I'm looking to buy (well, put on my Christmas list) a heart rate monitor and came across the MIO Motiva, which does not use a chest strap.

Does anyone know if this would be as effective as the ones with a chest strap? It has a lot of features I like and it would be awesome to not have to wear an uncomfortable chest strap.

Thanks all!

I have a HRM that does not have a strap. I am very happy with it. It seems to be very accurate and it is easy to use. I wouldn't hesitate to buy it again.

I've never used one without a chest strap; I use a Polar F4. It has a chest strap and I don't find it uncomfortable, though it did take some getting used to at first (as did the watch, because I don't wear a watch normally!). I'm not sure how much more or less accurate one without a chest strap would be--I guess a good way would be to look for reviews by those who have purchased the model of HRM you're looking at!

CountingDown: I'd be interested to hear what kind of HRM you have.

Azure: I think the model I'm looking at is too new because I can't find any reviews. I read some review of other Mios, and there were a lot of positive ones, but quite a few negative ones.
I sweat, a lot...do you think that would affect the comfort of using a chest strap? I read on other links here about sports bras that help hold the strap, but that's another cost.

Although, from what I read from reviews of older models, you have to press your fingers on some buttons to read your heart, so it wouldn't be continuous. That's useless as I already check it periodically on the machines at the gym for free!

I sweat a lot, too! Actually, the more you sweat, the better the chest strap works (you're instructed to get your fingers wet and run them over the inside of the plastic part of the strap prior to starting the workout to get the transmitter working--it reads your heartrate better when it's damp!). I wear mine through lifting sessions and through hour-long cardio kickboxing classes--and I am SOAKED by the end of a cardio kickboxing class. It almost always stays in place through a lot of sweating and jumping around. If it slips a bit (usually during jumping jacks--as I'm well-endowed and even with a good sports bra I bounce), I can easily slide the band up in the back through my clothes. The band's adjustable, too--so as you shrink, you can tighten it.

The thing I like about the chest strap continually monitoring my heart rate is that it IS hands-free (when you're kicking, throwing punches and jumping around, pressing fingers firmly onto a wrist HRM isn't really practical) and that it monitors my calories burned based on my heart rate. You program in your age, weight, height, etc. And it tracks your calories burned for a workout based on heart rate

It's a neat gadget, for sure. I love my HRM and it's motivating for me to know how many calories I burned. I usually burn 600-700 per cardio kickboxing class, for example. I know if I worked hard based on how many calories I burned (closer to 600, not such a great effort, closer to 700, I was maxin' my effort).

I seriously considered the Mios, but price kept me from getting one. I found a SPORTLINE SOLO 920W on ebay (new for $35, Amazon sells it for $39) and couldn't resist. I really like it. It is a bit bigger than a Reebok, which a friend that is a PE teacher has and really likes as well. Both the Sportline and the Reebok you have to put one finger on the watch to check your heart rate. It takes about 2-3 seconds to get a read. If you get a base rate when you start, and take periodic reads during your workout, it will do a calorie count for your exercise session. That being said, this model does not have a way to program your weight, only your age and gender. Thus, I don't put a lot of stock in the actual calorie count. I use is as a gauge not as gospel (similar to machines at the gym).

Thanks for the info ladies. It sounds like I'll have to consider one with a chest strap. It's good to know that sweating may actually make it work better!

I have the Polar F4 too and I love it!! The chest strap doesn't bother me at all--I find that it fits rather nicely under the band of my sport's bras and doesn't slide around at all, even though I, like Azure, get very sweaty at the gym. And Azure is right--sweat helps to get a more accurate reading.

I will say, however, that for the first few weeks of wearing it I did find some light welts on my chest and the underside of my boobs. It was just a matter of toughening the area up and now I have no problems at all.

But definitely get a HRM, even if it isn't a Polar. They're fantastic and they give you all sorts of new ways for setting goals for your exercise. Love it.

You have opened my eyes to HRMs with chest straps.

I've looked around and I think I'm going to go with the Polar F6. I like how you can code it so other signals don't interfere. I just wish you didn't have to send it away to change the battery.

Katie, I recently purchased a Polar F6 but returned it for the F11. I prefer the F11 because it has a user-replaceable battery for the transmitter in the chest strap. I think it also has a few extra features to help track your workout.

The F6 is still a great HRM and I'm sure you'll be happy with it.

Another cool thing is that all of the cardio equipment at my gym uses the Polar HRM technology so when I'm using the equipment my current heart rate is always displayed on the treadmill, bike, or whatever without having to hold on to the handles. The HRM in the equipment automatically detects the chest strap and displays the information.

KJ

Chest belt transmitters are really the only choice if you want a reliable, continuous readout while doing vigorous exercises like rowing. I've been using (a now discontinued) Polar model for 15+ years and I'm quite satisfied with it.

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I'm on my second Polar. the first one wasn't coded and maybe once in two or 3 years did I get interference.

The second one is coded and I have had interference maybe once or twice. I recommend a polar with a chest strap, its not uncomfortable.

It's good to hear that everyone likes Polar.

The F11 looks really nice too. I'll have to consider if I want to spend that much more (about $60 more). I have noticed the polar symbol on the cardio machines and that's kind of why I'm wanting a polar one now so i don't have to hold onto the handles, which is annoying.