Heart rate monitors

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vanimami
vanimami Posts: 433 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Hi all,

I'm sure someone has posted about this before, but can I get some recommendations on HRM?? I finally decided on getting one, but not sure which ones are good/ bad, etc. Thanks for the help in advance! :flowerforyou:

Replies

  • savvystephy
    savvystephy Posts: 4,151 Member
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    I love my Polar F6! :happy:
  • wohlers2
    wohlers2 Posts: 2
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    your best bet is to do a bunch of research - read the reviews on Amazon.com, etc.

    What I found when I did the research was that Polar heart rate monitors are probably the most popular, but have the one disadvantage of not having user-changeable batteries in the chest straps - you have to send the whole strap back to the factory when the battery on it fails.

    I used to have a Timex, which I liked except that a) the calorie computation was off (as I recall, I had to roughly cut it in half for it to be accurate) and b) it didn't talk to the machines at the gym. It turned out it also had a longevity issue. It started getting flaky and unreliable after about a year, and when I changed the batteries, that didn't help.

    I didn't like the idea of not being able to change the batteries, so my new heartrate monitor is a Suunto, which I LOVE - its easy to use, it plays well with the machines, and, although the calories it reports tend to be a bit lower than what the machines are calculating, it is basically accurate, and, more importantly, consistent.

    You really just need to know what you want out of it - you can get a basic model that will JUST tell you your heart rate for maybe $20-$30 ish - or you can get all the bells and whistles and spend several hundred dollars. Whatever you do, make sure you get one with a chest strap. Then just decide how much more you want. My first Timex was about $45. The Suunto I replaced it with was about $70 (on a REALLY good sale at ****s - better than any on-line price I could find for it).

    Good luck.
  • zebras
    zebras Posts: 600
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    I have the Timex, and while it has been vary reliable, I agree that you need to cut the calorie count in half. It was so different from what the precor machines were saying I was burning that I e-mailed with Timex several times, and found that it was operating within their specifications, but they admitted the calculation was generous. However, in terms of the heart rate itself it was spot on and it was easy to use, and I will be able to have the battery changed easily as opposed to the Polar ones.
  • Phoenix_Rising
    Phoenix_Rising Posts: 11,417 Member
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    I use this one except mine is the Reebok branded one....



    FOR ANYONE WANTING AN HRM....

    http://sellout.woot.com/

    Today and today only
    $19.99 + $5 shipping
    I have the Reebok branded version of this, but it's identical.
    I LOVE mine (and paid the same years ago).

    Pro-Form_Precision_Trainer_XT_Heart_Rate_Monitor_with_Chest_StrapmkeStandard.jpg
  • vanimami
    vanimami Posts: 433 Member
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    Tahnks for the help guys! I've been trying to do some research and have been taking everyone's advice.

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