Heart rate monitors

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  • NicolePatriot
    NicolePatriot Posts: 621 Member
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    bump
  • GibsonDarlin
    GibsonDarlin Posts: 202 Member
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    I just got my polar Ft60, The calorie burn is not accurate on the machines at the Gym or MFP.
    I also know that I havent figure out how to set mine up 100%, but Im learning...

    You can do without one, if you realize that all the tools you use overstate the calories you burn. With that in mind you can just adjust your intake of food. The machines at my Y are 35% more than actual.

    I got mine on ebay for half price ($71)
  • skedzie
    skedzie Posts: 91 Member
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    Polar FT4 - Love it! I had no idea how far off the machines at the gym were. I put mine on when I walk into the gym and leave it on through my workout. When I log my exercise I just make the numbers work for what i know I burned. Everyone is always asking how to log strength training....since I do my gym time in a circuit type fashion I don't worry about it because if I did 2 miles on the treadmill and 8 miles on the bike I just split the calories burned 20/80 and log them. I think having the HRM has given me a MUCH better idea of what works for me to burn the calories and what doesn't. Good Luck!
  • thepetiterunner
    thepetiterunner Posts: 1,238 Member
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    Anyone know how the Polar ones compare to the Garmin ones? I have a Garmin Forerunner that I use for my runs with GPS, but it dosen't have a calorie counter.

    Also, how big are the Polar ones? I have a tiny wrist so I prefer one that doesn't look like I'm strapping a freaking cereal box to my arm.
  • MummyOfSeven
    MummyOfSeven Posts: 314 Member
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    I'm buying the Polar FT7F next week.
    My reward for losing 20 lb :smile:
  • DisneyMommy
    DisneyMommy Posts: 281
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    Can the Polar owners explain the difference between the FT4 and 7? I have heard about both these time and again but still can't figure out how they are different. Thanks!
  • Sylendis
    Sylendis Posts: 5
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    The beautiful thing about a heart rate monitor is that it helps to calculate the burn for YOUR workout. As your body grows accustomed to your workouts, the less effective they become. A heart rate monitor helps you to know when to kick it up a notch to counter act over training.
    The MFP calculation is an estimate based on an average person. The heart rate monitor is measuring your actual heart rate over the entire time that you work out. Polar has many heart rate monitors that provide a variety of options. You don’t have to spend a lot of money, but I would get one that calculates and records calories burned during training. You can then manually update MFP with the data.
  • George1567
    George1567 Posts: 107
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    There is always a distance between needs and wants. In the case of my HRM there is no doubt that I could workout and be healthy without it. But I love the data it gives me, I can upload my results to an internet site which gives me charts and graphs. I can be the CEO of my own body by looking over my workouts. From those charts I can go back and assign a individual lifting set to a spike in my heartrate. I know that leg presses in a machine with a substantial ammount of weight do not raise my heart rate nearly like lunges holding little 25# dumbbells. Likewise barbell flat bench does not jump my heartrate compared to that of traditional pushups. This is a huge motivation for me, and has me looking forward to the next time I go to the gym. It does give me calories spent and I do record that information, but it is way down on the list of information I want from my HRM. This may be due to the fact my nutrition plan has set numbers, eat at one level for non-workout days and eat at a different level on days I do work out. Some people may need an I-pod, others it might be a fancy gym outfit or shoes, and some purists do it regardless of the gadgets just because they can. If a HRM elivates your fitness efforts than it is worth it...........
  • lindz1982
    lindz1982 Posts: 13 Member
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    I have a mio drive watch heart rate monitor. I really like it, its waterproof for swimming and I use it for hockey as well. It can also tell you when you've burned 3500 calories (3500 calories in a pound). Its also fairly cheap......$60.00 CAD
  • GeoJenna223
    GeoJenna223 Posts: 68 Member
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    **please correct me if I am wrong**
    The FT4 has no capacity for data transfer. Any thing you want to transfer to your computer has to be done by user input. The FT7 is the lowest level monitor from Polar that has the capacity to use the FlowLink (a separate purchase) to seamlessly transfer your exercise data to the computer.

    I love my HRM. I use it all the time even though I don't "eat back" my exercise calories. I use it more for a training tool. If I am doing high intensity cardio, i try to keep my heart rate between 160-180, if I am aiming for low, I keep it between 140 and 160. The other nice thing about the Polar HRMs is they are compatible with most of the machines at my gym, so I am not constantly looking at my wrist. The machines that have the transmitters built in will show my heart rate on the machine's HR display.

    I think HRMs are one of the things that helped jump start my weight loss. I find that MFP's database can overestimate lots of activity (and underestimate some as well). They are also a fun thing to wear while doing laundry and cleaning vigorously and stuff to see how much cals you **actually** burn over what your body would burn if you were just sitting there watching TV.
  • ki4yxo
    ki4yxo Posts: 709 Member
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    Some people may need an I-pod, others it might be a fancy gym outfit or shoes, and some purists do it regardless of the gadgets just because they can. If a HRM elivates your fitness efforts than it is worth it...........


