Do I need a chest/arm HRM?
I currently guide my workouts based on pace and also use pace as my primary load input for intervals.icu.
However, HR is still a relevant piece of info for me. I regularly check if i'm not hitting my HR limit during repeats (a few bpm below LTHR). I make sure to stay around 70% of HRMax during easy efforts. I check it during races to guarantee I'm not overcooking it.
I have used a Coros PACE3 for the past 2 years and have been very happy with it but I constantly see people here reinforcing the importance of using "better" HRMs than a watch, such as a Polar chest strap or even the Coros armband. For people who have made the switch were there ever any signs that the watch hr measures were off? I never experienced cadence lock, HR moves in a way that usually makes sense regarding my RPE. Would you still recommend buying and HRM if there's nothing clearly wrong with the watch data? And if so, any recommendations?
Posted Apr 9, 2026, 9:24 PM UTC