Polar loop - reviews? To buy or not ?

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Replies

  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    What's the difference between a Garmin Premium Chest Belt and a Standard Chest Belt? Do you have any idea?

    Standard is what you might call old school, but I prefer it better and bought a backup in case they were being done away with.

    It's the harder plastic across the whole front of chest, removable strap start near front on sides.

    Premium is the soft-strap all the way around with embedded sensors, with detachable sending unit with snaps on front.
    Those actually cut in to my skin on long runs. Bike not bad, but still rather sharp feel to it.
  • eAddict
    eAddict Posts: 212 Member
    There is a new one coming out that I might dump my Polar FT7 and FitBit Force for:

    http://techcrunch.com/2014/02/27/ex-apple-engineer-launches-moov-the-next-generation-of-wearable-fitness-tracking/

    http://news.cnet.com/8301-1035_3-57619516-94/moov-fitness-tracker-actually-tells-us-how-to-fix-ourselves/
  • gobonas99
    gobonas99 Posts: 1,049 Member
    In to reference later...but to answer this:
    "BUT WARNING - it only supports 4.0 BLU (4.4 kitkat android) - which is a MAJOR turn off :sad: "

    Sam,

    What is the problem with that? Exactly?

    I'm asking in ignorance, I do not know. I'm aware Blue tooth is enough to drive you daft if you get the wrong sort.

    Surely, if it were a major issue, they could fix that in a future iteration or hardware upgrade?

    The problem is that only the very newest android phones are on v4.4 (kitkat)...when I was looking at phones in November, there were only like 2-3 models that were on Kitkat. Everything else in the store was 4.2 (Ice Cream Sandwich) or 4.3 (Jelly Bean), which does NOT support BLU 4.0 - at least, not natively...not sure if there are any "hacks" to get the lower versions to read BLU 4.0. And good luck upgrading a 4.2 phone to 4.4....without an OS upgrade push from your cell carrier, it's darn near impossible without a degree in computer science engineering nanotechnology brain surgery (I'm exaggerating a bit...but only slightly..while I'm sure there are plenty of extremely tech savvy people who could do it...there are FAR more people that are not tech savvy enough to even attempt it)
  • brendanstallard
    brendanstallard Posts: 59 Member
    Heybales,

    Thanks for the help on the Garmin strap.

    brendan
  • brendanstallard
    brendanstallard Posts: 59 Member
    "The problem is that only the very newest android phones are on v4.4 (kitkat)."

    Gobonas,

    Ah, right.

    I only got my first smartphone with a Nexus 4. When the Nexus 5 came out, I got that and was amazed at how much improved it was. It does support Blu4.0

    ".there are FAR more people that are not tech savvy enough to even attempt it)"

    Which is where they've got us by the short, curly ones....

    Thanks for the explanation.



    brendan
  • brendanstallard
    brendanstallard Posts: 59 Member
    "I might dump my Polar FT7 and FitBit Force for:"

    eaddict,

    You know the Force has been recalled, don't you? All of 'em, taken off sale and recalled.

    You keepin' yours?

    If so, interesting....

    I'm pretty sure that my Force is going back, and I'll wait till something is proven to be working properly. Nothing works really well, IMO, so far. The force is the closest, but can't get wet with it, which, IMO, as getting fit is all about getting sweaty-is daft:)

    I thank you for the information on the Moov, methinks that's a little vapoury right now, for me:)



    brendan
  • weightlifter01
    weightlifter01 Posts: 564 Member
    I bought a Loop just after Christmas. To be honest - it is simply a glorified pedometer. And now it can't hold a charge past one day. I don't see the value in these wrist gadgets...unless you want to track how many steps you take daily.
  • fyoung1111
    fyoung1111 Posts: 109 Member
    The value is to encourage you to be more active ... to take more steps each day. Works for most people. There is something about wearing that little spy on your wrist or waist. Even if you are not competing with others to, for instance, see who gets the most steps, you are more likely to park as far from the store as possible if you know you are going to get "credit" for that trek across the parking lot.

    Some dieters use them to track caloric expenditure. I'm not really a serious dieter but, if I've had a very active day, I tend to splurge more at dinnertime than I would if I've been sitting on my butt all day.

