Go, go Gadget Garmin!

7/17/12

Was that thunder I just heard?  Great....that means another day I have to hit the treadmill.  Well, let's just wait and see if it clears up and I can run outside.  Until then, let's talk about gadgets, running gadgets; more specifically, let's talk about my Garmin.  I love my Garmin.  I REALLY love my Garmin.  I want to share with you how I made the decision to buy the Garmin, which Garmin I bought, why I chose it and what I get out of it.

When I started running outside I started looking for a way to keep track of how far I've run.  I began my search at WalMart and since I'm on a tight budget I began looking for the most inexpensive way to keep track.  When I first started running outside I started at the high school track, not on the street.  My husband told me that four times around the track was one mile but I wanted to know exactly how far it was.  I know it sounds strange but when I was running on the track I had a preference for the fourth lane.  I know, that's silly but it just felt comfortable and I liked it there so that's the one I ran in.  So, when my husband told that four times around the track was one mile I became a little concerned because I had chosen the fourth lane and the sign on the track fence said "Runners please run in the fifth and sixth lanes."  I began to think about the lanes and how it is a shorter distance in the inside lanes and then I began to think what if when my husband says four times around the track is one mile he means four times around the track in lane five or six?  I began to question just how much distance I was covering.  So off I went to WalMart to find a way to keep track.  I ended up with a $10 pedometer.  It was easy to set up and easy to use.....well, except for that stride thing.  Yup, I had to figure out my stride and that's what determined how far I had traveled.  So I set about trying to figure out my stride.  The directions said to run ten steps, measure it, divide by a set number.  Okay, I did the math.  My stride turned out to be rather large which seemed strange because I'm a small woman....5' 1 1/2" and to have a stride that large (can't remember the number but it was suspiciously big, like 36 or something like that) just didn't make sense.  But I went with it.  So I was running with the pedometer on my shorts and cranking out big numbers and it just didn't make sense.  So I went about trying to figure out my stride again.  This time the numbers were super small.  Nothing was adding up so I gave up on the pedometer.  What I really wanted was something that told me mileage, speed and time.

I began asking my friends on thedailymile.com.  They all had some sort of devices that they wore because they were posting times, pace, and some even had their routes mapped and posted!  How cool is that?  Well, not really cool because if you're a woman and you run alone you never know what kind of crazy person is out there who might see that information and well, you get the drift.  Anyway, I've digressed, but the point is they had devices that told the information I wanted to know!!!!  YAY!  There was hope!  Thus was my introduction to the Garmin.

I began my search by typing Garmin into a search engine.  Then I began researching the different types.  I settled on the Garmin Forerunner 110; I will refer to it as the 110 from here on out to avoid typing "Garmin Forerunner 110" a bazillion times.  I chose the 110 because I didn't need something with a ton of bells and whistles.  All I wanted was to know how far I'd gone, what my pace was and how long it took me to do it.  The 110 gives me this information plus a little more if I want it.  I also wanted something that was pink....okay, so I'm a cheesy girly girl, so sue me, LOL!  The 110 is grey with a pink stripe.  It's not pretty, but it's got pink in it....it works for me, LOL!  Also as I mentioned previously, I'm a small woman.  I needed something that wasn't bulky and heavy and didn't weigh down my wrist.  While the 110 is a little big, it isn't uncomfortable and it doesn't weigh my wrist down.  It's like wearing a watch only it's slightly bigger.

The Garmin Forerunner 110

Setting up the 110 was easy.  I pushed a button and it asked me a couple questions (male, female, age, weight, height, activity class).  All I had to do was charge it and it was ready to go!  As a matter of fact, when it came, the instructions said to charge it for a long time but it really didn't take but maybe half and hour before it was fully charged and ready to use.  I don't know if that's normal or not but I was pleased.  I had no problems linking it up and charging it.

As for the features, the 110 came with a heart monitor which I myself do not use.  If I get a 110 for my husband I will give it to him because he is more concerned with his heart rate than I am with mine.  The monitor straps across your chest and links with your Garmin device.  The 110 monitors distance, pace, and time.  It has an alarm on it (which I never use) and it also has a feature called "Autolap."  This feature automatically marks a lap at a specific distance.  For instance, when I was running the track, I always counted my lap just on the lower top corner.  If I had used this feature of the 110 I could've told it to automatically mark my lap at that distance.  I have not used this function on the 110 though.  The 110 (and I assume with any other Garmin product) you can upload your data to the Garmin Training Center.  I keep track of all my workouts this way.  It's super easy to do and it keeps everything right there where you can take a look at it all quickly and efficiently.  My 110 also uploads to the website where I chat and connect with all my runner friends.  That too is super easy to do.

I know the picture isn't very clear; I'm not a good photographer but it will suffice to tell you what's what.  The zeros at the top are the mileage.  When you hit one mile the 110 beeps to tell you that you have reached this monumental achievement.  ;-)  It also beeps for each mile you run.  The middle zeros, the biggest ones, show your time as in how long you have been running.  The bottom numbers, the ones that on my Garmin in the picture say 14:17 show your pace.  On the right side of the 110, there are two buttons, the top one is the light button.  This button also turns the 110 on and off.  The bottom button is the menu button; you push this button before you go for your run and the 110 will begin locating satellites.  Put it outside and give it a minute.  It can take a little bit to find them but let it do it's thing.  I can't remember what else this button does and I am too lazy right this second to get up and look.  The top button on the left is the start/stop button.  This is the button you push to start the device's tracking, etc.  I have never used the bottom left button.  I believe it is the lap button.  I will have to play with that button some time.

Some notes, when charging and uploading, make sure the device is completely connected to the charger.  There are several little "holes" on the back that must be lined up exactly with the prongs of the charger.  If they aren't lined up and put in correctly the device won't charge or upload.  Also, if you are in the middle of your run and you have to stop for some reason, you can push the start/stop button and the device will stop recording your data.  You simply push the button again and it takes up where you left off.  This works even if the device has powered down to Power Save mode.  (I found that out the other day!)

I guess the last thing to talk about is price.  Well, let me tell you, this baby ain't cheap but it was as far as I am aware, the least expensive of the Garmins I looked at.  I think I paid $176 for mine but I've seen them for as much as $317.  I bought mine off of Amazon.com and I don't remember the name of the store.  It was the cheapest I could find it and that is with the heart monitor; they are a tad less expensive if you find it without the heart monitor.  Despite having not used the heart monitor, I wanted it.  I think I thought it was in the device itself and not something that had to be attached to your chest.  At any rate, I wanted that feature so I paid for it.  So as I said, the 110 isn't cheap and I'm on a budget so I had to do my choosing wisely.

All in all, I am very pleased with my 110.  I have had absolutely no problems with it at all.  Well, let me restate that...I did have one problem with it, but it was completely user error!  After one run I plugged it into the computer to upload my data.  Somehow the device got turned off and I couldn't figure out how to turn it back on.  It took some doing but I finally figure it out and got it turned back on (hold down the light button)  I would definitely recommend the Garmin Forerunner 110 if you want a device that's less expensive but still gives basic information.  It suits my needs and quite frankly, I love mine.

Happy Running!

KEA