HRMs?? What?!

jessimacar
jessimacar Posts: 291
edited September 29 in Fitness and Exercise
So I want to get a heart rate monitor for my birthday in a month and a half, but have no information on what they are, how I would calculate calories burned from my heart rate, different brands, new vs used, other equipment to buy, etc.

Someone please help and let me know what I need to know about these before I spend mine or someone else's money on one.. Thanks!!

Replies

  • CardiacNP
    CardiacNP Posts: 554 Member
    I use the Garmin that goes qith my running GPS watch Real good but $$$
    Polar makes a great line of HRM's my wife uses those!
  • kalliewelter
    kalliewelter Posts: 8
    I have a Polar FT4 that I got on Amazon for around $70 that I love!
  • sewsinthesouth
    sewsinthesouth Posts: 23
    You can go to www.heartratemonitorsusa.com and check out all the different brands. They usually come with a chest strap to measure your heart beats, and a watch to display the results. You can get a good one for around $50-75. Make sure you get one that counts your calories, if that is what you are buying it for. They don't all do that! I like the Polar series myself.
  • sbrouillet
    sbrouillet Posts: 64 Member
    I use a Polar F6, If I remember right it was about 100.00+-, and all I had to do was put in my weight and height I think, age?? Can't remember exactly, it's been a while, but then it tells me what I've burned in calories, where my heart rate is at, what the average heart rate was for the duration of the workout, time etc.
    Thanks for the reminder though, cause I should find my manual and make sure my weight is set right.
  • kiwi1855
    kiwi1855 Posts: 218 Member
    Whatever you end up deciding on, my suggestion is to ensure that it has a chest strap. HRM's with chest straps are MUCH MUCH MUCH more accurate than the ones that are just the watch as the heart rate is detected at the source!

    I have a Sportline Duo 1025, cost about $100, and I absolutely love it!
  • zml_mom
    zml_mom Posts: 270 Member
    i just got the polar ft4 this weekend and used it the 1st time today and LOVE it, it's really simple to set up and use and I was thrilled that I burned almost 200 calories more than I thought I was burning
  • natspoiledbrat
    natspoiledbrat Posts: 133
    I have a Polar FT7 and I am very happy with it. It was $110, on sale for $100 and then I found a coupon for Sports Authority online for $25 off, so I ended up getting it for $75. I feel like it was well worth the money. Check out mommysavesbig.com for coupons to various retailers, that is where I got the coupon.
  • allaboutty
    allaboutty Posts: 13
    If you want a Garmin, consider the FR60. It's less pricey and does the same things, only without the satelites (search FR60 at garmin.com)
  • dad106
    dad106 Posts: 4,868 Member
    Read this about HRM's.. It will answer your questions:
    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
  • wjkirby
    wjkirby Posts: 120
    I used a Polar for several years and just recently got a Timex unit. Both give total calories burned. The Timex has a stop watch which lets me do splits.
  • sophjakesmom
    sophjakesmom Posts: 904 Member
    I have a Polar FT4 that I got on Amazon for around $70 that I love!

    LOVE my FT4. very reasonable and it is great to see how many calories you are actually burning.
  • BethanyMasters
    BethanyMasters Posts: 519 Member
    My vote would definitely be for the polar ft4. Its reasonably priced, easy to set up, comes with a chest strap, shows calories burned , and cann be used for swimming.

    I love mine!
  • CountryDevil
    CountryDevil Posts: 819 Member
    The Polar FT7 is a popular brand/model to go whit. I personally use a Zephyr Technologies Bluetooth HxM only because I use Endomondo to track my cycling and wanted to track my HR at the same time in one place.

    http://www.zephyr-technology.com/consumer-hxm

    In any case, make sure you get one that uses a chest strap. The are more accurate than just a wrist version.
  • futbolkt21
    futbolkt21 Posts: 57
    I love my Polar F6!
  • Jaradel
    Jaradel Posts: 143 Member
    I have a Garmin ForeRunner 110 women's watch with chest strap. It has GPS so I can track my mileage on runs and bike rides, and also tracks my pace, calories burned, mile splits, etc. I have a USB cable (doubles as charging cable) so I can hook it up to my laptop and download my stats onto Garmin's site, and it will even show me a map of where I went. There is also an "indoor" mode for when I'm doing TKD or yardwork.
  • MinnieInMaine
    MinnieInMaine Posts: 6,400 Member
    I used to have a Polar F6 and now I have a Polar FT4. Would definitely recomment the FT4 over the F6 as you can replace the batteries in both the watch unit and chest strap unit yourself (the reason I got rid of the F6 is because I would've had to ship it away and let them put a hold on my card to fix it - no thanks!), otherwise, they're pretty much the same.

