HRM without chest strap

myrahonbarrier
myrahonbarrier Posts: 191 Member
edited December 25 in Fitness and Exercise
Does anyone have a recommendation for a watch type HRM that doesn't need the chest strap? Thanks so much :smile:

Replies

  • sho3girl
    sho3girl Posts: 10,799 Member
    bump wanna check responses
  • myrahonbarrier
    myrahonbarrier Posts: 191 Member
    anybody? somebody? LOL
  • wellbert
    wellbert Posts: 3,924 Member
    They aren't popular because you have to put your fingers on the HRM and time it out. So they don't constantly monitor like ones with straps.
  • staceyseeger
    staceyseeger Posts: 778 Member
    I think the most accurate HRM is using a chest strap. Is there a resaon why you want one without a chest strap?
  • Sarahbara76
    Sarahbara76 Posts: 601 Member
    chest strap is best ..you can adjust it so it stays in place and you don't notice it after awhile!
  • girlonabikedc
    girlonabikedc Posts: 111 Member
    I don't know of any HRMs that work without a chest strap. The watch needs a sensor to pick up your heart rate. Sorry!
  • lissrn
    lissrn Posts: 60 Member
    Go for the one with the chest strap....one of the best things I ever bought!
  • russellma
    russellma Posts: 284 Member
    I had a Mio Drive HRM without the chest strap, and, to be honest, it was a pain in the neck. It probably depends on if you're just using it to monitor your HR, or if you want to use the calorie burn.

    At least for me, I found that the calorie burn wasn't very accurate because your heartrate is constantly changing and the strapless HRMs only calculate your calories when you put your fingers on the sensor. (The HRM would assume that your heartrate was consistent from the last time you touched the sensor and calculate the calories off that number, so if your heartrate didn't register right or you had big fluctuations, your calories would be skewed.)

    So, I found that I was constantly having to register my heartrate to try to get the most accurate calorie burn. I didn't like being glued to the HRM, and finally bought a Polar FT4 with chest strap that I love.
  • myrahonbarrier
    myrahonbarrier Posts: 191 Member
    well i've been told the chest straps and underwires in bras don't play well together? any experience with that? Since I always have underwire bras on, I just wasn't sure how well it was going to work.
  • russellma
    russellma Posts: 284 Member
    well i've been told the chest straps and underwires in bras don't play well together? any experience with that? Since I always have underwire bras on, I just wasn't sure how well it was going to work.

    Yes, I've found that the chest strap reading can be affected by some underwires (don't ask me how to know which ones... it's a puzzle to me!)

    The Polar would be a little erratic (at times) and either not be able to register my heartrate or shoot it up to 190 for no apparent reason, and I finally figured out that the problem was the underwire.

    Now I change into a sports bra before workouts and have had no more problems. They're fairly inexpensive and more comfortable when you're moving, anyways.
  • mommamills
    mommamills Posts: 437
    I do have one sports bra with "support"....feels like underwire but might just be a thicker material and it seems to work fine. you wear the strap just under the bottom of your bra and personally....I've had both....chest strap ALL THE WAY! I was very skeptical because I was afraid the strap would not stay put and be a lil aggrivating but I will never go back to the watch style. Many times with it you'd end up not even getting a count because it would take MUCH longer than the 5 secs to register and you'd say the heck with it. The chest strap monitors constantly even during cool down and stretch...basically until you tell it to stop! I LOVE it and would recommend the same to everyone!
  • m60kaf
    m60kaf Posts: 421 Member
    I'd so love one of these .. but to be fair chest straps aren't as bad as I imagined - even when I've really worked up a sweat
  • dad106
    dad106 Posts: 4,868 Member
    well i've been told the chest straps and underwires in bras don't play well together? any experience with that? Since I always have underwire bras on, I just wasn't sure how well it was going to work.

    I wore my HRM with an underwire bra for a good portion of last year and never had any issues.

    If you really don't want one with a chest strap, then i suggest you skip buying an HRM cause anything without a chest strap will not be accurate in the slightest.
  • SPNLuver83
    SPNLuver83 Posts: 2,050 Member
    don't waste your money on one of those. save up and get a strap one. they just don't compare.
  • AmyRhubarb
    AmyRhubarb Posts: 6,890 Member
    I had a watch only model for awhile (actually still have it - it's collecting dust! :tongue:) - like a previous poster said, it was a total pain, not as accurate, and after about a month I started looking for a model with a chest strap. Much better!
  • NovemberJune
    NovemberJune Posts: 2,525 Member
    well i've been told the chest straps and underwires in bras don't play well together? any experience with that? Since I always have underwire bras on, I just wasn't sure how well it was going to work.

    I only recently got sports bras, and before that I was using my HRM with chest strap with underwire bras.... for about 6 or 7 months with no issues. :smile:

    I think I'd rather have no HRM than one of those that you have to touch your finger to. That would just distract me from my workout.

    I have a Polar FT4
  • myrahonbarrier
    myrahonbarrier Posts: 191 Member
    Ok you guys convinced me...I just ordered a Polar FT4. Now to figure out how to use it when it arrives! Thanks so much for all the feedback!
  • andydin_
    andydin_ Posts: 1
    Look at Mio Alpha
    http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/alphaheartrate/alpha-the-holy-grail-of-heart-rate-look-ma-no-hand

    This is a strapless, continuous HRM
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