    If the charge on your Loop is only lasting a day you may be swimming with it or taking really LONG showers with it on. Either activity makes the display flicker on and off constantly and significantly shortens battery life. You may also be leaving the Flow App active in your phone. That seems to knock battery life down to 2-3 days. You may also have a bad battery. In that case, Polar will be happy to fix it for free.
  • VegasFit
    VegasFit Posts: 1,232 Member
    I bought a Loop just after Christmas. To be honest - it is simply a glorified pedometer. And now it can't hold a charge past one day. I don't see the value in these wrist gadgets...unless you want to track how many steps you take daily.

    Do you pair it with the HRM during workouts? Also I was on vacation and did not charge my Loop for five days and when I did plug it in last night it was only down to 70 % so there might be something wrong with yours if you're only getting one day.

    The Loop is just a gadget but like Fyoung said the value for me is I like to see where my activity is at throughout the day depending on what I'm doing. But like anything else, even MFP, it's not a necessity. It just makes things easier. I mean I could go old school and track everything in a notebook and still get the same results.
  • kaaaaylee
    kaaaaylee Posts: 398
    What about the garmin vivofit?
  • dixiewhiskey
    dixiewhiskey Posts: 3,333 Member
    I'm pretty happy with my Polar FT40. I only want to know what I'm burning during my workouts. The Loop would be perfect for someone who wants to know more beyond that. I have to say though that Polar's latest product looks awesome, I'm really weary though about pairing anything with my Nexus 4 because of fast battery drain. Something to consider too
  • arijaycomet
    arijaycomet Posts: 21
    What about the garmin vivofit?

    Just did a comparison of that vs Fitbit here:
    http://arijaycomet.com/2014/03/13/battle-garmin-vivofit-vs-fitbit-force-vs-fitbit-flex/

    I've also written my review/comparison of the Loop vs Fitbit here:
    http://arijaycomet.com/2013/12/10/battle-fitbit-force-vs-polar-loop/
  • brendanstallard
    brendanstallard Posts: 59 Member
    Frank,

    Anxiously awaiting your review of the Vivofit.



    brendan
  • spg71
    spg71 Posts: 179 Member
    Thankyou for the post on the ATLAS, looks a nice product. Not quite there with the ergonomics, could do with the strap being more of sweatband type size.

    Still using the LOOP though, and still confusing software.
  • kettlekrusher
    kettlekrusher Posts: 1 Member
    I have done a lot of research on wearable fitness gadgets and I chose the polar loop. I have not been let down. I can wear it and the heart monitor while doing mud runs, swimming or working out. Now that the Android app is out, I don't have to wait to sync loop with my computer. A lot of people complain about the button, it is capacitance so the back sensor needs to be touching the skin when you touch, not tap the button. I that because it keeps it from displaying when I wear a long sleeve or touch anything.
    I recommend this to everyone one know.
  • Luekutus
    Luekutus Posts: 1
    I have and use a combination of the Loop and H7 and I love the data I get from them (e.g., that I'm burning 800 calories working out and not 300), but I AGREE 100% that Polar's lack of integration sucks. It's a data dead-end.
  • AutumnRed84
    AutumnRed84 Posts: 26 Member
    So for those of you who use the polar loop and HRM, how do you use it with MFP since it doesn't sync? I have the HRM now and am looking to get the Polar Loop. I had the Fitbit Force but returned it due to the skin irritation.
  • Chegs1978
    Chegs1978 Posts: 5
    How accurate is the calories burned on the loop when doing a session with the HRM?

    I was at the gym this morning and it has my calories burned at 439 for the session, is that accurate?
  • VegasFit
    VegasFit Posts: 1,232 Member
    So for those of you who use the polar loop and HRM, how do you use it with MFP since it doesn't sync? I have the HRM now and am looking to get the Polar Loop. I had the Fitbit Force but returned it due to the skin irritation.

    I just add my exercise manually. I don't find it to be a big deal.
  • VegasFit
    VegasFit Posts: 1,232 Member
    How accurate is the calories burned on the loop when doing a session with the HRM?

    I was at the gym this morning and it has my calories burned at 439 for the session, is that accurate?

