Heart Rate Monitors without a chest strap

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rymattsmom
rymattsmom Posts: 369 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I have gone through 2 different Polar HRM's over the past 4 years, they seem to go (the strap) after 1.5-2 yrs. I believe its an F4 or F7 model. I was hoping to find a durable, good HRT that does not require a chest strap. Is there such a thing?? Hoping to ask santa for it for xmas (hee hee). I generally use it at the gym for circuit training/elliptal sorta exercises.
Thanks for your input, in advance!

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  • h7463
    h7463 Posts: 626 Member
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    Hi again!
    The HRMs with chest strap are the most accurate that you can get. The chest strap has built-in electrodes, that catch your heart rate across your chest, and then transmit it to the sensor. This is about the best way to make sure that the signal is not lost. Of course, the straps wear out after a year or so, but the replacements are only about $15 for a Polar HRM, e.g.
  • SKME2013
    SKME2013 Posts: 704 Member
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    I second the above answer. Chest heart rate monitors give the most accurate results.
  • BrianSharpe
    BrianSharpe Posts: 9,248 Member
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    ^^^^ That's what I'd always thought too (my own HRM has a chest strap) but you may be surprised by the positive review that the the Mio Alpha got from DCRainmaker......

    dcrainmaker.com/2013/02/monitor-bluetooth-smartant.htmlhttp://
  • Raynne413
    Raynne413 Posts: 1,527 Member
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    I have the Scosche Rhythm+ and really like it. DC Rainmaker also did a review on that one, which is how I found out about it. It seems pretty accurate once you find the best place to wear it. I still use my chest strap off and on, though.
  • youmfpnow
    youmfpnow Posts: 10
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    I use the Mio link with great success. Not much different than my chest strap. The key with the wrist straps is that you need to make them tight enough that the light does not leak in and tweak the readings. Good Luck.
  • amcook4
    amcook4 Posts: 561 Member
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    h7463 wrote: »
    Hi again!
    The HRMs with chest strap are the most accurate that you can get. The chest strap has built-in electrodes, that catch your heart rate across your chest, and then transmit it to the sensor. This is about the best way to make sure that the signal is not lost. Of course, the straps wear out after a year or so, but the replacements are only about $15 for a Polar HRM, e.g.

    Yep.
  • CodeMonkey78
    CodeMonkey78 Posts: 320 Member
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    youmfpnow wrote: »
    I use the Mio link with great success. Not much different than my chest strap. The key with the wrist straps is that you need to make them tight enough that the light does not leak in and tweak the readings. Good Luck.

    +1 for this. DC Rainmaker also has a review on this. I have experimented with the Mio Link for quite some time overlaying HR graphs (wearing both the Mio and a chest strap while running). There is hardly any difference at all even after very long runs.

    Plus, the Mio transmits over both ANT and Bluetooth Smart -- so you are not bound to a specific brand of device. It will link to almost any device you want to pair it with.
  • MrsJane05
    MrsJane05 Posts: 44 Member
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    I used to use polar, and replaced the strap etc, still didn't work properly. Have moved on to Garmin, their chest strap is a lot more comfortable, and simple to clean. I would never use another type of fitness device that is not Garmin, brilliant quality etc.
  • VitaminAmy
    VitaminAmy Posts: 130 Member
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    I've heard of heart rate monitor earbuds but haven't used one myself.
  • rymattsmom
    rymattsmom Posts: 369 Member
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    thanks for your replies! good to know about the value of a chest strap. i was also not aware you could just buy the chest strap without having to buy a new watch- good to know! for some reason i thought they had to go to gether for sinc reasons. maybe i will try replacing the strap first- especially if its only a matter of 15$ or so, and if that fails maybe i will try garmin, thanks soo much for your input!

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