    I wanted one because of my blood pressure.
    The doctor said not to exceed 150BPM

    After working out for a few months, I'll go back
    for a checkup and I hope cutting back on the
    sodium pays off!
  • Sylendis
    Sylendis Posts: 5
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    Can the Polar owners explain the difference between the FT4 and 7? I have heard about both these time and again but still can't figure out how they are different. Thanks!

    I don’t own either watch but you can compare them on their website. It seems that the main difference between the Polar FT4 and FT7 is that the FT 7 can upload its data to the polarpersonaltrainer.com for tracking and analysis. Other than that option, I don’t see a major difference between the two.
  • Josedavid
    Josedavid Posts: 695 Member
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    Hello!

    I think that you need to manage the information about your workout as well as you do with the food intake.

    I explained a little bit in the Team 966 blog

    http://team966.com/information-management/

    Brgrds / José D.
  • stephaniep12345mfp
    stephaniep12345mfp Posts: 116 Member
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    This is an interesting topic to me because I've been trying to decide if I should get an HRM or not. Based on what others have said, I found this link to compare the Polar products: http://www.polarusa.com/us-en/products/compare. Next time I'm due for a reward, I think I'll make one of these my treat! :)
  • mhotch
    mhotch Posts: 901 Member
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    I never exercise w/o my HRM.

    Polar is the most popular line for HRM. If you workout in a gym {or plan to in the future} then Polar may be the brand that works for you. Most commercial grade equipment are programed to read Polar hrm's . You can go basic and cheap that just gives you a readout of calories burn , all the way to having a personal trainer on your wrist. Unfortunately Polar watches still uses the "fat loss zone'. I suggest you just ignore that. It has been proven the fat zone does not burn the calories as an aerobic rate would.

    Important factors to consider:

    A chest strap is the most accurate to use.

    If you plan to workout in a gym, or with others who also have a HRM, then make sure its "coded" This prevents your monitor from picking up the signal from someone close by.

    If you plan to use it for swimming, then I suggest you send it to the manufacture to change the battery when necessary. {save your receipt!} Otherwise it is more convenient for it to be user friendly to change it yourself.

    If you do buy from an online auction, like Ebay, make sure it is from an authorized Dealer. I have been told it can get pricey to fix w/o proof of purchase. { I am on my third Hrm, 2nd Polar, and have never had the need to get one fixed}

    If the chest strap is washable, thats a plus.

    I bought mine at HeartratemonitorsUSA.com, there are always coupons with a little discount. Just google it and many will show up.

    Good Luck
  • dixiech1ck
    dixiech1ck Posts: 769 Member
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    I use a Polar FT7. I love it, when it doesn't crap out on me. You have to make sure the electrodes are really really wet and that the belt is super tight to your skin so you don't lose connectivity. That's my only con for the product, otherwise, I really like it and think it gives me a good reading for what I need it for.
  • htimpaired
    htimpaired Posts: 1,404 Member
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    I got a Polar FT4 a few weeks ago. I love it but was totally surprised by how high my heart rate was getting during my cardio and I felt fine! I guess I'm one of those people that naturally has a higher rate, it's definetely not because I'm out of shape, believe me. One thing I was also surprised by was that the cardio equipment at my gym has a wireless Polar sensor, so just by my being on the machine, it picked up my info from my HRM and displayed my info on the treadmill, without my having to do anything. Which saved me from looking at the wristwatch. Not the reason I bought it (I do lots of step aerobic and kickboxing classes, so I wanted the HRM for that kind of thing), but a nice bonus!
  • momtozmc
    momtozmc Posts: 418 Member
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    I received a Timex HRM for Christmas... Love it!!! I would have gotten a Polar, but it was a gift... but this HRM says I burn about 100-150 more than MFP or runkeeper.com when I run... so I take the least amount and calculate from there.

    L
  • tuffytuffy1
    tuffytuffy1 Posts: 920 Member
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    I use a Polar FT7. I love it, when it doesn't crap out on me. You have to make sure the electrodes are really really wet and that the belt is super tight to your skin so you don't lose connectivity. That's my only con for the product, otherwise, I really like it and think it gives me a good reading for what I need it for.

    Thank you so much for saying this -- my Polar has been crapping out on me recently, getting stuck at like a 70 bpm (when I am running) and I couldn't figure out what was wrong. I wonder if the strap is not tight enough? I will try tightening it, thank you!
  • mhotch
    mhotch Posts: 901 Member
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    I use a Polar FT7. I love it, when it doesn't crap out on me. You have to make sure the electrodes are really really wet and that the belt is super tight to your skin so you don't lose connectivity. That's my only con for the product, otherwise, I really like it and think it gives me a good reading for what I need it for.

    Thank you so much for saying this -- my Polar has been crapping out on me recently, getting stuck at like a 70 bpm (when I am running) and I couldn't figure out what was wrong. I wonder if the strap is not tight enough? I will try tightening it, thank you!

    I find that when my HRM does this, my strap needs to get washed. I try to wash mine at least after 3-4 uses. I do rinse it after each wear, but I throw it in with the laundry periodically.

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