[oneshortday]

My journey started on the first day of February, and I've been to the gym almost every day. I haven't been working myself too hard, but I noticed my heart rate gets up there pretty fast (apparently I'm in worse shape than I thought!) and it concerns me a bit.

Long story short, I'm thinking about getting a heart monitor watch to help keep myself on track and also measure my averages/calories/etc. I'm looking for suggestions on what works for you guys and also your past experience with them - maybe even suggestions on brands! And also, as a side note, I'd like to know if you've worked with ones that don't have the chest monitors. As the not-so-proud wearer of 42H's, I worry those would be painful.

[Somni]

Unfortunately chest straps are going to be more accurate. I like Polar heart rate monitors, I have an FT40 which I'm not even sure they make anymore, but other good models include FT60 or FT7 among others, depending on how much you want to spend and what features you want. Both of the ones I mentioned should give data at the end of the session like avg heart rate, calories burned, max heart rate during workout, etc.

You might also be able to find a good deal on Craigslist or something if you don't mind a used hrm!

Your cup size shouldn't impact how the strap fits, the strap goes beneath the bra. So long as you have a chest strap that can fit around your ribcage, you are fine. I was 44 band size to begin with and had no problem with the strap that came with my Polar. Not sure how chest strap sizes vary in other brands though, or if they generally don't.