HRM - can anyone recommend?

sarah_too
sarah_too Posts: 6
in Fitness and Exercise
To keep a closer eye on calories burnt during my workouts I am thinking of investing in a HRM. Can anyone recommend a reliable one at a reasonable price? There's just too much choice online! :-)

Replies

  • kaotik2003
    kaotik2003 Posts: 21 Member
    Choose a POLAR one, and if you use your cell phone to record the exercises and it has Bluetooth LE Smart than go for the Plar with Bluetooth and your phone will do the rest
  • MandysChange
    MandysChange Posts: 40 Member
    I use a Polar H7 bluetooth chest strap HRM that syncs to the machines at my gym and uses an app on my smartphone to keep track of my calories burned during each exercise. I have been using it since January and love it.
  • RabbitLost
    RabbitLost Posts: 333 Member
    I really like my Suunto. It doesn't talk to a many machines as the Polar models do, but the reporting and tracking tools available on-line are outstanding.
  • Red_sparkling_Titania
    Red_sparkling_Titania Posts: 485
    Choose a POLAR one, and if you use your cell phone to record the exercises and it has Bluetooth LE Smart than go for the Plar with Bluetooth and your phone will do the rest

    This ^^^
    I also have a fitbit flex but have only used it once as it only counts steps so if you did other exercise the fitbit would be of no use. POLAR gets my vote every time ????
  • Chevy_Quest
    Chevy_Quest Posts: 2,012 Member
    I use a Polar FT7 and I was able to get it up and running after purchasing it at Best Buy within minutes. It has just enough features and works really reliably.

    Note... Many have found that calorie estimates on many HRMs are "inflated". I am trying to find out if I can enter my height, age, and current weight into my FT7. I don't think it supports those features (Or I am an idiot LOL). Without taking that other information into account there is no way to accurately figure out calorie burn.

    But.. there are calculators online where you can plug your heart rate into and get a good approximation of calorie burn.

    TL:DR Answer Yes, buy one and the Polar FT7 is a great place to start!

    Good luck!
  • Hearts_2015
    Hearts_2015 Posts: 12,032 Member
    To keep a closer eye on calories burnt during my workouts I am thinking of investing in a HRM. Can anyone recommend a reliable one at a reasonable price? There's just too much choice online! :-)

    I had planned on picking up an FT7 Polar but ended up getting an FT4 and have been really happy with it. The FT7 will hold 99 workouts before it's full, which I don't need it to hold. You can purchase something to upload it all to your computer for about $100 in addition to the price for the FT7 ...I didn't plan on storing all my workouts online so that didn't interest me.

    The difference in price is the main thing for me, my FT4 cost about $48 from Sears (I was pricing FT7's online for about $100). I found it on special online and my local Sears had one so I picked it up in person and am very content with mine and pleased that I didn't end up paying more for the couple small perks the FT7 had.

    Good luck finding the right for you!:drinker:
  • brianpperkins
    brianpperkins Posts: 6,124 Member
    What activities are you doing? It matters.
  • sm1zzle
    sm1zzle Posts: 920 Member
    Polar FT7
  • kevinsmithrn
    kevinsmithrn Posts: 70 Member
    I use Wahoo Blue HR it uses the low energy Bluetooth protocol and connects to my I-phone 5s perfectly.
  • sarah_too
    sarah_too Posts: 6
    Thanks everyone! Poplars seem very popular obviously so this seems a good place to start! I'll start shopping around online to see what I can get. Thanks again! :-)
  • sarah_too
    sarah_too Posts: 6
    I either go running or I do workouts from Daily Burn which is a subscription website with lots of different workout program's (www.dailyburn.com). It gives you a calorie count at the end of each workout but I imagine that they are not massively accurate and just an estimate based on an "average" person. When I run I use a tracking app called Runkeeper but again, not sure how accurate the calorie counter is. :-)
  • sarah_too
    sarah_too Posts: 6
    What activities are you doing? It matters.

    I either go running or I do workouts from Daily Burn which is a subscription website with lots of different workout program's (www.dailyburn.com). It gives you a calorie count at the end of each workout but I imagine that they are not massively accurate and just an estimate based on an "average" person. When I run I use a tracking app called Runkeeper but again, not sure how accurate the calorie counter is. :-)
  • astylla
    astylla Posts: 118 Member
    I use a Polar FT7 and I was able to get it up and running after purchasing it at Best Buy within minutes. It has just enough features and works really reliably.

    Note... Many have found that calorie estimates on many HRMs are "inflated". I am trying to find out if I can enter my height, age, and current weight into my FT7. I don't think it supports those features (Or I am an idiot LOL). Without taking that other information into account there is no way to accurately figure out calorie burn.

    But.. there are calculators online where you can plug your heart rate into and get a good approximation of calorie burn.

    TL:DR Answer Yes, buy one and the Polar FT7 is a great place to start!

    Good luck!

    I completely agree with all of this. And yes you CAN program your weight age and such.

    On your watch hit the top button on the right side and use the bottom right button to scroll down until "Settings". Use the center button to confirm this selection. Use the bottom right button to scroll until you see User Information. Press the center button to select this. It will then show weight and use the center button again to adjust it up or down. Then it will ask for the other information also.

    Typically you can google and find the answer or owners manual too.

    I LOVE my Polar FT7 and recommend it to anyone!
  • izu87
    izu87 Posts: 267 Member
    And can someone explain to me what's the difference between FT7 and FT60?

    Also, do they work properly with DVD workouts like Insanity for example? I recently read that HRMs work properly/only if the pulse is steady-ish - so let's say biking, running, etc, and only then...

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