    I find it fairly accurate as in comparison to my prior HRM, Garmin and bodybugg. Meaning that for whatever activity I am doing the calories burned make sense and are consistent to that activity.
  • Chegs1978
    Chegs1978 Posts: 5
    How accurate is the calories burned on the loop when doing a session with the HRM?

    I was at the gym this morning and it has my calories burned at 439 for the session, is that accurate?

    I find it fairly accurate as in comparison to my prior HRM, Garmin and bodybugg. Meaning that for whatever activity I am doing the calories burned make sense and are consistent to that activity.

    Thanks, I am struggling to lose more weight, possible due to me not believing in the calories burned on the loop and not eating enough.
  • jasonheyd
    jasonheyd Posts: 524 Member
    Thanks, I am struggling to lose more weight, possible due to me not believing in the calories burned on the loop and not eating enough.

    Not to derail the thread, but ... :)

    I ran into a couple of plateaus that (I think) were finally broken by slightly increasing my calorie intake in line with my calorie burns, and I think part of it was related to "exchanging" fat for muscle as I increased the resistance training stuff.

    That's something else to keep in mind if you're not losing... Depending on the type of exercise you're doing and how new you are to that exercise (or to exercise in general), you're likely to be building muscle and your muscles are likely to be retaining water as they repair themselves from the exertion. And if you're doing resistance training for the first time, that's going to be doubly (maybe not literally) true.
  • Chegs1978
    Chegs1978 Posts: 5
    Thanks, I am struggling to lose more weight, possible due to me not believing in the calories burned on the loop and not eating enough.

    Not to derail the thread, but ... :)

    I ran into a couple of plateaus that (I think) were finally broken by slightly increasing my calorie intake in line with my calorie burns, and I think part of it was related to "exchanging" fat for muscle as I increased the resistance training stuff.

    That's something else to keep in mind if you're not losing... Depending on the type of exercise you're doing and how new you are to that exercise (or to exercise in general), you're likely to be building muscle and your muscles are likely to be retaining water as they repair themselves from the exertion. And if you're doing resistance training for the first time, that's going to be doubly (maybe not literally) true.

    I was actually trying to read up about building muscle when trying to loose weight. I do 5 sessions per week and 3 include strength training, so in theory I may not be losing weight due to muscle gain?
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    Thanks, I am struggling to lose more weight, possible due to me not believing in the calories burned on the loop and not eating enough.

    Not to derail the thread, but ... :)

    I ran into a couple of plateaus that (I think) were finally broken by slightly increasing my calorie intake in line with my calorie burns, and I think part of it was related to "exchanging" fat for muscle as I increased the resistance training stuff.

    That's something else to keep in mind if you're not losing... Depending on the type of exercise you're doing and how new you are to that exercise (or to exercise in general), you're likely to be building muscle and your muscles are likely to be retaining water as they repair themselves from the exertion. And if you're doing resistance training for the first time, that's going to be doubly (maybe not literally) true.

    I was actually trying to read up about building muscle when trying to loose weight. I do 5 sessions per week and 3 include strength training, so in theory I may not be losing weight due to muscle gain?

    Sadly at best probably looking at almost a pound a month exchange or less.
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/778012-potential-muscle-gain-lifting-and-metabolism-improvement

    And sadly, you are LESS likely to be building muscle in a diet as you have less weight to lose.
    Only time you'll gain muscle in a true deficit is at the start, after tapping out existing muscle for strength, and having plenty of fat to spare.

    More likely this if your exercise has been creating even a bigger deficit to perhaps an already unreasonable deficit for amount to lose.
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/heybales/view/reduced-metabolism-tdee-beyond-expected-from-weight-loss-616251

    May be time for a diet break and eat what it says you burn for a week or two. Now that should allow increases on the bar.
  • jasonheyd
    jasonheyd Posts: 524 Member
    Agreed with haybales.

    Adding muscle is much slower than dropping fat, so it's likely a combination of the factors mentioned above.

    You're likely increasing the strength / condition of the muscle that you have and retaining more water for muscle repair, but actually adding muscle in significant amounts requires excess fuel (calories) to build more muscle fiber.

