Road Cycling - Heart Monitor

Anybody have any recommendations on a Heart Monitor...cost/brand/where?, etc.

doc

Check out the polar line up, they have cycling specific monitors, and Ciclosport makes a pretty nice one for 200 ish.

Polar have a good range available. You can get them with cyclocomputer features too.

Good prices here (http://www.heartratemonitorman.com/).

I bought a cheap cardiosport "Go" HRM(~$40). It's quite good and I have been very happy with it. It is very simple and lacks most of the features of the higher-end model. While it has served its purpose in terms of indocrinating me to the benefits of knowing your heart rate while cycling, I should have ponied up a couple more bucks for more features. Specifically, I would love for the thing to alert me when I'm outside of me target zones.

I suppose I can always sell it and go one level higher.

-mark

Polar have a good range available. You can get them with cyclocomputer features too.

Good prices here (http://www.heartratemonitorman.com/).


Hey booyah, I've been looking for a 720i for awhile now. Have you bought from this link before? I called and prices are cheap, worried they're a bit too cheap, if you know what I mean.

f

Hey booyah, I've been looking for a 720i for awhile now. Have you bought from this link before? I called and prices are cheap, worried they're a bit too cheap, if you know what I mean.

f

I have used them recently to order the USB interface and the cadence pickup with great sucess. At the time there was free shipping on accessories. Fast delivery and no problems at all.

Hey booyah, I've been looking for a 720i for awhile now. Have you bought from this link before? I called and prices are cheap, worried they're a bit too cheap, if you know what I mean.

f
I haven't personally bought from that site, but have a friend who did and recommended it to me when I was looking at HRMs. I've seen others post about the same site here too (the link used to be http://omega3bar.com). I'm still looking... just a procrastinator when it comes to buying stuff and have so many other things I want to get first!

Hey booyah, I've been looking for a 720i for awhile now. Have you bought from this link before? I called and prices are cheap, worried they're a bit too cheap, if you know what I mean.

f

I've bought from them.

Got my Polar 620i, no problems, prompt, cheap (beat other online prices for that model by almost 20%).

Dude you can get a refunished polar s150 for I think 79 dollars! Thats a steal. Its on www.performancebike.com

Check it out, I have the s150 which is super cool, but I want to get the S720 which is Sweet. I am steal saving my pennies. But first need a new pair of wheels.

Thanks to those who bought from this site with good reveiws. I'm not a huge web buyer, but I do buy the odd thing as you can find great deals on some sites. I Always feel better getting some feedback on sites I'm unsure of.

f

Do a search in the Training and Nutrition subforum for lots of suggestions.

I have a cheap Dbase. It has few features, which I don't really miss, except I wish it had average rate over a period of time. Max obtained might also be interesting.

I don't recommend Sette Quasar - found at Pricepoint. Though loaded with features, I doubt its accuracy and find that the 'watch' often resets itself when I go through the features - very annoying.

Anybody have any recommendations on a Heart Monitor...cost/brand/where?, etc.

doc

If you are just a recreational rider like me, riding for fitness, exercise, and the sheer joy of cycling, you don't really need one. My doctor, who is an avid cyclist himself, told me that an HRM is overkill, as it doesn't really tell you all that much, and besides, I am giving myself a stress test on every hill anyway, why do I need something beeping to tell me my rate is up?

I am saving my coin for a power output meter, one that doesn't cost lebenty-seven hundred bucks like the power tap.

I have a Polar S150 and it works great for me. I keep it on the new bike for HR and the cycling functions. I keep on the old Polar edge on the old bike with the Avocet for the cycling fucntions. You can't download all the fancy stuff, but I keep a detail training diary. It's a good monitor for the money.

My doctor, who is an avid cyclist himself, told me that an HRM is overkill, as it doesn't really tell you all that much, ...

I hope there was more to the conversation than this. If your physician flat-out told you not to spend your money on one and then didn't offer an alterative means of monitoring physical exertion level, then I would be looking for another PCP for my next visit. To discount the value in measuring one's heart rate as part of an exercise program is just plain ignorant. I would love to hear his explanation.

-mark

I'm not much on HRM's either...that's not to say their not valid. Eddy Mercks has won more road races than anyone, including Armstrong, never used one and Armstrong does. BUT please don't rag on me about this, I think they play a role to someone who is trying to perform at their best, such as those who race. But when I raced back in the late 70's and early 80's this stuff wasn't available so we did miles-lots of base miles, with intreval training, seemed to work good for us. The HRM helps you to track where your at, but once you get use to what your body is telling you, you just kind of know-maybe not to the accuracy of what the HRM will tell you but close enough. But if your not a racer than really consider why, if your riding for recreation or fitness than just build your base miles up slowly, your heart will improve as you go. You can always take your own pulse upon wake up to see if you overworked the day before or not so you can judge your biking tempo for that day.

I was thinking of getting the POLAR A5, would anybody comment on these please ... btw just wanna announce I did my first century yesterday took me 7.1/2 hrs not exactly great to some of you guys here but sure felt good to join the club.

I hope there was more to the conversation than this. If your physician flat-out told you not to spend your money on one and then didn't offer an alterative means of monitoring physical exertion level, then I would be looking for another PCP for my next visit. To discount the value in measuring one's heart rate as part of an exercise program is just plain ignorant. I would love to hear his explanation.

-mark

Considering he has been practicing medicine for over 40 years and was a cardiologist for many years before changing to family medicine, and a cyclist, I trust his judgement a lot more than I trust Polar. And, no offense intended, I trust him more than I trust an unknown someone on a BB who may be a Polar salesman.

