someone developed an application for it.

LJPurvis

I have an inexpensive heart rate monitor that I can strap to my chest. I travel a lot and am amazed at the number of treadmills that pick up the monitor without me needing to wear the watch.

As for a GPS, when I am running or biking outside I use my Droid. There is a free app called My Tracks. It tracks your run, tells you how far you ran, maximum speed, average speed, and elevation gains. It can pace you by making announcements on your progress throughout your run. (I have mine set to notify me of distance and speed every 10 minutes). When you are done it displays the route on Google maps as well as the markers where you requested information. All of this can then be emailed to your Google account. It's pretty cool.

Wouldn't trade my Droid in for the world. I listen to Pandora and track my results. Pretty sweet.

Serenifly

do you have an Iphone?

adhillman01

I use Mapmyrun.com app on my android. It uses your phone GPS to track your distance and also gives pace and calories burned in addition. I love it! The only problem is you would probably get a more accurate calorie count using a HRM.
I think they have an IPhone app too.

pty21

I think that the $250 price tag for the 405 CX is pretty good. Make sure it is the CX model, however, because the standard Garmin calorie calculation is not very good. My Edge 305, Forerunner 405 (not CX), and my wife's 500 all appear to use a speed-based calculation and can be pretty worthless in some situations when biking. The CX is the only model where they incorporated a heart-rate based calorie calculation and one that I wished I'd have gotten rather than the 405 I currently have.

EDIT: Thankfully, Garmin has added the HR-based calorie burn calculator in the 110, 210, and 410 models according to their website. It's about time they got on the bandwagon! As I haven't personally tried one, I can't comment on their accuracy but the price on the 110 seems nice at $199.

Polar has always had the better calorie burn algorithms but a Polar GPS setup is fairly similar in price once you get into the GPS pod add-on. The pod has had some bad reviews in the past about it's reliability in urban or tree-covered areas. The deal breaker for me was it's inability to calculate speeds over 20 mph. For walking, it wouldn't be a factor but riding a bike down a hill it would be a factor. As I personally haven't tried a Polar GPS unit, take this with a grain of salt. I knew that I didn't want to get into a $400 system that failed under certain circumstances.

Garmin has always worked for me on the bike and on the run. If calorie monitoring is your primary focus, the CX would be the best Garmin option next to x10 series but if the price tag is a little too high, then a Polar and mapmyrun.com would be just as effective.

tinboy

Thank you very much for the info!

tinboy

Good suggestions all of you! I just downloaded "My Tracks" and iMapMyRUN...to my Droid2; I'll see what I can do with these. Anybody know how the accuracy is with either of these apps?