Garmin

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larkim Feb 2021 9:58pm, 21 Feb 2021 13,565 posts	larkim Would the strap on the 245 allow you to wear the 245 on the forearm somewhere, similar to where you might wear the OH1+? In the interests of science...
SPR Feb 2021 10:04pm, 21 Feb 2021 33,333 posts	SPR The 245 standard strap is too small. I'd expect it would work better though. I think a lot of people find the optical watches fine for easy running. It's the fast stuff that it can't handle. I'm looking forward to trying the Polar on track.
The_Saint Feb 2021 10:05pm, 21 Feb 2021 6,748 posts	The_Saint I have reset everything N times. Interesting idea about wearing the 245 somewhere else, I will see what there is longer strap wise on EBay
azx Feb 2021 7:57am, 22 Feb 2021 34 posts	azx I don't trust the optical HR measurement for runs, so wear a chest strap every time. However, I saw the polar arm strap reviewed on dcrainmaker. Anyone tried that? It's called the Verity Sense and should work with Garmin too.
Looby Loo Feb 2021 8:11am, 22 Feb 2021 915 posts	Looby Loo I’ve got a polar arm band not the one you mention but mine works much better than the wrist based one for me.
Sam Jelfs Feb 2021 8:13am, 22 Feb 2021 901 posts	Sam Jelfs @The_Saint - What is your ground truth measurement? It's hard to directly compare but I am interested in the peak in your HR at aout the 38-42 min mark, once you come back over the M4. Both the garmin and the polar show your HR rising with the climbs, but Polar reckons only 2-3 bpm reaching about 150, while Garmin says you hit 180. 180 seems really high, but without knowing the ground truth from an ECG (chest strap) or other measure it's hard to say which is really correct.
SPR Feb 2021 8:19am, 22 Feb 2021 33,334 posts	SPR Need a chest strap and probably another polar for some proper science, lol.
Big_G Feb 2021 8:30am, 22 Feb 2021 698 posts	Big_G I saw that DCR review about the Verity Sense and he seemed a fan. I wear a chest strap for my runs too, as when I got my watch (Garmin 735XT, so quite old now) I did a test on the same route on consecutive days and the optical was out by nearly 20 beats at one point. Interestingly for me, even at easy paces, the optical was reading under so if I was running to HR (which I do) it would have had me running way too fast at what was supposed to be an easy pace. I did have the watch on tight enough etc, but it just didn't work for me. I didn't bother trying it at faster paces and went straight back to the chest strap after that. But that Verity Sense does look interesting.
SPR Feb 2021 8:44am, 22 Feb 2021 33,335 posts	SPR The Verity Sense is essentially an improved OH1+ and not heard anyone that has it complain about accuracy. Battery life could be better and that's improved in the new sensor.
larkim Feb 2021 8:54am, 22 Feb 2021 13,567 posts	larkim You can generally tell if a reading is correct if it follows the normal pattern of rising in the first mile, then responding to pace / hills. @The_Saint's run clearly shows a dodgy pattern, it looks very like the higher numbers at the end are a "cadence lock" where the optical reads cadence for some reason (whether it's flashes of light as the cadence cycles around confusing the sensor, or something else more "software / firmware" linked I don't think we know). I've not had a single dodgy reading from my OH1+. As others have said, location is hugely improved to somewhere with better blood flow and it gets held closer to the skin with the elastic strap really seem to make a difference. Why the 245 has stopped providing good readings is unusual though - could be the strap has loosened every so slightly to add more daylight? I doubt firmware is the issue, though I suppose garmin could have coded something "clever" into how the unit handles apparently false readings which is actually working in a way which makes them more likely in your situation TS?