    When you get your HRM, you input your gender, height, weight and age and from there, it calcluates your calories based on your heart rate and those other specs.

    Make sure you read your owner's manual and follow the instructions. I've heard a few poeple complain about the new chest straps and have a theory that the problems stems from folks not properly caring for the equipment...you will have to wet the strap before each use, rinse it after and clean it regularly for it to work right.
  • kapeluza
    kapeluza Posts: 3,434 Member
    Polar FT60. Best $152 invested!
  • Tankplanker
    Tankplanker Posts: 365 Member
    Do you have a smartphone? Polar do a bluetooth chest strap that you can pair with a smartphone, combine that with Runkeeper or Sport Tracker and you've a GPS HRM with full mapping, history and programme management. You'd have to pay a lot to get a wrist based HRM that can match it.
  • jr1985
    jr1985 Posts: 1,033 Member
    I have a Polar RS300X - I bought it new off ebay for about $120.00 - Bodybugg and bodymedia both calculate CONTINUAL calories... but both are substancially more expensive plus require an online membership with an additional fee... all other heart rate monitors to the best o f my knowledge are only accurate for calories burned during exercise and may not be accurate if you leave it on at rest. etc. I did a lot of research before I bought mine and unless you decided to spend the extra money to get either a bodybugg or bodymedia, then Polar is the most accurate... make sure that whichever one you get has either an upper arm or chest strap though, the watch only ones do not work as well :) I'm so glad I bought mine... turns out I was only actually burning about half of what mfp said I was... I knew it was probably overestimating, but whoa! no wonder I wasn't loosing... I thought I had burned off 1000 calories so went ahead and ate what I wanted... in reallity I was only burning between 500-600... makes a huge difference ! Good luck!
  • spinurbuttoff
    spinurbuttoff Posts: 74
    I have a SIGMA PC9 and I LOVE it! $58 on Amazon!
  • aippolito1
    aippolito1 Posts: 4,894 Member
    Anything Polar F4 or FT4 or higher (4, 5, 6, I think 7 is the latest). I have a Polar F6 and I love it. It's waterproof so I can swim in it too, it comes with a watch which reads out your heart rate & calories burned from the chest strap it also comes with. You can view your weekly workouts/calories burned, set your own "fat burning zone" or use their preset ones. It's based on your age, height, weight, and obviously your heart rate. I got my F6 for $90 after s&h on Amazon.com.
  • Mrs_TrimWaistFatWallet
    Mrs_TrimWaistFatWallet Posts: 486
    Id suggest spending the money on a BodyMedia FIT or BodyBugg so you know your actual total daily burn. That's what matters right? You can also see HR related graphs and such..

    Try searching Craigslist. I got mine for 25% of the normal cost.
  • ladderguy055
    ladderguy055 Posts: 22
    I have a Garmin forerunner 210 with HRM and love it! It tracks calories as well as mileage. If your a runner or a biker this is definately a great unit. If you don't run or bike it probably is overkill and would be a waste of money. In the past I've used a Timex Ironman HRM and a Polar HRM and was pleased with both of them. Just make sure you get one with a chest strap. Good luck and have fun.
  • VaBeachNurse
    VaBeachNurse Posts: 65
    I just got a Polar FT7, I'm really liking it a lot!
  • myiceisonfire
    myiceisonfire Posts: 782 Member
    I used a Polar for several years and just recently got a Timex unit. Both give total calories burned. The Timex has a stop watch which lets me do splits.

    I just got the Polar FT4 and love it. It has a stop watch too. You can start, pause, stop. It tells you the total calories burned, your average heart rate, your highest heart rate. Plus the chest strap is SO comfortable! I actually forget that i'm wearing it!
  • elizamc
    elizamc Posts: 285 Member
    Bump
This discussion has been closed.

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