heart rate monitor and distance tracker in one?

myfitnessisavirtue
myfitnessisavirtue Posts: 673 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I read the thread on hr monitors and checked out the polar ft4. It sounds great. However, I would also like something to track how far I walk/run so I can train for a 5K. Is there something good with both a hr monitor and a distance tracker/GPS? My birthday is coming up :-)

Replies

  • CarsonRuns
    CarsonRuns Posts: 3,039 Member
    https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?cID=142
  • girlie100
    girlie100 Posts: 646 Member
    adidas micoach pacer or their speedcell with the extra HR strap connects to your phone

    Nike+ connects to your phone and uses a Polar HR strap??
  • DryHeet
    DryHeet Posts: 61 Member
    I just got a Garmin Forerunner 405. Still getting used to it... It has GPS and HRM.
  • Vansy
    Vansy Posts: 419 Member
    Garmin. I have the Forerunner 405 CX and love it. It does so much -- I can hike, walk, run, etc. and it tracks elevation, gps, heart rate, etc.
  • mhotch
    mhotch Posts: 901 Member
    Polar also has GPS HRM's. look on the website.
  • GretchenReine
    GretchenReine Posts: 1,374 Member
    I have the Garmin Forerunner 110 and that tracks the distance as well as calorie burned.
  • skinnyshelli
    skinnyshelli Posts: 3 Member
    I have the Nike+ and absolutely love it! It is so fun and totally motivates me to exercise more! :) I use it indoors and outdoors. It works great.
  • vodkoffee
    vodkoffee Posts: 160 Member
    Bump.
  • lunglady
    lunglady Posts: 526 Member
    I love my Garmin Forerunner 610. They also make less expensive models. You can use Garmin connect to track your fitness, or you can upload your data to any other site you may prefer.

    Beware of the Nike+ sportswatch. They have lots of problems with the website, sync issues, equipment failure, etc. You cannot export your Nike+ data to any other 3rd party software/websites.
  • EmmaM2211
    EmmaM2211 Posts: 536 Member
    I've been looking getting one of these too and from what I gather Garmin ones are good.

    My question is does anyone know if they work indoors too like just as a HRM for use on a treadmill or stationary bike? xx
  • drezha
    drezha Posts: 18
    I use the Garmin Edge 500. made for cycling (which I do most often) but fits a Garmin Forerunner strap (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Garmin-Quick-Release-Mounting-Forerunner/dp/B0009PUJV6/ref=sr_1_34?ie=UTF8&qid=1344950869&sr=8-34).

    Otherwise the forerunners are good.
  • bluefox9er
    bluefox9er Posts: 2,917 Member
    I have the Nike+ and absolutely love it! It is so fun and totally motivates me to exercise more! :) I use it indoors and outdoors. It works great.

    ^^ this. ALL DAY LONG ^^
  • BrianSharpe
    BrianSharpe Posts: 9,248 Member
    I use a Garmin Forerunner 610 (they have a variety of models depending on your needs and budget) HRM & GPS - tracks distances, pace, calories etc etc and, using Garmin's Training Centre software i can export maps to Google Earth (not really useful but fun......)
  • lsand
    lsand Posts: 78 Member
    polar ft7 does both
  • vjhanson5
    vjhanson5 Posts: 42 Member
    bump
  • KyleB65
    KyleB65 Posts: 1,196 Member
    My family bought me the Timex Ironman GPS/HRM watch for my birthday a few weeks ago.

    As per the owner of the shop where I bought my running shoes. The Timex is basically the same as a Garmin but about $50 less expensive.

    I use mine 2 - 3x per week and it works fine. It takes a couple of minutes to find and connect to a satellite but the workout upload to both the Timex tracking website and the Mapmyrun site I use is simple and quick.

    I have mine set to show calories burned, distance, heart rate and time. I will probably move to a 3 line display as I find the 4 line display to hard to read while running.
  • dad106
    dad106 Posts: 4,868 Member
    Polar FT60 does calorie counting and distance.. or if you have a smart phone just use an app on there.
  • drgndancer
    drgndancer Posts: 426 Member
    If you have a newer smart phone, one that supports Bluetooth 4.0, you can look at one of the Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) heart rate straps. I use a Wahoo Blue HR, but there are a few more coming on the market. The phones have GPS built in, of course, the trick has always been heart rate monitors. In the past you've been stuck with either a Bluetooth strap (which eat batteries like candy) or an ANT+ strap (which almost always requires a special plugin to your phone). The BLE straps are the best of both worlds, using much less power than a regular Bluetooth device, but syncing directly with the phone.

