Kind of new to the whole GPS and FootPod technology, hence the post, but I am looking to get a HRM watch and was just wondering if the new Garmin FR60 would be a good all-around purchase for training and tris… I know that the FR60 isn’t GPS, but is a GPS watch really worth it if all I want out of it is to be able to track my HR/pace/speed/distance on the bike and run? For those of you who use (or have used) both (GPS and Footpod), what would you recommend? Oh, I really like how it can be used in the water as well (thats why I am singling out the FR60).
I use both. GPS doesn’t work on treadmill or give cadence, so I use a 305 and a footpod. Without GPS you don’t get % grade and I like to be able to save and compare workouts over similar routes and be able to tell that from a map.
I had the Garmin FR305 for a while and liked it a lot other than when trying to get a signal around tall buildings or tree covered areas. It crapped out on me so I figured I would go with a footpod option. I currently have the Polar RS400SD. I like the way the watch looks, but other than that, it’s just an expensive HR monitor. It doesn’t monitor my pace accurately at all. Maybe it’s just me, but if I vary my pace, it behaves poorly. It could be that my running gait is considerably different at steady vs hard pace and that difference is causing the calibration to be ineffective. I’m not sure. All I know is, currently, I don’t have the footpod attached to my shoes. One positive is I can swim with it.
If I had to do it over again, I would’ve replaced my FR305 with the newer 405 and stayed with a GPS.
I’m with you. I thought the footpod was great my first couple of runs (easy). Then I started to do some harder tempo runs and the thing was all over the place. If I do easy runs at the stride I calibrated it at it works fine but throw in some speed and forget it.
I have had a Polar s625x for a long time, and used Polar for years. That being said, I gave up on the footpod. The calibration is not precise and needs to be redone frequently, batteries run out, you change shoes…It is a nice concept, but the technology is not worked out yet.
I have a Polar RS200 w/the footpod and while it’s not exact it’s pretty darn accurate. I ran a half-marathon last month and it showed 12.8 miles vs. 13.1. That’s close enough for my purposes. I like the fact that the watch is small, I can swim with it, and I can wear it out and about (unlike some of the Garmins). Just my $.02.
Here’s my 2 cents. I love my Polar. I have the 625x with the foot pod for running and also got the power sensor for wattage on the bike. I’ve had the setup now for about 2 months. So far everything has worked really well. I had a buddy who has set up his polar sensor many times and did a great job putting it on for me(this is key as the installation is very tough and if it’s not done correctly it will give faulty readings). Mine has been within 2-3 watts of 2 different computrainers.
The foot pod. So far I love this thing!! Right out of the box it was fairly accurate but just off a bit. I then calibrated it on a track and it is pretty damn spot on!! The really cool thing is that I can upload run and bike data to WKO.
Polar is a pretty damn good deal for both pace/dist on run a power on the bike all with same wrist unit.
Is the footpod the S1? If so, that’s the same one as with the RS400SD. Do you vary your pace or terrain (offroad) much? If so, do you see much variance?
My biggest problem is that I typically run on a lakeshore where it’s usually very windy. The distance is typically different out and back by up to 0.5 miles. It’s a good approximation, but I’m never really “sure” what pace I’m running. I could be a bit anal though letting this inaccuracy bother me.
One positive to Polar is their customer service. While swimming the other day, my arm hit the arm of the guy in my lane and my wristband broke. I went to the online chat support and they are supposedly sending me a new replacement strap - free. I thought that was pretty cool.
yeah it’s the S1 footpod. Have you tried running on a track to calibrate it and then verify that it’s correct?
The only funky thing mine does is that it takes 15-20 seconds of running for it to kick in and get dialed at your current pace but once your going it’s been fine. Once in while when I 'm on the treadmill the numbers seem a bit off. I tend to reset the footpod by turning it off and on again and that seems to correct it. It’s also very snugly on my shoe.
Don’t forget about the new Suunto T6c. It has a lot of data features like VO2 consumption, training effect, EPOC, and then you can add foot pods, bike pods, gps, pods, you can swim with it… Tons of stuff. Check ebay. The TE and EPOC is really good data. Basically tells you whether or not just did anything in your work to improve your cardiovascular system. I learned my long rides that were all LSD type did nothing for me except build muscular endurance. Polar (as far as I know) and Garmin won’t tell you that.
GPS is nice for post workout glory, but for a training tool the foot pod is more accurate for real time use, and the distance is easily calibrated. Mine out of hte box wa measuring about 6.3 and 6.5 for the same 6 mile run. after calibration 6.0 - 6.1 every time.
Well, if you want to do both the bike and the run, then the footpod option is effectively out for you. I have used both the Polar RS400D and a Garmin FR305, and I use the Garmin pretty much exclusively. I gave up on the footpod after having to calibrate it with every shoe (yes, that can have a big effect on your readings), and having different readings with the same shoe on runs from day to day unless you had that sucker snugged down super tight. With the GPS, you never have to worry about calibration, or tightness with the footpod, or anything else. Turn it on, acquire the sats, and go. For races, I use my Polar for HRM purposes, and don’t worry about pace info, and just go with heartrate. If Garmin does come out with a waterproof, 15+ hour GPS unit this April as everyone is saying they will, then that will probably become my watch of choice.
