Heart Rate Monitors

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rae_mayer
rae_mayer Posts: 226
in Fitness and Exercise
I'm hoping to get a Heart Rate Monitor as a Christmas present to myself. I really have no idea on what to get. The other problem is that I'm still pretty large so if it has a chest strap it needs to be able to fit someone bigger. What I want to know is there a preferred brand? Any brands I should avoid? What brand would best fit a bigger person (40+ inches)?

Replies

  • bjfmade
    bjfmade Posts: 543 Member
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    I just bought a polar FT4 and love it. The band is adjustable so no worries there.
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,293 Member
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    most chest straps can be made to fit as small as 32" up to 56".

    Take a look at Polar, FT7 is great, the FT4 is a slightly cheaper one with less options but still very reliable.
  • aamon17
    aamon17 Posts: 54 Member
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    I ha the Polar FT7. Love it! I have a 54" chest. Fits fine.
  • LindseyDD
    LindseyDD Posts: 160 Member
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    I have the Polar FT7 LOVE IT!
  • lindalee0315
    lindalee0315 Posts: 527 Member
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    I can vouch for Polar. I've had mine for seven years. The chest strap is adjustable. I'm pining for a new one, but only because I like gadgets.
  • Sherie13
    Sherie13 Posts: 250 Member
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    I think Polar straps fit 60 inches. I just bought a replacement strap because I lost mine. It's the size M-XXL. I have the FT4 and I love it. If you want to spend more you definitely can, but I got the cheapest polar model for about $65 on Amazon with free shipping.

    Good luck!
  • Nikkie_too
    Nikkie_too Posts: 495 Member
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    I have the Polar FT4 too - I feel like it lowballs my calories-burned a bit, but that's better than overestimating! :) It tracks my HR beautifully though.

    The chest strap will definitely fit you.
  • rae_mayer
    rae_mayer Posts: 226
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    Is Amazon the best place to get them or are they available in stores?
  • grneyedgf
    grneyedgf Posts: 23 Member
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    I love the Timex Ironman brand! They have them for men and women and should have sizes on their website. I bought mine like 8 years ago and the battery just went out.
  • belgerian
    belgerian Posts: 1,059 Member
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    I have a Garmin Forerunner 305 it is a GPS along with HRM. I can do pacing alerts, heart rate alerts to high or not high enough. I use it to run outside. You can program it to do HIT. Fairly easy to learn how to use. I love it I can upload my run to garmin see my progress on the maps compare heartrate to pacing to elevation it is a very nice tool.. Of course it is about 140.00 and you can buy the xtra foot transmitter for use on treadmills or indoor tracks. This is much more than just a HR monitor if all you want is a HR moniter you can go cheaper but I like the options on this are very nice if you use them.
  • caseyp1122
    caseyp1122 Posts: 79 Member
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    A lot of people invest in fancy shmansy heart rate monitors, I just went with a simple $20 one that requires no chest strap and was made by Schwinn available at that online book company (I don't want to mention their name and break the rules). Regardless, your going to put it through the wringer so start simple at first and then maybe graduate to the complex, expensive big boys?
  • Miss_Chievous_wechange
    Miss_Chievous_wechange Posts: 1,230 Member
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    I have a Polar F6 and I love it!
  • bzmom
    bzmom Posts: 1,332 Member
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    I use to have a cheap HRM I purchased at the local store without a chest strap and let me tell you after a while pressing that darn button every couple of minutes to keep up with your heart rate becomes a pain in the rear!! It got to the point I was annoyed to use it and just used my previous entered exercise. I have a Polar FT7 now and I LOVE IT!!! I bought mine for $70 on ebay but you just have to becareful when you do purchases there.
  • Cmydob
    Cmydob Posts: 7 Member
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    get a polar and it works with most cardio machines.. to the best of my knowledge and experience the garmins only work with garmins.
  • mrandolph69
    mrandolph69 Posts: 197 Member
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    I have a large chest and my Polar FT7 fits ok. I ordered their largest strap when I bought it at Heartratemonitors.com.
  • katharine1229
    katharine1229 Posts: 51
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    I got my FT7 off of amazon a year ago..LOVE IT
  • jhalsey205
    jhalsey205 Posts: 91 Member
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    I bought a Garmin Forerunner 305. I recently starting road biking and use it as to track my route / elevation, speed and heart rate. It's last year's model but bought it new on ebay. Love it.
  • Sherie13
    Sherie13 Posts: 250 Member
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    Is Amazon the best place to get them or are they available in stores?

    I checked stores and Amazon was the same thing but cheaper price. Shipping is free if you don't mind waiting a few extra days for it.

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