Evening…
I will be entering one of the ratrace events in September , man v mountain, so will be doing some fairly serious training over the next 4 months. Is it worth getting a gps watch or just use my iPhone?
Cheers

You dont want to be carrying a phone on an OCR race! It’ll get wet, muddy, cracked, scratched. Get a forerunner, thats what I use.

Assuming by “serious training” you mean running at a given pace or intervals over a set distance – get a watch. It’ll be a lot easier to use, and as superfli points out you can wear it during the race itself.

If all you want to do is log your runs then your phone will be fine.

Get a watch.

If cost is an issue, get something like a well looked after 310XT second hand, and use that. It will be waterproof, and fairly bombproof as well.

tbh i wouldnt be using my phone on the event… thats asking for trouble!
i like to train in hr zones but want to also track distance etc so my sunto just wont cut it any more… looks like ebay is the place to start looking… cheers chaps

I’d avoid the 310XT unless you want chest pains

i was about to ask why , mrsfry , then came across an ad for one…. its is somewhat large!

310 xt isnt that big unless you have delicate little flower wrists. not aclue what mrsfrys on about for chest pains .

I use an old forerunner 200 – now thats big

i was about to ask why , mrsfry , then came across an ad for one…. its is somewhat large!

I guess if you have the upper body strength of a pencil you might struggle…

I assume Mrs Fry is being humorous, but don’t let that put you off what is a tried, tested, and cheap, training tool.

The 910XT (in the middle) has a slimmer profile, and can be had for sub £100 second hand.

Or, just go for a forerunner if you want a smaller screen/shorter battery, but lighter unit.

its a shame i can’t use my garmin 800 really. does the 10 or 15 record mapping so i can load it up to garmin connect?

That’s the issue with the bike stuff. It’s for the bike and nothing else. No option to display pace etc.

At the end of the day it depends how serious you’re going to be, and how bothered you are if your phone gets nadged.

If you’re planning on doing just one race and that’s it, then maybe just use your phone. If you see yourself doing a bit more running, and more obstacle races which always have water hazards, then something like the XT range from Garmin, as they are meant for swimming so 100% waterproof, would be advisable. If you choose this route, I’d suggest the 910XT as you can get mint ones for £80-100, and after 2 years Garmin have nearly fixed all of their usual bugs.

Plus if you end up not using it again, you can flog it for more or less what you paid for it.

The final thought I will leave you with, is do you want to be worrying about beating the guy in front of you, or your phone getting drowned?

i used to do a hell of a lot of running till injury and illness took its toll. now i’m fat and unhealthy (haven’t even been on the bike in over a year due to illness) but really need not to be…now i am back in the land of the uninjured and recovering a challenge event is the impetus i need to get my self back into shape. then i will probably start dong halfs again and fell challenges etc. i would prefer not to bugger my phone up, as its new. so a watch it is then…

Could you borrow a watch from someone?

Or…as this is your first run in a while so maybe not being run ultra-competitively, just go old school and just map a route on google or via your Garmin 800, and just see how long it takes to get round so you can work out the pace stuff afterwards. Don’t worry about pace, or HR etc while running, just chill and enjoy the runs. Maybe the last thing you need if coming off a long layoff is added pressure of death by stats and quantifying a bimble round a park.

Plus you save some cash 😉

thats the plan for the first couple of weeks… i’m no longer a slim 13 stone… closer to 15 1/2 but knowing how my body works i will loose that in a about 8 weeks ( pisses mrsvader off so much that i can loose the weight so fast) then the serious training will happen… training in hr zones, intervals, fartlek, hill climbs all building up to doing my previous 80 or so k a week mixed terrain running… unfortunately my psyche is all or nothing. i’ve done the nothing for too long and the all part of me is shouting quite loudly now!

I am so not kidding about the 310XT. Useless freakin dongle, no syncing or uploading because it wants to talk about it’s feelings

I’ve had a few Garmins, but this is on my number one “Burn with fire’ list followed by the 620 which is also stupid evil and should be stamped on.

is the 310xt fitted with a GPP?

