[Closed] Marathon running watch or heart rate thingy for a cheapskate northerner..

You don't need a gps watch at all, a heart rate monitor might be useful

Forerunner 10 is cheap enough, does the usual, time and distance, as well as average pace, which you can change between average for the current mile, or average for the whole run.

Virtual pacer is good too, as it lets you know if you're above, or below the pace you've set.

I've found it to be much more accurate than an iPhone

Garmin have updated their range of GPS watches so look out for reductions coming.

My aldi (ho
rwich) has gps watches at 30quid

I use a GPS every day although I managed for a very long time without one so they are not compulsory.
I wouldnt bother with the HR function it adds little and will end up in your sock drawer after a week.

I'll helpfully claim the opposite of surfer ^ I personally found the hr function, with an alarm set when I go above my LTHR really useful feature on my long runs. Stops me getting too excited and starting off my Mara's too fast.

It also allows you to ensure your recovery runs are actually in z2.

To be fair Scruff that was the only reason I ever used one, to hold myself back on long runs. In my experience most runners dont use them properly and I think a lot of the "zone" stuff is guesswork. There are too many variables to make them useful as a training tool. To be accurate I think you have to analyse a large amount of data over a long period and have control over a lot of other factors such as diet, rest, work/stress/family life etc. They dont lie but strapping one on every now and then (or even daily) without understanding and managing other factors makes the pretty useless in my opinion for all but very elite athletes.

I'd say if you're running to a plan that uses HR zones, then you'll need one. (I agree with surfer that there are many factors that will affect your HR on even given day), but I don't think that outweighs their benefits so much as to make them useless.

There are enough HR plans out there and I've seen runners who've followed them be successful, and I've seen decent enough runners with no more that 10k and 25km runs in their legs complete a marathon in 4 hours

Thanks folks, the Garmin 220 + belt looks like the ticket 8)

As you're aiming for a sub 4 hour (which is exactly what I trained for), I'd strongly recommend following a [url= http://www.halhigdon.com/training/51135/Marathon-Training-Guide ]Hal Higdon training guide[/url]
and reading [url= http://www.amazon.co.uk/Marathon-Hal-Higdon/dp/1609612248/ref=sr_1_sc_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1447065776&sr=1-1-spell&keywords=hal+hidgon ]his book[/url]

Back on topic, the watch: I found a non-GPS watch with 50 splits most useful. Timex Ironman watch was perfect.

have fun!

I think a HR monitor is very useful for learning the pace/effort levels. I've never bothered with zone training in any detail but I found it useful to know what my sustainable effort levels are, including pacing myself in races. But perhaps if I didn't have one I would pay more attention to feel?

there is a 12 quid watch HR monitor onAMazon which is decent enough

Second-hand (via Ebay) Fitbit Charge HR? I love mine.

I don't think HR is important, unless you use on your bike for training as well.

For your 1st Marathon, completion rather than time is the key.

Unless you are going to do some testing for your HR, and or put in some hard runs, I would rather suggest training at a pace, in which you can sing to yourself without getting breathless.

Do you run much at the moment?

If you run with your phone all the time, maybe the Wahoo HR/Bluetooth thing would be okay.

If you plan to run more seriously, then maybe a GPS/HR watch is the thing you need, unless you are just geeky, and like having all the stuff and data (like me) and thinks it's pretty cool.

Nice choice 🙂 I have a Garmin 620 I got it as it has all the bells and whistles it comes with gives me motivation to go out again. Buy what makes you happy and look after your feet.

I'd say a GPS is much more useful than a HR monitor, to double check the 20 miler(s or thereabouts) you may want to work up to in training really are the distance you think they are.

I just stick my cycling Garmin 200 in my pocket as I'm not bothered about looking at it while I'm actually running.

I generally used to use strava on phone in pocket to record my runs and check distance/time. Good for that but I wanted to start keeping an eye on my pacing etc during a run and found a garmin forerunner pretty ideal for that. I didn't want to use heart rate, pace is a better tool for me.

my 2p worth...

i used to use a hr a lot, but now i hardly touch it when i run as i can feel what i'm doing (if that makes sense). however, if i was seriously training then yes i would use one.

i do use my garmin every time i go out, i find that as i generally do the same routes it gives me a good record of how my fitness is doing. i'm also in a strava group with my run club and thats good motivation to get out there seeing what others do.

an iphone in a cheap ebay arm case with strava is good enough.

i use a garmin 910xt that is overkill for me but the swimming recording aspect is why i have it.

i will say that i hate garmin with a vengeance, should you have a problem their customer service is utterly appaling and they really do no, in my direct experience, give a toss about you simply hide behind their business size. want to see pics of my 910xt looking like a goldfish bowl that garmin tried to tell me was normal condensation?

I use a Mio link wrist band heart strap with either my Garmin 510 if on the bike or phone if running.

Not really budget but I don't get on with chest straps and it works well.

Depends on the type of training you're doing as to whether a heart rate monitor is worth it ot not. For me it is a good thing as I like to sit in a heart zone that I can sustain without going nuts and being knackered after an hour. (I'm on ticker medication and need to be careful)

If you are not accustom to running it might also be a good way to use as and get some base aerobic training in. Maf I think it is called and it seems to work.