    The downside is that they're new tech, so a) there aren't very many on the market yet, and b) not all phones support them. You need a Bluetooth 4.0 phone (the iPhone 4s is the only one I'm sure of, but there has to be some Android support out there by now). If you've got a phone with support though, the whole thing works great. I just connected the strap to Runmeter via Bluetooth, and the app tracks heart rate, distance, speed, route, etc, etc.

    Bluetooth is still a bit of a drain on the phone side, but I just turn it off when I'm not using the strap. Even with an hour run, my phone still lasts all day most days. Usually if I have to recharge during the day I can lay the blame more on my Angry Birds habit than using Bluetooth for an hour or so.
  • scottb81
    scottb81 Posts: 2,538 Member
    I've been looking getting one of these too and from what I gather Garmin ones are good.

    My question is does anyone know if they work indoors too like just as a HRM for use on a treadmill or stationary bike? xx
    It will work indoors on a treadmill if you add the garmin footpod. It will not work indoors on a stationary bike to track distance; not sure if it will track calories indoors on a stationary bike with the HRM.
  • DantheMan2517
    DantheMan2517 Posts: 134 Member
    https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?cID=142

    Yeah, my Garmin 310 does all that and more. I use it on runs, on the bike, walking the dogs(someitmes).
  • jennewbury
    jennewbury Posts: 10
    MotoActv.

    http://www.motorola.com/us/consumers/8GB-or-16GB-MOTOACTV/79070,en_US,pd.html

    I love mine :) It tracks my steps, has GPS, Heart Rate Monitor, Golf Buddy and MP3 player. Plus it calculates how many calories I burn. When I get home it automatically syncs with my computer. Then I get to look at the charts to see my heart rate compared to elevation or calorie burn etc.

    There are indoor workouts, and outdoor. You can calibrate it to work for you. You can buy accessories for biking to track cadence etc.

    There is another cool feature, it sees how hard you work out to songs and the harder you work out, it makes a burn list with those songs!!

    I love it! Plus Its cheaper than the Garmin.
  • DryHeet
    DryHeet Posts: 61 Member
    I've been looking getting one of these too and from what I gather Garmin ones are good.

    My question is does anyone know if they work indoors too like just as a HRM for use on a treadmill or stationary bike? xx
    It will work indoors on a treadmill if you add the garmin footpod. It will not work indoors on a stationary bike to track distance; not sure if it will track calories indoors on a stationary bike with the HRM.

    I've used my Garmin FR410 in the gym on the treadmill and in Spin class. The only data I get is my HR and calories burned. But, I can buy the optional footpod, which ties to your shoe, and then you get pace and distance data on the treadmill. Another optional gadget is the speed/cadence sensor which you can attach to your bike when its on a trainer (sounds like too much setup to use on a Spin bike). It transmits data to the FR410 that is used to calculate speed and distance.

    There's a really long review of the FR410 at this link http://www.dcrainmaker.com/2011/01/garmin-forerunner-410-in-depth-review.html
  • myfitnessisavirtue
    myfitnessisavirtue Posts: 673 Member
    Thanks! I will come back later and check all those out. I do NOT have a smartphone, just a prepaid emergency one.
  • goal30Lori
    goal30Lori Posts: 307 Member
    I've been looking getting one of these too and from what I gather Garmin ones are good.

    My question is does anyone know if they work indoors too like just as a HRM for use on a treadmill or stationary bike? xx
    It will work indoors on a treadmill if you add the garmin footpod. It will not work indoors on a stationary bike to track distance; not sure if it will track calories indoors on a stationary bike with the HRM.

    I've used my Garmin FR410 in the gym on the treadmill and in Spin class. The only data I get is my HR and calories burned. But, I can buy the optional footpod, which ties to your shoe, and then you get pace and distance data on the treadmill. Another optional gadget is the speed/cadence sensor which you can attach to your bike when its on a trainer (sounds like too much setup to use on a Spin bike). It transmits data to the FR410 that is used to calculate speed and distance.

    There's a really long review of the FR410 at this link http://www.dcrainmaker.com/2011/01/garmin-forerunner-410-in-depth-review.html

    I also have the Garmin 410 and tried to use it during spin tonight but I can't figure it out! What type of activity did you set it at? I set it to biking but it obviously didn't track any distance, which is fine. I just want my calories burned. I was hoping there was a way to just set it to record only calories without trying to track an activity. I don't need it to try find GPS satellites.

    Any tips are great;y appreciated!

Categories