    That's very hard eating at a calorie deficit, although it's easier if you've got a lot of body fat to lose and it seems to be easier if you've never done strength training before, or if it's been a very long time (the so-called "newbie effect").

    I've had pretty good success eating at a mild deficit (targeting 1/2-lb. per week loss) and making sure to eat more when I'm very active. My weight's been very slightly decreasing over time, and my LBM has been very slightly increasing over time.

    Even at a slight deficit, that nets out to 2000-2500 calories a day on average, after adding calories from exercise burns. That's a lot more than most folks think of when they think "diet."
  • Chegs1978
    Chegs1978 Posts: 5
    Thanks for the info, very, very helpful.

    Just to move back on topic and about the loop. I now use this for every session at the gym, I just need to know how people add this in the MyFitnessPal app? Is it just a case of adding 492 calories burned under the exercises section? Not sure if I should add the full 492 as not sure how accurate it is?

    See photo.

    photo1_zpsc011039a.png
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    Thanks for the info, very, very helpful.

    Just to move back on topic and about the loop. I now use this for every session at the gym, I just need to know how people add this in the MyFitnessPal app? Is it just a case of adding 492 calories burned under the exercises section? Not sure if I should add the full 492 as not sure how accurate it is?

    See photo.

    photo1_zpsc011039a.png

    Well, 492 (assume totally accurate) is what you burned in total during that time. Considered gross burn. Well, at least if you sweat really bad. ha!

    But a HRM, that device, database entry, treadmill, bike computer, ect, all report the same thing, total gross burn.

    Not what you burned extra over what you would have burned anyway, considered NET burn. Because they don't know that. Removing RMR would be tad more accurate.

    But because you are in a diet, you actually have a different value for every hour of your day already that you are expected to burn, and then your eating amount is based on that.

    So you really want to log and eat back what you burned over what was already accounted for.

    What is accounted for already?
    MFP - Home - Goals - Calories burned from normal daily activity / 24 hrs = hourly burn already expected and accounted for.

    Polar or whatever reported calorie burn minus that value per hour = what you burned above and beyond and eat back. Can take 15% deficit off of it too.
  • fyoung1111
    fyoung1111 Posts: 109 Member
    Just to simplify by way of an example:

    My Loop says I burned 2115 calories yesterday.

    MFP has already credited me with 1,900 Calories burned from normal daily activities.

    To keep up with everything in MFP, I would add a custom exercise for the 215 calorie difference.

    Simple as that.

    Based on a lot of testing I have done, I believe the Loop calorie estimates ar the best out there. Better than Fitbit, Garmin, Basis, Runkeeper, MapMyRide. I would trust them as presented.
  • amazurkiewicz
    amazurkiewicz Posts: 5 Member
    I just purchased the Polar Loop and love the product but like others, am disappointed by its lack of integration with other apps. But that is really the only down side. I like the information that's available on the band and iphone app. The Polar Flow web page is not great, but not atrocious. I am getting used to it. It's too bad that it does not allow for tracking weight loss. Seeing a graph with calories burned and weight lost over time would be very motivating. Most importantly, the Loop also pairs with the Wahoo Blue HR heart rate monitor. I had already owned one, so was thrilled to discover that it works with the Loop.
  • Rlnieman
    Rlnieman Posts: 26 Member
    I got my Loop in the mail yesterday, today is my first full day with it; I have a bunch of questions if anyone can help.

    How is the goal calculated? I had to hit close to 17K steps to hit goal today. I'm overweight so could that be why I have a higher step goal than others I've seen? Not sure if it matters but I'm pretty short (4'11") so that could have an affect on the numbers too?

    I'm still waiting on my heart rate monitor in the mail, but I'd like to use it for work outs when it comes in. Would it be better to sync the monitor to the loop or to the Polar Beat app , or would it depend on the type of work out I'm doing? I mostly do strength training and treadmill and/or swim laps, but would eventually like to take my runs outside when I can manage better.

    Also I saw a mention of someone wanting to start a Polar Loop group here on MFP but couldn't find one. Would there be interest in starting one? It looks like there has to be at least 3 interested in joining before it can be created.

    I think that's all for now, I'm sure I'll have more later as I learn how to use this better.
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