I am looking in to purchasing my first heart rate monitor. I know very little about them but basically I would like a very simple but good one. Do all of them track your calories you burn? What do you recommend?

I have the same question. Also hoping to find one where I don't need a chest strap and it actually works.

I have a polar ft40 (http://www.amazon.com/Polar-Womens-H...dp/B0035XOYH4/ though mine was apple green) which I love. I've had it for two and a half years now and use it a lot, works great. I did have to replace the strap after 2 years when I started to have problems, but no problems now!

Overall Polar is a really good brand for hrm, and they have some cheaper simple models too like the ft7. You might also have luck trying craigslist, though not sure about this time of year when everyone's buying stuff like this for their new years resolutions .

I would say getting one with a chest strap is better, as it will generally give more accurate readings.

My husband bought me one for Xmas last year. He is an OCD researcher on everything he buys! According to him Polar is the best and you must have a chest strap for it to be anywhere near accurate. Mine is a polar RS200 and I love it - use it at least 4-5 times per week.

I know a lot of people like Garmin, too.

Polar has a website where I can load and track all my hours exercising and calories burned.

I have the Polar FT7 and really love it. It's very easy to use, and you really don't feel the chest strap. Only downside is that it doesn't have GPS.

You can get the FT7 on Amazon for $50-$80.

Thanks everyone. Sounds like Polar it is!