Heart rate and calorie monitor watch?

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LaBori7
LaBori7 Posts: 35
in Fitness and Exercise
I need to buy one but there's like hundreds of them out there. I need one that works well and it's accurate. Which one should I get?

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  • bsharrah
    bsharrah Posts: 129 Member
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    Polar is highly recommended. Most are very accurate regarding heart rate but none are totally accurate if you are looking to track calories burned. They can be close but too many variables to be completely accurate. Just make sure you get one with a chest strap.
  • ingabellamy
    ingabellamy Posts: 1
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    I use a Garmin.
  • bluebike2013
    bluebike2013 Posts: 30 Member
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    i have a polar F4 got it at academy and it works pretty good. Give Calories burned etc. no problems with it so far. knock on wood. Other than having to send it in to get a new battery $14 and 10 days later its back.
  • CoderGal
    CoderGal Posts: 6,800 Member
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    Keep in mind that 0 heart rate monitors are accurate for resistance burns. HRM equations are based on cardio burns only.

    http://www.sparkpeople.com/community/ask_the_experts.asp?q=75

    One thing to look into is the Vo2max numbers that the calculators in the watch use. Make sure it's accurate for you (check if it uses accurate male or female calculations etc)

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/466973-i-want-to-test-for-my-max-heart-rate-vo2-max

    Also, some of the calculations are inaccurate in the polar models for women:
    "In conclusion, when the predicted values of V˙ O2max and HRmax are used, the Polar S410 HRM provides a rough
    estimate of EE during treadmill, cycling, and rowing. For males, the use of predicted values resulted in a mean error
    of 2% (SD 18%), whereas in females the mean error was 33% (SD 20.9)."
    http://www.ux1.eiu.edu/~cfje/5700/PolarWatch-study-MSSE.pdf

    Theres a mfp thread about it here
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/459580-polar-hrm-calorie-burn-estimate-accuracy-study
  • rnrsmum
    rnrsmum Posts: 3
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    I asked this question on another forum and was recommended the Polar f4, looked on Amazon and it has good reviews so Im thinking I will go with one of those
  • CoderGal
    CoderGal Posts: 6,800 Member
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    I asked this question on another forum and was recommended the Polar f4, looked on Amazon and it has good reviews so Im thinking I will go with one of those
    ^polar f4 is very popular
  • AmyRhubarb
    AmyRhubarb Posts: 6,890 Member
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    I have a New Balance N4 - works great. Just make sure whatever you get has a chest strap. :smile:

    You can search the boards here for heart rate monitor or HRM & you'll find tons of info & opinions. Narrow the field down by that then check for those models on Amazon & read the customer reviews there - these two things were very helpful for me when I was hunting for mine. I was going for either a Polar or the New Balance. I turned to eBay for new items, and the NB came up first at a great price, so that's what I've got.

    Good luck! Once you start using one you'll wonder how you ever got by without it! :tongue:
  • sarabeartx
    sarabeartx Posts: 9 Member
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    I just got the Polar FT4 about two weeks ago and I LOVE IT! It is worth so much to finish a workout and see in black and white all the good you have done in terms of calories lost and average heart rate etc. I would highly recommend this one!
  • laughingirl71
    laughingirl71 Posts: 51 Member
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    I've used bodybugg...polar and garmin. I love the Polar, but garmin was good too. not a huge fan of the bugg.
  • LaBori7
    LaBori7 Posts: 35
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    Does the buddybug count the calories that you eat or do you manually enter them online?
    I've used bodybugg...polar and garmin. I love the Polar, but garmin was good too. not a huge fan of the bugg.

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