TomTom Runner (or 2) is worth a shout.
I’m a confirmed Garmin fanboi, but bought one for my youngest (2) as a step counter with a decent watch face and she loves it. Mrs J wants one to replace her vivoactive too.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/TomTom-Runner-GPS-Watch-1RR0-001-00/dp/B00D7LN7K4/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1463428715&sr=8-2&keywords=tom+tom+runner+2

I have a 310xt, and had a 305 before that. Great watch that syncs to my ant+ phone with st uploader app. Good watch and hrm, no chest pains??! It’s a little beaten up now though

I am so not kidding about the 310XT. Useless freakin dongle, no syncing or uploading because it wants to talk about it’s feelings

I’ve had a few Garmins, but this is on my number one “Burn with fire’ list followed by the 620 which is also stupid evil and should be stamped on.

Is it me, or does it stink of user error in here? 8)

is the 310xt fitted with a GPP?

GPP? I want to say do you mean GPS, but that would be like asking if a car comes with wheels 😉

GPP: Genuine People Personality think marvin the paranoid android

no syncing or uploading because it wants to talk about it’s feelings

bongohoohaa

Is it me, or does it stink of user error in here?

No user error. It’s just a really pants device. Garmin is slow on the updates and compatibility with OS

(He is so getting it when he steps out the pub tonight Grrrr. I’ll knock his kebab out of his hand and mock his trainers )

It’s really not a pants device, and the fact you insist it is makes me think you smell of wee.

i tell a lie – its a forerunner 305 i have as pictured up there.

Its actually a really good bike computer – thats why we have it Mrs T-R bought it cheap to use on the bike and did successfully for a number of years till the battery started to fade – so i bought her an edge 500.

Swapped the battery in the forerunner with an ebay special and its now my running watch.

Its 10 years old.

TomTom Runner (or 2) is worth a shout.
I’m a confirmed Garmin fanboi, but bought one for my youngest (2) as a step counter with a decent watch face and she loves it. Mrs J wants one to replace her vivoactive too.

If you can afford a bit more, they do one with an optical HR sensor too. I nearly got one but decided to wait for the Garmin offering.

I wanted a GPS watch thingy for (shhhh) runs and rides where I wouldn’t want to use my phone.

I didn’t want to spend a lot so ended up with a TomTom Multisport. Not used it yet as it has been put in a safe place for my birthday next weekend.

Seems to review well and a mate has one and he rates it.

I have the TomTom Spark. It’s pretty good for basic stuff (which is all I need as a very average late to the party middle aged jogger!) for pace, laps, intervals etc. HR monitor seems better than my old fitbit but it’s not as good as a chest strap. Hate those tho so a good compromise.

It’s not much of a looker 😉 But it lasts six hours+ with the GPS on. Software (PC, Phone and desktop) isn’t as good as others but it’s improving.

I bought the spark so I could use bluetooth headphones – it has a bit of storage for music – but I never use it anymore. I was also going to wait for the new Garmin but picked this one up pretty cheap off amazon I think.

Oh it’s also pretty tough, waterproof (you can swim in it if that’s your thing). The charge cable is stupid but otherwise does the job.

I was also looking at this one: https://buy.garmin.com/en-GB/GB/wearables/wearables/vivoactive-hr/prod538374.html but couldn’t be bothered to wait. Wonder how long the battery life would be on that colour screen…

I have a 910XT which I use most of the time, but I have to give a vote here for “neither”. When I was at my fittest and fastest was before GPS watches and phones – I just did intervals over a set course and timed myself with a normal stopwatch. A GPS watch does provide you with interesting data, and I know we all like our tech on here, but TBH it’s all about actually doing the training, not how you measure it.

I was also looking at this one: https://buy.garmin.com/en-GB/GB/wearables/wearables/vivoactive-hr/prod538374.html but couldn’t be bothered to wait. Wonder how long the battery life would be on that colour screen…

8 Days or 13 hours in GPS mode which is pretty good for an everyday watch. Also only takes around an hour to recharge.

Yeah I saw that which is better than the monochrome TomTom I have now. And I was trying to work out what Elven magic was going on there. Maybe it’s just a bigger battery.

