Heart Rate Monitors, Fitbits etc.... Best for the price?
Nikorable
Posts: 13 Member
Hello! i'm looking to get a new HRM or fitbit or whatever. I'm looking to get all of your advice on a great one to get that is not waaaaaaaay overpriced!
I've had a polar ft4 which was great but i'm now looking at a fitbit charge 2. Which boasts a HRM without the strap! ooooohhh cooooollll. But is it a good pick? Any other you guys would suggest i have a look at before i pick which tool i'll be bringing along with me for this journey? Let me know!
I've had a polar ft4 which was great but i'm now looking at a fitbit charge 2. Which boasts a HRM without the strap! ooooohhh cooooollll. But is it a good pick? Any other you guys would suggest i have a look at before i pick which tool i'll be bringing along with me for this journey? Let me know!
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I have the Fitbit Charge 2 and absolutely love it. I love the HRM on it (it uses these green lights on the back that touches your wrist to measure your heart rate), the connected GPS and the sleep monitor. It automatically tracks several types of exercise as well as the ability to change the wrist band so it doesn't look like a fitness tracker (you can find replacement bands on Amazon for around $20.) The Fitbit app is very easy to use as well and syncs with MyFitnessPal to record your exercise so you don't have to manually enter that information. And MFP syncs with Fitbit to record your food so you don't have to do it twice!1
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I just got the Fitbit Charge 2 for Christmas. Before that I had the Charge HR. I was comparing my HR on the Fitbit Charge 2 to the reading I was getting from the exercise machine at the gym both yesterday and today and they were within 3 beats of one another at each check. I personally like the Fitbit brand. This is my third Fitbit product and I'm just comfortable with the software and the feel of the technology.
I'm sure there are more accurate fitness bands out there but I scored my Charge 2 for $129 on Amazon. I think the more accurate brands are far more expensive.
I think the most important thing is choosing a brand that meets your goals. I'm not a serious athlete, so Fitbit is just fine for me. I'm more concerned with overall trends than absolute precision.2 -
NikoInspires wrote: »Hello! i'm looking to get a new HRM or fitbit or whatever. I'm looking to get all of your advice on a great one to get that is not waaaaaaaay overpriced!
First you need to decide what you want. Like what features are important, what do you expect of it, what are your deal breakers, how will you use it? When you can answer that, then it's a lot easier to figure out which of the ones that check your boxes has the best price and looks.
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NikoInspires wrote: »Hello! i'm looking to get a new HRM or fitbit or whatever.
I'd ask what activities you want to track? The answer is material to the advice.
I'd also say that you can skim through the very may what's the best activity tracker/ FitBit/ HRM/ magic gadget threads in thisforum. PRetty much every second thread is the same question.
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I have the Fitbit Charge 2 and absolutely love it. I love the HRM on it (it uses these green lights on the back that touches your wrist to measure your heart rate), the connected GPS and the sleep monitor. It automatically tracks several types of exercise as well as the ability to change the wrist band so it doesn't look like a fitness tracker (you can find replacement bands on Amazon for around $20.) The Fitbit app is very easy to use as well and syncs with MyFitnessPal to record your exercise so you don't have to manually enter that information. And MFP syncs with Fitbit to record your food so you don't have to do it twice!
Ohhh very nice. Have you ever had a strap hrm? Can you compare the two?
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Skyblueyellow wrote: »I just got the Fitbit Charge 2 for Christmas. Before that I had the Charge HR. I was comparing my HR on the Fitbit Charge 2 to the reading I was getting from the exercise machine at the gym both yesterday and today and they were within 3 beats of one another at each check. I personally like the Fitbit brand. This is my third Fitbit product and I'm just comfortable with the software and the feel of the technology.
I'm sure there are more accurate fitness bands out there but I scored my Charge 2 for $129 on Amazon. I think the more accurate brands are far more expensive.
I think the most important thing is choosing a brand that meets your goals. I'm not a serious athlete, so Fitbit is just fine for me. I'm more concerned with overall trends than absolute precision.
ohh so its not bad at all. Im looking at it for similar reasons. although more precision less trendy. I dont care really if its trendy. My polar ft4 was really good i found in accuracy and it was waterproof. I need it for when i do cardio, so running or jogging more or less. Maybe swimming.0 -
NorthCascades wrote: »NikoInspires wrote: »Hello! i'm looking to get a new HRM or fitbit or whatever. I'm looking to get all of your advice on a great one to get that is not waaaaaaaay overpriced!
First you need to decide what you want. Like what features are important, what do you expect of it, what are your deal breakers, how will you use it? When you can answer that, then it's a lot easier to figure out which of the ones that check your boxes has the best price and looks.
