I have recently shifted the majority of my training to running. I’ve always been a person who just runs on perceived exertion and don’t normally even wear a watch.
The idea of having my distance and pace in real time seems like it would be huge in training for Boston and making sure I push myself.
I am a little worried that it may push me too much or will end up being a waste of money.
I’ve read a lot of your reviews on here, but just wanted to get a final opinion.
Not much. The only major change is that I now will run where ever I want to. I have always been a time/distance junkie and so before I only ran measured courses. Now I run trails or anywhere that I want and get all the info I want.
I’d never previously trained with heart rate and using the Garmin 305 has made me adjust my pace on many runs. Easy or recovery runs I typically get bored and just want to get home so I push the pace too high. Watching my heartrate allows me to go just hard enough.
Also as mentioned above, its great for going out and finding new routes. You know pretty much exactly how far you’ve gone and its easy to retrace your steps later if you want to do the same or similar route again.
Plus, its nice to have it automatically entered into programs and not have to track much on your own by entering in spreadsheets or whatever from memory.
I’m happy with it.
Sully,
I haven’t seen a drastic change in my training, but I will tell you that I think it is an excellent training and race tool. I use the 405 and on days that I do recovery run, being able to see that I’m staying at an 8:30-9 min pace is very key, so that I don’t push too hard. In addition, I think that there are a lot of factors including but not limited to temperature and humidity that affects perceived exertion. The fact, that the GPS systems give you live feedback is awesome. Also, I think that training consistency and adaptation leads to better performance during your races. For example, I ran a 10 mile race this past weekend and my goal was to maintain a 7:00 min pace. The 405 kept me from going nuts at the beginning of the race with all the athletes that charge out of the gate at sub-6 minute pacing. I finished the race with a 7:02 mile average. I was very happy that I was able to execute the race the way I wanted to.
Therefore, I think that if you use this tool appropriately, you will be happy with how it helps your training and racing. Hope this helps.
E
I like it to control pace on IM mary. Keeps me from blasting out of T2 and frying myself within 5 miles. It’s so good for me that I feel it’s cheating!
I love it because I am able to just go run and not have pre-planned running courses that are 3, 5, 7, 10 miles etc. This means I run in new places and just trust my 305 to tell me when to turn around.
It has made running more fun because of this. Plus its nice to see HR graphed against pace.
My 305 is the best training tool I have used, thinking about getting one for the bike. Best $150 I EVER spent for a HR monitor. R.J.
There is no easy answer to this as it all depends what you want. We use ours in training to regulate sessions a bit closer.
Perceived effort is good and can/does work well but you do need to know that your perception of effort is good. We do regular 5km time trials to track progress. From that time we find paces for different intensity levels and train to a pace which we set in the Garmin - there are a number of running calculators on line to help.
It is not quite that simple as obviously terrain affects pace. Generally speaking, for shorter intervals we will use a flat course or track; longer intervals not too fussy as long as the average pace stays roughly where we want it to be.
The Garmin will help. but you still have to have a training program that works for you with a ‘correct’ mix of training levels and distances. The reality is that it does not matter whether or not you use a Garmin or a stopwatch. It’s still possible to overtrain.
During an event we use them as an indication of how we are going, not to tell us how we should be going. You still need to feel.
In addition to all the other great feedback, I also use mine with SportTracks to easily track the mileage for my shoes.
I used to roughly gauge it (I know they’re x-months old, etc), but now I can rotate between a few pairs and definitively know how much I’ve run in them so I know better when to toss 'em (350-400 miles for me).
My 305 is the best training tool I have used, thinking about getting one for the bike. Best $150 I EVER spent for a HR monitor. R.J.
just get the bike cadence sensor. I have…well should say had until Saturday when it flew off my bike in a race, the 305 (Multisport version) which is awesome. Just clips back and forth from the bike mount to the wrist strap, one button changes run and bike modes.
For me it’s made me train faster since I log each mile split… don’t think I’ve run a mile over 7:00 pace since I got it. Mentally it’s like the miles ‘count’ now that I know what pace they’re at. When I want to hit 5:30 pace, it’s easier to hammer it knowing I’ll be able to see exactly if I was on or off pace.
I’d give up one of my testes before I’d relinquish my 405. I love that watch.
I love the 305! I don’t love its size, but knowing where i’m at pace/distance is sooo helpful. I had a coach earlier this season that gave me very specific run splits ( I got fired, but that’s a story for different thread). ie run 1 mile at 8:30, miles 2-4 at 7:45 etc. Using the workout mode, I would load the splits into the garmin. It made it much easier to focus on what I was doing rather computing everything in my head. As others have said, it also great for keeping easy days easy and hard days hard etc. I have the bike kit also.
I also travel for my job. Being on the road and not having to figure out mileage in a new city or country is great.
I’m lazy as hell when it comes to tracking and journaling workouts. The Garmin syncs with Training Peaks (sport tracks or whatever). I don’t have to remember to log my mileage, splits etc for the week / month. I still have to log my swims. I think the 305 is the best deal around at $150. Cant go wrong.
Man these are all good replies so far. I feel that my 305 is the best training tool I have. Another point I will add that hasn’t been posted yet is it helps me doing speed work drills with my training plan. For ex. some days it will call for 10 x 1 min. sprints etc. etc. It’s nice to look down at the watch and take off and stop on the exact min instead of trying to count while running.
All of these are awesome points. This is hands down the best thing I can imagine for running training. If these things only lasted a year, I’d buy one every year. I love using it in the winter for speed and tempo (it tells you what to do when), provides great data and gives you much more “freedom” to explore new routes. I can’t leave home without it now!
I had a 305 and now I have a 405. My running has improved because I use it as a tool. More than anything, it corrects my RPE which was waaaaaay off despite a decade of distance running. The GPS pacing in combination with HR is a benefit only if you use them both correctly. My wife only looks at pace so that screws her up completely.
The combination of GPS, HR and RPE has greatly helped me sort out some weaknesses in my training program. My easy runs are easy now. Get one or something similar.
Sarge
The problem with RPE is that if you’re a knucklehead former track guy like me you’ll want to red-line every run and tell yourself it was a) easy, and b) 15% longer than it really was.
In my case the 405 ameliorates both I Can’t Drive 55 and That 65 Minute Run Was Definitely 15k tendencies. Numbers don’t lie, so why not measure them precisely? It’s all about training smarter, and a HR/GPS device will impose structure on your training.
I sold my OSU v. USC football tickets. My wife is getting some expensive necessity for our first upcoming baby (to be named Keegan Joseph Sullivan, due date 10-28) and I get to purchase a Forerunner.
I am going to check out the 305 and 310, but am leaning toward the 310. Should be a fun stop on the way home from work to pick it out!
My 305 is the best training tool I have used, thinking about getting one for the bike. Best $150 I EVER spent for a HR monitor. R.J.
Where the heck did you find that for $150. Please tell me!!!
Yeah, $150 is a good deal… Costco had them (still might) online for $179.
Try tigerdirect.com refurbished, but cheap. I’ve had mine since May and it has worked flawlessly.