heart rate monitor, power meter, or garmin

[foild1]

Ok.. I now am in the market for a training tool that will help me acheive my fitness and cycling goals. I am having trouble deciding whether i need a power meter, or a simple heart rate monitor that has data logging.. i have also been looking at the garmin edge 305 whichs looks interesting..

Can you guys make recomendations on the best tool for me? I know power meters are a little out of my price range, but im willing to save more if it is what i reallyt need..

brand/model would be appreciated

P.S. right now i am riding to train to eventually be able to race in assorted races.

Thanks!
cam

 

[RapDaddyo]

IMO, a PM trumps all other on-bike computers for serious training and racing. But, as you noted, they are still expensive. Other bike computers have some really cool features, and the Garmin Edge 305 is a very attractive option. I actually plan to buy one when they begin shipping (January, they say), but to complement my PM, not in lieu of it. For training and racing, nothing takes the place of knowing your actual intensity of effort. All proxies (HR included) are poor substitutes. But, if I were not interested in serious training and racing, I would get the Garmin 305 over any other non-PM bike computer.

 

[RapDaddyo]

BTW, in case you haven't discovered it yet, there is a Garmin partner (actually, Garmin just agreed to buy them), MotionBased Technology. You can go to their site, http://www.motionbased.com/index.jsp, and look at GPS ride files. It's pretty interesting stuff, with street map overlays and elevation profiles and the like. When I get my Garmin 305, I plan to ride all of the standard routes of my cycling club and post the GPS/MB files on our web site. We usually have more than one ride per weekend day. People can look in detail at the posted rides to see if a particular ride suits them as to distance and climb grades and the like.

 

[cali-largeguy]

Ok.. I now am in the market for a training tool that will help me acheive my fitness and cycling goals. I am having trouble deciding whether i need a power meter, or a simple heart rate monitor that has data logging.. i have also been looking at the garmin edge 305 whichs looks interesting..


Can you guys make recomendations on the best tool for me? I know power meters are a little out of my price range, but im willing to save more if it is what i reallyt need..

brand/model would be appreciated

P.S. right now i am riding to train to eventually be able to race in assorted races.

Thanks!
cam

I have the Garmin 301, and love it. Not only can I get my speed, distance, heart rate, and all the other typical ****, I can upload to the motion based web site. This site will analyze my info and provide me with the actual route, elevation change, wind speed etc. You can overlay any of your data onto the route to see where you are peaking out for hr vs elevation vs speed. Very cool. I hear the 305 is supposed to be even better. Too bad I just got my 301 2 months ago.

 

[RapDaddyo]

I have the Garmin 301, and love it. Not only can I get my speed, distance, heart rate, and all the other typical ****, I can upload to the motion based web site. This site will analyze my info and provide me with the actual route, elevation change, wind speed etc. You can overlay any of your data onto the route to see where you are peaking out for hr vs elevation vs speed. Very cool. I hear the 305 is supposed to be even better. Too bad I just got my 301 2 months ago.

The major differences are two: (1) the 305 uses both GPS and barometric pressure data to derive better altitude and grade info and (2) the 305 has a much better GPS receiver (SiRFstarIII™). I am considering the 305 for a very precise route mapping application, so I care a lot about its accuracy and signal strength. I have talked with people who have seen data from the Beta models and they are very impressed with the new GPS receiver.

 

[foild1]

i could see this being a exceptionally nice feature, but where i live, altitude is not a issue, we are pretty much sea level plus a maximum of 500 ft lol.

i just dont wanna wait till january.. i want to train now!

The major differences are two: (1) the 305 uses both GPS and barometric pressure data to derive better altitude and grade info and (2) the 305 has a much better GPS receiver (SiRFstarIII™). I am considering the 305 for a very precise route mapping application, so I care a lot about its accuracy and signal strength. I have talked with people who have seen data from the Beta models and they are very impressed with the new GPS receiver.

 

[RapDaddyo]

i could see this being a exceptionally nice feature, but where i live, altitude is not a issue, we are pretty much sea level plus a maximum of 500 ft lol.

i just dont wanna wait till january.. i want to train now!

Well, you do realize that you can train pretty effectively based on RPE, right? In fact, and I recently gave this exact advice to a good friend who is buying a new bike, I think RPE is superior to a HRM for training. I'm not kidding.

 

[foild1]

sorry.. im at work now and my brain is mush... RPE?? Please explain!

 

[RapDaddyo]

sorry.. im at work now and my brain is mush... RPE?? Please explain!

RPE is Rate of Perceived Exertion. There are published scales that correspond to specific perceptions and Andy Coggan's training schema allows you to use any of three measures (power, HR and RPE) http://www.peakscoachinggroup.com/powertrainingchapter.pdf. I actually think RPE is a better way of managing training ride intensities than a HRM.