Haha yeah, basically i want a heart rate monitor that is accurate in measuring how many calories you burn during workouts. Thats my top priority. Whether it be running, jogging or swimming or even HIIT eventually. I dont super care about looks and price is of course as long as it doesn't kill the banks. My main goal is accuracy so i can figure out my deficit after working out. Or even as a day to day basis of what my activity level is.0 -
MeanderingMammal wrote: »NikoInspires wrote: »Hello! i'm looking to get a new HRM or fitbit or whatever.
I'd ask what activities you want to track? The answer is material to the advice.
I'd also say that you can skim through the very may what's the best activity tracker/ FitBit/ HRM/ magic gadget threads in thisforum. PRetty much every second thread is the same question.
Running, jogging and possibly swimming or HIIT eventually.
Okay can do! I'll skim through it all, thanks!!0 -
NikoInspires wrote: »Running
So GPS is most important there. If you're looking at all day activity as well then there are a range of options. Personally I use Garmins, and you're looking at the Forerunner 35 or 230/ 235. Polar also make adequate devices in this range although someone else is likely to be more up to date on model numbers. At the more expensive end of the market Suunto are pretty good, but likely to be well beyond what you actually need, given the question you've posed.
Take a look at DC Rainmaker for some detailed reviews....possibly swimming...
Combined devices are top end, so expensive. Your alternative would be something like the Garmin Swim, but to be honest once you've bought two devices you're not saving much. I'd just go for the one....HIIT...
No activity tracker will give you anything meaningful for that kind of session.
Personally I'd avoid FitBit, they have a very poor level of reliability although the social platform is popular and their customer service gets a good reputation for replacing defective units without any real issues.
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NikoInspires wrote: »Haha yeah, basically i want a heart rate monitor that is accurate in measuring how many calories you burn during workouts. Thats my top priority. Whether it be running, jogging or swimming or even HIIT eventually. I dont super care about looks and price is of course as long as it doesn't kill the banks. My main goal is accuracy so i can figure out my deficit after working out. Or even as a day to day basis of what my activity level is.
What does HIIT mean to you? Like if you're going out to do HIIT today, what would that involve?
I have a once-a-week HIIT session, doing hill repeats on a bike. To know how many calories I've burned doing that is easy, but only because it's on a bike. I have special pedals that measure how much force I'm applying and how quickly I'm turning them; from that they work out how much energy I'm putting into the bike, energy like in a Newtonian sense. Sadly that's not available for most things beyond bikes and rowing machines. And that's our segue into our next topic.
A good heart rate monitor is going to be super accurate when it tells you what your heart rate is. But less accurate for how many calories you're burning. Because the truth is that your heart rate can be a clue to what you're burning, but not anything like the whole story. Your heart rate will go up if you drink a coffee, or if you don't drink anything for too long, or if you're stressed out, or for other reasons. The devices we're talking about try to figure everything out, but it isn't really possible to do it perfectly.
Most HRMs do a pretty a worse job (of calorie guessing) at HIIT than they do with other types of workouts. Also, as far as I know, none of them are accurate for weight lifting.
With all that said, most athletes consider Firstbeat to be the best calories-from-HR software. Firstbeat software is in Garmins, Suuntos, and some other devices. Their software works better with a chest strap than with a wrist HRM because it's able to measure the timing between individual beats, and not just a moving average pulse rate. But we're getting kind of esoteric here.1 -
MeanderingMammal wrote: »NikoInspires wrote: »Running
So GPS is most important there. If you're looking at all day activity as well then there are a range of options. Personally I use Garmins, and you're looking at the Forerunner 35 or 230/ 235. Polar also make adequate devices in this range although someone else is likely to be more up to date on model numbers. At the more expensive end of the market Suunto are pretty good, but likely to be well beyond what you actually need, given the question you've posed.
Take a look at DC Rainmaker for some detailed reviews....possibly swimming...
Combined devices are top end, so expensive. Your alternative would be something like the Garmin Swim, but to be honest once you've bought two devices you're not saving much. I'd just go for the one....HIIT...
No activity tracker will give you anything meaningful for that kind of session.
Personally I'd avoid FitBit, they have a very poor level of reliability although the social platform is popular and their customer service gets a good reputation for replacing defective units without any real issues.
This is really insightful. I'll take a look at DC Rainmaker for real. I'll also look into garmins more because if i can tackle combined devices it would be cool. i'm willing to dish out a bit more for it.
HIIT wont be for a long time as i'm not up to that sort of intensity yet but i'll take into consideration that fitbit isn't really for it
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NorthCascades wrote: »NikoInspires wrote: »Haha yeah, basically i want a heart rate monitor that is accurate in measuring how many calories you burn during workouts. Thats my top priority. Whether it be running, jogging or swimming or even HIIT eventually. I dont super care about looks and price is of course as long as it doesn't kill the banks. My main goal is accuracy so i can figure out my deficit after working out. Or even as a day to day basis of what my activity level is.
What does HIIT mean to you? Like if you're going out to do HIIT today, what would that involve?