Why do you need to measure your heart rate? How does that tell you your level of exertion? Answer, it doesn't. The best way to measure exertion is power output. How many watts did you produce, peak, sustained, and per hour.

first off, skareb. my first century was 7.5 hours. that was 10 years ago and i now routinely do centuries in 5.5 to 5.75 hours. so way to go. as long as its fun for you the times will improve.

second: western medicine (see cardiologist) specifically sees/ is concerned with abnormalities with respect to the heart and its accompanying functions.
it is actually true that HRM don't tell you much. it just a snapshot of your HR currently. it doesn't predict the future of your heart function, cannot tell of its past (heart damage, true efficiency, etc)

to a man of science, a 180 HR reading means nothing. an out of shape, sedentary smoker running up the stairs can reach 180 range quickly. a trained cyclist can reach 180 after a carefully crafted program. 180 is an empirical number that means nothing on its face (on the bike) ---> a dr wants more data. EKG, blood pressure, lactic acid build up, etc.

i think what the doctor means is that using a HRM for a number in the absence of other data is useless. which begs the question....WHY DOES ONE WEAR A HRM WHILE TRAINING

i'll answer only using my reasons. i use a basic HRM, the polar NV. i use it to gauge my recovery time and efficiency of my heart. if my HR doesn't match my perceived level of exertion then i know i am overtrained. like cadence, i know what my HR is most of the time without looking at the monitor. the monitor just confirms my perception.

p.s. get a polar. if the time comes to replace the battery they have good customer service. if you have occasion to replace the chest band, they are universal to all the polar lines. just my experience.

i think what the doctor means is that using a HRM for a number in the absence of other data is useless. which begs the question....WHY DOES ONE WEAR A HRM WHILE TRAINING

i'll answer only using my reasons. i use a basic HRM, the polar NV. i use it to gauge my recovery time and efficiency of my heart. if my HR doesn't match my perceived level of exertion then i know i am overtrained. like cadence, i know what my HR is most of the time without looking at the monitor. the monitor just confirms my perception.


Again, I would hope that Trekrider's physician offered an explanation for his recommendation. As RiPHRaPH points out, the present value of heart rate determination is in comparing it to your historical averages. In addition, a HRM will allow you to tailor you program to meet your fitness goals ... burn more fat, increase VO2max, increase anaerobic capacity, etc. This is done through knowledge of your maximum rate and zone training. With this knowledge, your HRM can guide you to maximum performance while avoiding jaunts into anaerobic territory that can sap energy over long rides and require extensive recovery.

Without an explanation from your physician, it gives the appearance that a HRM is tantamount to voodoo. Obviously he believes that the well-trained athlete has little to gain from its use. While he's entitled to his well-qualified opinion, he should at least approach the issue in an objective manner and provide all the facts (including an explanation of the limitations).

-mark

Why do you need to measure your heart rate? How does that tell you your level of exertion? Answer, it doesn't. The best way to measure exertion is power output. How many watts did you produce, peak, sustained, and per hour.

Yes, it does tell your exertion. You can't base training on power alone, since it can fluctuate so much with how you're feeling that day. If Lance said "OK, I'm gonna do this whole TT at X watts," he'd either have too much energy left at the end, or he'd die before he finished. By basing it on his HR, he knows how much his body is working to produce the needed energy.

I use a simple cardiosport one, but don't use it on my bike which has a cordless computer, as they interfere and I get bpms of 270 plus while coasting downhill!

Try Ebay, I got mine POLAR 210 (although w/o cycling featrures) for $ 120.00 (MSRP: $ 260.00). Mine is new and works fine, bought from a reputable Ebay seller. I just hate paying full retail prices, unless I have no choice.
Corsaire

Anybody have any recommendations on a Heart Monitor...cost/brand/where?, etc.

doc

If I could find mine, I would send it to you fee, you pay shipping. I used one for a few years, and found very little value. Then, last year, off came the computers...what a relief. Maybe its just me, but being concerned with heart rate, zones, speed, etc just took all of the enjoyment out of riding. Then to come home and record all of this stuff!!
Plus, I realized that all of these gadgets really didnt do anything to improve my cycling to any great extent. YMMV

Unless or until a medical doctor, whom I know and whose opinion I trust and respect, and is a competitive cyclist tells me I need a HRM and can cite a reason, I think I'll stick with the Doctor I have had for the past 15 years. He knows me, he knows my physical condition, he knows my heart, and, best of all, he knows cycling.

I need no other reasons.

Unless or until a medical doctor, whom I know and whose opinion I trust and respect, and is a competitive cyclist tells me I need a HRM and can cite a reason, I think I'll stick with the Doctor I have had for the past 15 years. He knows me, he knows my physical condition, he knows my heart, and, best of all, he knows cycling.

I need no other reasons.

That's cool. To each his own.

-mark

You guys are missing the point, the HRM is just a training tool to improve performance and overall fitness by monitoring your heartbeats within the so called HR Zone, depending on your age. It really is a valuable tool IF and ONLY IF you are into fitness and improving cardio/endurance performance, otherwise is of no use for you...to each his own.
I'm training to climb this year and possibly run NY City, so this piece of excellent training equipment makes sense to me. That's all. To each his own.
Corsaire :)

Unless or until a medical doctor, whom I know and whose opinion I trust and respect, and is a competitive cyclist tells me I need a HRM and can cite a reason, I think I'll stick with the Doctor I have had for the past 15 years. He knows me, he knows my physical condition, he knows my heart, and, best of all, he knows cycling.

I need no other reasons.


Nobody said you need one. However, you basically said that they're pointless. I countered with my reason for why they're not. Don't use one if you don't want, and I will because I want to (and have a reason).