Garmin Forerunner 220 HRM....outside of running?

RachelAngel01
RachelAngel01 Posts: 77 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I have a Garmin Forerunner 220 watch/HRM combo that I bought to track mileage, pace and for interval training when I run. I have loved it so far, but I wonder if anyone knows how accurate the HRM is for activities outside of running/walking? I wear the chest strap and watch most of the time, and will turn it on whenever I'm doing something I plan to count as exercise to keep track of calories burned.

Everything I have read indicates that most HRMs are really only good for steady state cardio, so I am looking into getting a Bodymedia Fit for more accurate calories burned in my other activities (and please let me know if this is the wrong direction to go...It sounds like the Bodymedia is more about overall fitness metrics, which is what I'm missing from my Garmin)....however, I think this might be overkill. At least the hubs will probably think so when I tell him I just NEED to spend another hundred bucks on random fitness stuff...

Outside of running, I kayak, Zumba, hike, and do BodyShaping and Spin classes at my gym. I am soon starting a lifting program. But I often find myself doing random things like or rollerskating with my kids or spending an hour or two at the trampoline park with them (boy that was a workout) ..and I'm just not sure my Garmin is getting it even close to right.

So what are your suggestions? Just keep going with the Garmin and be happy with my calories burned? Add a second device? Quit worrying so much about calories burned and just keep trampoline jumping?

Thanks in advance!

Replies

  • RachelAngel01
    RachelAngel01 Posts: 77 Member
    Anyone? Bueller....Bueller...
  • 3dogsrunning
    3dogsrunning Posts: 27,167 Member
    Bodymedia Fit is more designed for calculating energy required on a daily basis, not during exercise. It would not be any better than a HRM and likely, actually worse.
    I wouldn't buy one to track exercise calories but they are useful for overall activity monitoring, like how much you move around in one day, not how much you burn in a specific activity.

    HRMs are designed to estimate calories during steady state cardio. Outside of that, the accuracy goes down. You can still use them for activity like spinning or Zumba but bear in mind the calorie estimates may run a little high due to the interval nature. There is nothing on the market right now that would be more accurate.
    Most strength training would not be accurate at all with a HRM.

    A couple of posts that might help you

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1044313-this-is-why-hrms-have-limited-use-for-tracking-calories

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/Azdak/view/the-real-facts-about-hrms-and-calories-what-you-need-to-know-before-purchasing-an-hrm-or-using-one-21472
  • brianpperkins
    brianpperkins Posts: 6,124 Member
    HRMs are only good at calculating a caloric estimate for specific steady state cardio activities. The calorie estimates suck for intervals.
  • Tiff4378
    Tiff4378 Posts: 45 Member
    My apologies for showing up so late to this topic but I was searching Garmin 220 and it came up. I have a Garmin 110 but just updated this weekend to a new 220. I'm like the original poster that not only do I run but I do other actives such as Jazzercise and DVD's. I have a HRM and I have synced it with the new device. However, my question is to the original poster wondering how I can track my activities when I'm not running. How do I set the watch during those times? Thank you in advance!

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