HRM

I just purchased the budybugg and it is arriving in the mail today.... i'd love to hear feedback on it

same here I would like to hear from those who own one....which one they recommend??

Bumpity bump... bump.

I have an older model Polar with a chest strap that I love but I'm probably going to ask for a Polar F4 for Christmas since some of my buttons are getting "sticky". The pros are I can tell it how old I am, my gender, my age and my weight so it can accurately measure my calories. I can also adjust the limits because the defaults are set for the average person and their age and since I workout so much, my limits are different. I have no cons with it (other than that sticky button thing but that's an age thing). Get one with a chest strap so you can constantly monitor your heart rate. The ones with just a watch aren't as useful.

I just bought a Polar F4 off Ebay, brand new for $42 (which includes shipping). I have been using it for a couple days now and I like it. Pretty simple, no frills. Just two buttons on the watch, I have the "guys" version but its not that bulky. I bought it to replace a Timex HRM that went nuts on me. If the Timex didnt go nuts I probably would kept it a tad longer but I like this polar a lot better. The Timex I felt was too bluky for me and it was a little more high tech. I like seeing my calories burned, HR and duration, I didn't need the other stuff.

The Polar brand is the most reliable and easiest to use. They have models from about $35 up to several hundred depending on what features you want. I would recommend at least getting one that will calculate total calories burned, average heart rate and target HR zones.

I actually have 3 - in order of awesomeness

1. Timex Run Trainer GPS with HRM Soft Strap (for use when in the gym, walking, running, and anything non-bike) Newest
2. Garmin Edge 500 GPS with HRM Hard Strap (for use while cycling both mountain and road) Newer
3. Bowflex Precision XT (don't really use anymore, bought for cheap off some random website a couple years ago) Old

The TRT is probably the most versatile because it has GPS and heart rate. I use it for things when I'm not on the bike. I use it in the gym, and it allows me to turn off the GPS so I can just get heart rate. It has an optional foot pod for running inside that is good for tracking cadence and also pace (it over rides the GPS if running outside). You can toggle on/off whichever feature that you want (HRM, Footpod, or GPS) which makes it very valuable to me. The TRT uses a specialized version of Training Peaks which is a bit overwhelming at first, but offers a ton of features.

The Garmin Edge 500 is a cycling specific computer HRM and GPS that doesn't really fit my non cycling activities because of the size of it. All in all it does a great job tracking though. I could probably sell it now that I have the TRT, I do like the Garmin connect website for tracking my training. It is simple and straight forward which I like.

The Bowflex is my oldest HRM toy and my wife seems to have a liking to it now. She wanted something similar to the TRT and she found that even though it doesn't have GPS, it fits her needs fairly well.

Out of all of the straps, I do like the soft strapped HRMs the best out of the 3 straps. It seems to be the most accurate, slips the least, and is the most comfortable to me.

Hope this helps!

For those who use a heart rate monitor...

Which one do you have?
How much was it?
What are some pro's and con's about it compared to others?

New Balance N4
89.99 @ London Drugs
I'm not sure cause I didn't really compare. I just wanted something inexpensive that would count calories and had a chest strap. I also liked the way it looks lol.

I actually have 3 - in order of awesomeness

1. Timex Run Trainer GPS with HRM Soft Strap (for use when in the gym, walking, running, and anything non-bike) Newest
2. Garmin Edge 500 GPS with HRM Hard Strap (for use while cycling both mountain and road) Newer
3. Bowflex Precision XT (don't really use anymore, bought for cheap off some random website a couple years ago) Old

The TRT is probably the most versatile because it has GPS and heart rate. I use it for things when I'm not on the bike. I use it in the gym, and it allows me to turn off the GPS so I can just get heart rate. It has an optional foot pod for running inside that is good for tracking cadence and also pace (it over rides the GPS if running outside). You can toggle on/off whichever feature that you want (HRM, Footpod, or GPS) which makes it very valuable to me. The TRT uses a specialized version of Training Peaks which is a bit overwhelming at first, but offers a ton of features.

The Garmin Edge 500 is a cycling specific computer HRM and GPS that doesn't really fit my non cycling activities because of the size of it. All in all it does a great job tracking though. I could probably sell it now that I have the TRT, I do like the Garmin connect website for tracking my training. It is simple and straight forward which I like.

The Bowflex is my oldest HRM toy and my wife seems to have a liking to it now. She wanted something similar to the TRT and she found that even though it doesn't have GPS, it fits her needs fairly well.

Out of all of the straps, I do like the soft strapped HRMs the best out of the 3 straps. It seems to be the most accurate, slips the least, and is the most comfortable to me.

Hope this helps!

With the TRT are you able to input your age/sex/weight ?

Yes you can. It is under configure, user then you can set the stuff in there.

Birthday, Gender, Weight, Height. There are a TON of options which can be a little overwhelming when you're not reading the manual. I don't really read the manuals for any of the stuff that I have. I tend to find out how it works through trial and error.

I guess that is the IT guy in me needing to find out for myself. RTFM (read the ummmm manual) if you feel so necessary but you'll learn a lot by just futzing around.

All of this awesomeness comes with a price tag though. It was a little over 2 hundo because I got the HRM option/package. You can look it up on amazon.

Best of luck!