I have had a Polar s625x for a long time, and used Polar for years. That being said, I gave up on the footpod. The calibration is not precise and needs to be redone frequently, batteries run out, you change shoes…It is a nice concept, but the technology is not worked out yet.
I’ve had a 625x for a couple of years now, and the footpod has worked flawlessly for me. I never did a calibration on it, and it’s always within 0.1 miles on every run (compared to gmaps-pedometer measured routes). My buddy had the same HRM and he complained incessantly about how inaccurate his footpod was, even after he calibtrated it, until he finally stopped using it. I urged him repeatedly to send Polar some sample run files with the bad footpod data. He finally contacted them and sent it in the footpod, and they found that a small plastic tab inside was broken and the guts were bouncing around too much, causing the error. They sent him a new one and it’s worked perfectly since.
just anohter FYI. My wife uses the suunto tc with the foot pod, and i use the rs800cx ( have both gps and foot pod) and using uncalibrated pods on a 6 mile run.,… we have never had any error over .3-.4. usually mine uncalibrated is 6.3 hers 6.2. and 6.05 when i run with the gps unit. But when i use the gps unit, while the distance is more accurate, the loss of cadence and pacing info makes the pod better. The GPS units ( 305 as well) just take too long to respond if your route changes direction a lot.
I have a Polar R200SD with the footpod. My wife has a Garmin 305. Both technologies have their advantages and disadvantages depending on what’s important to you. One thing that I really like about the Garmin which Polar doesn’t have is the Virtual Running Partner. It’s basically someone to race against even if you’re by yourself. However, the Garmin is not very good with providing consistent pace data (at least for me). While the Polar is more consistent on a minute-by-minute basis, I’ve occasionally had issues with repeatability between runs, even though I’ve even calibrated it on a track. One especially “memorable” (read: frustrating) event occurred a few months ago while I was training for a marathon. I was doing an especially long run (for me anyway), planning to run 25 miles. At about mile 20 I came across a mileage marker that would allow me to check the calibration of the footpod. 2.0 miles later another mileage marker appeared. It turns out that the Polar said that I had run 2.1 miles between the markers. That meant that the Polar was reading 5% over! So at the point I thought I had run 22 miles, I had really only run about 21 miles. I was hurting pretty bad at that point and that bit of disappointing news sent me over the edge. I was so frustrated that I just stopped and called me wife to pick me up. Since that event, I’ve never completely trusted the Polar again. (FWIW, the mileage markers I came across were permanently painted on the street and are the official markers for the Carlsbad Marathon. I didn’t go back and independently verify their accuracy.)
i’d all about gps training partners. got a forerunner 305 a few months ago and it could possibly be the best training tool ever. extremely accurate measurement, and it’s always cool to see a map of how far you went after a long bike ride. the thing about the foot pods (and i’ve seen this before, sorry to be repetitive) but they are really just glorified pedometers. they’re calibrated for distance then just add X feet to your distance each step, which gets very inaccurate if you ever vary your cadence. it’s a bit pricy, but gps is definitely worth it.
(check REI, they’ve had amazing deals on garmins the past few months)
I have been using a a RS400 with foot pod to train for Boston. The pace info has been very helpful in getting me to run a certain pace when I need to. In the past I would simply time my runs then map it out in topo (think google earth) to get a final pace. Current pace info has opened new doors for me.
I find that us polar runners are a dieing breed, way too many people asking what the thing on my sneaker is. But i have to admit that during my group runs, their pace info is usually off by quite a bit while we are running. We often get the same post run distances though, so something is going on. After a recent 20mi road race this year, I got 19.99, while my Garmin friend got 20.0. It was a certified course.
Through calibration my rs400 is usually within 0.1 miles, if that is a glorified pedometer, show me a pedometer that can do that. You do have to be careful, certain polar features kill the accuracy. Every time you have an autolap the distance is paused and messed up a bit. Best accuracy is by having autolaps shut off. That and to calibrate the foot pod your better off with a distance of at least 3.xx miles. The last part is from a paper I found on the net discussing the s625x and the s1 foot pod accuracies.
My s625x is a hopeless cause I can not get the thing to the same level of accuracy as my rs400, I just can not get the thing to work as well. Very frustared with that watch. Was planning to use it as a race watch, not sure I’ll ever trust it.
Yup I hear a lot of people unhappy with the S1 foot pod. I on the other had went all out and bought the RS800SD, I love this thing, its always spot on, intervals, tempo runs, long runs, its always great, I wear different shoes so I have to calibrate it every time I put it on a different shoe, but it takes no time! I have the calibration factors for each shoe so I just input the correct factor for the shoe (about 15 seconds) and go. If you can afford it give the 800SD a try I’m sure you will love it.
I so wish polar had a more reliable powermeter so I can have both!
