Ok. I got a new piece of training equipment. Yes, it's like wearing a small computer (literally) on your wrist, but this thing is the Ferrari of training watches. It's the Garmin Forerunner 305.
It's my training partner: holds me to the line, makes me get out and work out, and gives me the information I need to advance. Of particular interest to me are: miles run; average HR (heart rate) and maximum HR, calories expended and time run. Here's how it works: I strap the HRM around my chest and turn on the wrist unit. The GPS locks on to satellite positions.
I press "start" and go! While I am moving during the workout, I am being tracked. If I stop, the tracking program "pauses;" thus, my actual results are only for while I am moving. It's a pretty significant piece of hardware, but of the research I did, and GPS/HRM units I've owned (Nike, Polar), at this time the Garmin 305 is the most appropriate to my needs. Both the HRM strap as well as the "watch" are comfortable.
Best of all, the wireless communication is spot-on -- the watch picks up the transmitted heart rate much better than the Polar unit I previously used, for instance. And the ability to sync my GPS/HR data not only to my computer (Garmin has proprietary software) but also Garmin's MotionBased.com is crucial. After any workout, I upload the data to my MotionBased account, which charts all the data and allows me to review statistics. I simply plug a cord in to my computer's USB port, launch IE or Firefox and upload the data to my MB Inbox. Then, I can add any notes/details/names of the training session. The kind of information Garmin and MotionBased training provides is much more comprehensive than the more subjective tracking I've done by creating my own workout logs on Google spreadsheets.
Yes, it's all a bit nerdy, but the feedback you need, as I'm learning to keep me on pace and to track my runs, has been great. Now I can do it all with one piece of equipment. Nice.