I have a once-a-week HIIT session, doing hill repeats on a bike. To know how many calories I've burned doing that is easy, but only because it's on a bike. I have special pedals that measure how much force I'm applying and how quickly I'm turning them; from that they work out how much energy I'm putting into the bike, energy like in a Newtonian sense. Sadly that's not available for most things beyond bikes and rowing machines. And that's our segue into our next topic.
A good heart rate monitor is going to be super accurate when it tells you what your heart rate is. But less accurate for how many calories you're burning. Because the truth is that your heart rate can be a clue to what you're burning, but not anything like the whole story. Your heart rate will go up if you drink a coffee, or if you don't drink anything for too long, or if you're stressed out, or for other reasons. The devices we're talking about try to figure everything out, but it isn't really possible to do it perfectly.
Most HRMs do a pretty a worse job (of calorie guessing) at HIIT than they do with other types of workouts. Also, as far as I know, none of them are accurate for weight lifting.
With all that said, most athletes consider Firstbeat to be the best calories-from-HR software. Firstbeat software is in Garmins, Suuntos, and some other devices. Their software works better with a chest strap than with a wrist HRM because it's able to measure the timing between individual beats, and not just a moving average pulse rate. But we're getting kind of esoteric here.
Wow this was extremely eye opening.
HIIT is something i haven't fully looked into i'll be completely honest. however, most people i've talked to have said its great for losing weight so i figured i'd try it. Though i'm a ways away from doing it as my level of activity is no where near high intensity. I'll be starting it easy. So basically I'll just be doing jogging and possibly swimming for quite some time. until i get closer to 200lbs.
You've opened my eyes though, i think i might be leaning more towards something with a strap. because then i can just wear it when i'm working out and it can possibly give me a better and more accurate reading of my heart rate when it comes down to it.
I was thinking of a fit bit because i assume it can tell me what my regular activity level is. However, beyond that it doesn't sound good for working out much.
Thanks for your insight!! I'll have a look at the ones you suggested! 0 -
NikoInspires wrote: »I'll also look into garmins more because if i can tackle combined devices it would be cool. i'm willing to dish out a bit more for it.
So as a marathon and ultra runner I'd personally go for the Forerunner 920XT or 735XT, both of those can track swimming, running and cycling.
Personally I use a 310XT for running and an Edge 520 for cycling, but I'm thinking about moving up to a 630 or 735XT next season.
fwiw, as a new runner you'll get as much value from a phone based app, which will be fine up until you're running for about 90 minutes.0 -
NikoInspires wrote: »Wow this was extremely eye opening.
And before you spend your money is the best time for eye-opening!NikoInspires wrote: »HIIT is something i haven't fully looked into i'll be completely honest. however, most people i've talked to have said its great for losing weight so i figured i'd try it.
I disagree very strongly. If you want we can go into all the reasons why, but I'm trying not to bore you, and you're asking about what kind of tracker is best so how useful HIIT is for weight loss is kind of off topic unless you want to go into it. But there's a lot of hype around this.NikoInspires wrote: »I'll be starting it easy. So basically I'll just be doing jogging and possibly swimming for quite some time. until i get closer to 200lbs.
Starting real easy is going to be good for you. Sorry to go off topic again but I'm going to urge you to get good running shoes, your knees will thank you. Also, follow a program like Couch to 5K, it'll help a lot, it'll ease you into it and help you avoid injuries - so you can go the distance.NikoInspires wrote: »You've opened my eyes though, i think i might be leaning more towards something with a strap. because then i can just wear it when i'm working out and it can possibly give me a better and more accurate reading of my heart rate when it comes down to it.
I have a Garmin watch (Fenix 3 HR) that has a wrist HRM built in, but it also came with a chest strap. I use the chest strap for anything I consider "serious exercise."0 -
Garmin has come up a few times in this thread. Especially if you plan to jog, Garmin makes good options for you. This is a good article, it's dated, but might still be useful.
How calorie measurement works on Garmin fitness devices0 -
I run, mountain bike, and hike a lot, so good GPS is important to me. I have the Garmin Vivoactive HR and love it. Good battery life and you don't have to carry your phone with you to get a GPS signal. GPS is built into the watch. Plus I like the apps and widgets you can download to the watch. Very customizable.0
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I run, mountain bike, and hike a lot, so good GPS is important to me. I have the Garmin Vivoactive HR and love it. Good battery life and you don't have to carry your phone with you to get a GPS signal. GPS is built into the watch. Plus I like the apps and widgets you can download to the watch. Very customizable.
I agree with this. The Vivoactive is sort of a jack-of-all-trades watch in that you can track a lot of different types of activities with it. OP mentioned swimming, which means most of the FitBits are out as they are not waterproof. If you are a serious runner, then a dedicated running watch is better, but with the Vivoactive I can track weights, treadmill, running, swimming (although the HR is not very good) and download golf courses to it.
I'd avoid the Vivosmart. Lots of software issues with it.0
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