HR Monitor for Masters Runner

Although it is sometimes maligned by some people, I have found the Garmin Forerunner 235 with HRM to be extremely accurate. In the three years I've had it there have been just a few exceptions and they were obvious and brief.

try this? wrote:

Although it is sometimes maligned by some people, I have found the Garmin Forerunner 235 with HRM to be extremely accurate. In the three years I've had it there have been just a few exceptions and they were obvious and brief.

Concur .

And I don’t like what it reads most of the time - so I know it’s accurate.

I'm 68 and have been running with a Garmin Forerunner 235 with HRM for about 3 years now. I would call it mostly accurate rather than extremely accurate. Sometimes I think its HR reading may somehow be affected by cadence and I get an unusually higher HR reading that is very close to the cadence I am running. Overall I have been very happy with it and the HR data definitely is great for seeing trends in fitness and fatigue. 20 years or so ago when Polar first came out with their chest strap HR monitors I trained with one for a couple of years and got really tired of and annoyed by wearing the chest strap. The Garmin is reliable and I wear it 24hrs/day as my regular watch. I am using the workout functions about 60-90 minutes/day and with that level of use (it samples HR much more frequently in workout mode) it gets about 3-4 days on a charge. Just wearing it as a watch it will go almost 2 weeks without a recharge.

The 235 frequently goes out in the weeds for me. Nonsensical values. Sometimes the HR won't ever go down, so your current HR displayed is the highest HR you've had on that run.

It's an alright guide, but nothing I'd call accurate by any stretch of the imagination.

Appreciate all the great replies ! Will check out the 235.

From my 43 years of running and over 91,000 miles, I jumped on the Polar when it was introduced. Used the Garmin 235/645 and currently run with the 245. Wrist HR, for me has not been as accurate as a HR strap. Picked up a Polar OH1 + arm HR strap., very accurate for me, and more comfortable than a chest strap. I list my street creds so you know I am not a weekend, run around the block jogger.. 20 marathons and 28 ultra races/runs amongst my 545 races and counting. Call me grateful.

Long Run Nick wrote:

Picked up a Polar OH1 + arm HR strap., very accurate for me, and more comfortable than a chest strap..

Thanks for the great recommendation. Do you pair it with your phone ?

sa2 wrote:

No longer train, need basic monitor for health reasons. Prefer strapless

The OP doesn't train. He doesn't need a $270 Garmin with a dozen features he doesn't need and a watch he'll have to recharge every day.

I'd guess a $99 Fitbit or something similar would work for you. You might want to go on Amazon and read the reviews.

If you only need to check your HR intermittently throughout the day, you might want to consider the Innovo Deluxe Fingertip Pulse Oximeter for $27 on Amazon. It's accurate and small enough to carry in your pocket. Put it on your finger turn it on, wait a few seconds and it shows your HR in real time.

Appreciate your comments. Are Fitbits fairly accurate ?

My goal is to keep my heart rate under 140 bpm. Anything over is pushing the envelope at my age (72). So I need something not perfect, but within range. I have moderate aortic stenosis (AS) but no serious symptoms. Cardiologist encourages exercise within personal, comfortable limits.

AS is not caused by exercise or diet. It can be from birth and a certain percent of the population develop it after age 65.

I run 3 miles a day, 5x week with weight circuit training 3x week. Can't stop running or I will certainly die ! :-)

I have the 235 wristwatch and it is rarely accurate for heart rate monitoring. Wouldn't recommend it for even sitting on the couch. And don't tell me it's not tight enough or on the wrong part of my wrist. I've used it now for the better part of three years and it does things I need it to sufficiently, hr monitoring is not one of those things.

It depends. Wrist-based HRMs don't work for some people. They work for others when working out, but they're not accurate when running. Some work for some people when running, but they don't work when you pick up the pace for racing, tempos, or intervals. It has to do with the jarring and the individual's circulatory system, I think.

If you don't get an answer here, you could narrow your choice by reading reviews online (Amazon) and then buying from someplace that has an easier return policy.

For what it's worth, you can buy an older Timex HRM with HR zone alerts on EBay for $30-$80. Get the ones with the more comfortable chest straps. (The ones with the small oval transmitter that snaps on and off the belt.) And you can buy aftermarket chest straps for $6 on eBay if the chest strap is too small or too large. You'll need to change the watch battery about once a year and the transmitter battery about every 6 months.

I have maybe 6 of these old Timex. I prefer them to my Garmin 630. They're way easier to use. I'll check eBay and see if I can find the model numbers.

Here's one... the older Timex Race Trainer HRM with the FlexTech digital transmitter for $35. The black and blue model is the unisex (small face). The colors are okay for a man to wear. I have... have to check my watch drawer to be sure... 2 or 3 of these. The HR zone beep can be hard to hear for older ears, but the display should be easily visible in sunlight. There are a couple of larger face models as well. The larger models have a slightly louder beep so I prefer them. Regardless, make sure you get the older model with FlexTech digital transmitter. Do NOT buy the newer Timex HRMs. The newer models have a dot matrix display. What a bonehead move! Dot matrix is 40-year-old technology. The screen is invisible in bright light. I bought one and returned it.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Brand-New-Timex-Ironman-Race-Trainer-Kit-Black-and-Blue/223168768632?hash=item33f5e52a78:g:Q7cAAOSw43JbsCft:sc:USPSPriority!37218!US!-1

fisky, sincerely appreciate your time and effort for the info. Will check it out.