Searching for the right HRM, no chest strap

HRMs "accuracy" varies depending on the activity. Take away the chest strap and that variance will only increase, making accuracy even more in question.

There is no good answer here.

susanpullan98 wrote: »

I am looking for a heart rate monitor for my husband. He can't wear a chest strap, and the watch has to be black. I want something that monitors heart rate and calories burned on a relatively accurate scale.

I think there's a bit of confusion about what he's after here. A step conter will approximate daily calorie expenditure. An HRM isn't really an appropriate tool for that routine activity measurement as the HR that it's using as a proxy isn't high enough to reqlly act as such.

It may be that what you're thinking of is something like the Vivofit, which is a step counter and HR collector. The HR collection mode is only when it uses an HR measurement pod (chest strap), which is activated for strenuous activity. One doesn't wear the HR strap all the time.

There are a range of options out there and I'd suggest reading dcrainmaker.com where he has a comparison table.

The type of thing you're looking at would be Vivofit, Vivosmart, Garmin FR15 etc. I'm not sure what the model names are for Suunto and Polar. Note that Fitbit are just coming into this market from the bottom end, making their pedometers more sophisticated rather than adding a pedometer to a more sophisticated device as those three are. Make a judgement on that as you will.

Note that from a military perspective, if he's looking at quality training then he'd get more from having two different devices. Pedometer and GPS/ HRM.

The Mio Alpha is supposed to be EKG accurate. It only monitors heart rate, nothing fancier than that. You can track a workout with it and it will give you your average heart rate when you are finished. It will sync up via Bluetooth to a phone, but I haven't been able to link it to Endomondo. My phone isn't smart enough (it doesn't have a new enough version of Android OS).

If he is military, he can sign up on the GovX website and get a significant discount on it, about 20-25 percent.

Are you specifically wanting a watch? I ask because Mio had a reputation for being accurate when compared to an ekg. I haven't tried one myself, but it's a good place to start.

If you want a fitness tracker that does hrm, the Microsoft Band is out, but there's some question regarding accuracy. If you have a small wrist or dark skin, or the band isn't tight enough to block ambient light, it won't read correctly.

DavPul wrote: »

susanpullan98 wrote: »

I am looking for a heart rate monitor for my husband. He can't wear a chest strap, and the watch has to be black. I want something that monitors heart rate and calories burned on a relatively accurate scale. Can anyone give me any advice? I have read probably 50 reviews on various products and keep coming up with mixed suggestions.

You're getting mixed suggestions because you're looking mixing up your needs and looking for a product that doesn't exist. If you don't want a chest strap, then you don't actually want a HRM. Well, at least not an accurate one, anyway.

Sounds like what you really want is an activity tracker. Is there even any reason he needs to know his heart rate?

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