Enjoying my New Gadget!

My heart rate monitor gave out on me about 3 months ago and that has driven me nuts. I spent some time researching a new one, but didn’t find anything I thought I wanted. As determined as I am to succeed on this journey I have a hard time buying things for myself that might end up in a drawer or closet again.

A couple of weeks ago I settled on the display for my BodyBugg instead of a HRM. This tool enabled me to see how many steps I have taken and how many calories I have burned real time without syncing to the computer. In addition, I could get the same info for specific activities with the trip feature. With the BodyBugg display and my HRM strap for gym equipment this helped me get some of the info I was missing.

I have recently started doing 5 to 6 mile hikes on weekends. Some of the trails I am doing are marked with mile markers, but some aren’t. I have really wanted to know how far I was hiking and how hard I was working in addition to the info I was getting from my BB display. This would also be nice to have for my mid-day or evening walks.

So wouldn’t you know it a fellow Sparker posted a blog about their new gadget. They had a Garmin Forerunner 405CX and were thinking about getting the foot pod accessory. This tool and the data you could get from it, is so cool! I am a numbers person and I LOVE data, but this tool is very pricey and I was having a hard time justifying it for myself. Soon after, I talked to another fellow Sparker (LLTS01) and she had the Garmin Forerunner 305 which she highly recommended. This model was a bit cheaper and had the features I really wanted, but I still couldn’t justify the purchase.

I set a new goal recently to complete the C25K program. I felt that if I could complete this program successfully I would have enough justification for my much wanted gadget. Well I hadn’t officially completed week one of the program when LLTS01 forwarded me a post from one of her spark teams stating that the Garmin Forerunner 305 was on sale on Amazon.com. So…I used the sale price as my justification for purchasing the gadget prior to reaching my goal.

Now I have even more reason to finish the C25K program. To help push me along I am joining my fellow Northern VA Sparkers on June 5th at the Susan G. Komen Global Race For the Cure 5K. I have signed up as a runner, but I expect to be walking alot since I am still on week two of the C25K program. This will give me a good opportunity to set a personal best time to beat on my next 5K.

That’s right I said my NEXT 5K. I haven’t even completed my first one and I am already
committing to a second. I think setting future goals like this will help me reach my overall goal of getting healthy and staying healthy.

As for my new gadget, I love it! I love the information that it provides. Recently I have been using it to track improvements in time and pace for my weekly C25K run/walks. I am glad I splurged and bought it early!