I have a 910XT which I use most of the time, but I have to give a vote here for “neither”. When I was at my fittest and fastest was before GPS watches and phones – I just did intervals over a set course and timed myself with a normal stopwatch. A GPS watch does provide you with interesting data, and I know we all like our tech on here, but TBH it’s all about actually doing the training, not how you measure it.

Partly agree with that. Though the GPS combined with HRM gives you a lot of feedback during and after training now. I’m nowhere near as fit as I used to be mainly due to the passage of time and not too many pies have passed me by. Using a Garmin GPS and HRM with their training plans I have been able to monitor my efforts to ensure I’m putting in the required efforts on say interval training and not over doing it on recovery runs when the urge is to run faster. Post run analysis (Garmin Connect) I can compare previous runs to see where I gained performance by speed and effort (HRM) whilst also seeing where this happened on my run. Sure you can do a lot of this without a running watch but having one makes it so much easier to see small gains. This has helped me stay motivated and progress faster.

careful now aracer . some folks on here just dont like doing the hard work part – i have been lambasted in the past for suggesting such ways of improving race results.

Between that and my performance begins in the kitchen mantra.

I’m good with the kitchen performance…. That’s part of the reason I got so heavy! ( used to be a chef) 😉

I’ve been looking at a Tom Tom with built in HRM recently too. Any issues with it talking to Strava?

If you want to track heart rate, then there’s a few options. Most Garmins will talk to a chest strap (needs to be ANT+ I think), or a wrist HR sensor like the Mio Link.

However, the new generation of Garmins also have the optical wrist sensor on the back. Garmin Forerunner 225 has this, as does the 235 that I’m currently using. I prefer the 235 as it has a bike mode as well (so I don’t need to change the activity type on Strava/Connect). If you’re only running or don’t mind the post-bike amendment (which is easy), then the 225 is great.

I’ve been looking at a Tom Tom with built in HRM recently too. Any issues with it talking to Strava?

One of our group uses a TomTom watch, and it seems to upload to Strava fine. I don’t know how she does this – direct to Strava or via the TomTom app.

I’ve been looking at a Tom Tom with built in HRM recently too. Any issues with it talking to Strava?

It sometimes struggles to talk to its own app! But auto uploads to Strava and Endo (and loads of other apps) – set it up via web app I think. All data gets transferred. Works really well.

from a practical point of view, using a phone would be a pain, unless it’s just start once and stop when finished.

Got a Polar M400. Cheap as chips, impressively small. Single button press for stop, start, pause, laps etc. rather than get phone out, swipe, type in PIN (or wiggly pattern on android), go to app,…

Think Polar Flow and Strava are now linked and automatically sync.

We estimated distances during the 80’s and 90’s !
If on the road estimate it in the car or on your bike or use map my Run then just run the same route or set up several and occasionally run till yer eyeballs pop. Do the same for intervals.
Distance isn’t very important if your mile reps are only 1500M its not important just compare times using the same course/rep.
I use a GPS but I am pretty committed and run every day but its not crucial to my training.

+1 for a Tom Tom Runner – I’ve got the cardio version and they’re <£100 used on eBay.

No issues with bluetooth syncing to the iPhone app in ages. It used to be glitchy but firmware/app updates appear to have made it far more robust.

I did have to return the first one I had as the HRM was dodgy. Apparently this was a common fault with the earliest production batches but was sorted and the replacement has been fine – However, this could be a concern if buying used.

Another gripe is that it will only log a GPS activity as a run. Therefore, cycling data isn’t 100% accurate i.e. the HRM and GPS is fine, but the calories are wrong and the Tom Tom app won’t let you change the activity type. You can fix this in Strava, but the calories will still be wrong. They do a multisport version for more money which I wish I’d stumped up for from the outset.

Finally, it’s a very compact/low profile watch.