Strap Wins
Hiiiiii friends 😀 It’s almost the weekend! Thank.goodness.
[I got Bella to make that face by asking her if she loves her dad more than me. She said yes, haha]
It’s a good day today- one of the girls from work is covering my morning shift so I only have to work in the afternoon. I was scheduled for 5 days in a row (I’m part-time) and with the blog and everything else, I could tell it was going to be too crazy. I’ll be sure to bake some kind of treat to say thank you 😀
Guess what came last night?
My new heart rate monitor!!
I decided to take it for a test spin at the base gym last night.
The verdict? I absolutely love it.
I ordered the Polar FT40 from HeartRateMonitorsUSA.com [free two-day shipping and no tax] and I like it even more than the F6. It’s very similar to use, but this also has some bonus features, including a fit test. As far as the watch part goes, they’re almost identical, but this is what makes the FT40 win:
the chest strap! See how soft and comfy it is?
My only gripe I had about the F6 was that the chest strap KILLED me. It left me with a nasty under-the-girls chafing and I could always feel it digging into my skin. I can tell that this one is going to be much more comfortable. The plastic part is on the outside of the strap and doesn’t touch the skin, and the fabric is super soft and almost lightly cushioned. I’m a fan 😀
I can already tell this will be very helpful in the classes I’m teaching and taking.
Breakfast this morning was a bite of gluten-free granola bar sent from OpenSky:
(Liked it but not crazy about it)
and a smoothie in a bowl.
-1.5 C almond milk
-1 banana
-1 C frozen organic cherries (a few have asked me which brand I use- Cascadian Farms)
-handful of spinach
-1 T raw cacao powder
-1 T protein
-sprinkle of Chia Goodness 🙂
I’m off to run errands and catch up on life before heading to work. See ya later with a fashion post!
xoxo
Gina
PS. House inspection is TOMORROW! This is actually happening 🙂 I’ll be sure to take lots of pics.
Something to read:
What Can You Do with Chia Seeds? Plenty!
New camera lets you focus photos AFTER taking them (this is amazeballz)
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Ooooh, can’t wait to see all the house pictures. It’ll be like a mini HGTV episode! 🙂
Ooooooooo how exciting!! Keeping my fingers crossed for you and the Pilot! 😀
thank you!
We are in the house-buying process right now and I can’t wait to take pictures and blog about it too. Have a great day 🙂
My monitor has that new style strap too! I love it! The plastic strap adjuster pieces still chafe a lil bit on super long runs, but nothing that a little body glide can’t prevent.
The house stuff is so exciting! I’ll bet you can’t wait to get in there and start nesting!
i CAN’T WAIT. getting out of this temp apartment is going to be amazing
I second the part about the new strap. It is much better but still chafes a bit. I find that mine chafes where the monitor things snaps in just a bit. Body glide is the answer.
YAY!!!! How fab is this?? Our good energy and thoughts are flowing your way!!! I LOVE house stuff 🙂
Have a great day running around!
xxoo
thank you friend!
Congrats on the house search/process!! I am thinking about getting a heart rate monitor so thanks for the suggestions 🙂
So excited for the house inspection! Good luck!
And…I always ask my dog, Jet (a choc lab), who he loves more, me or his dad. Of course, he doesn’t answer. Haha! 😀
so stoked for the pictures! hoping to buy my own house soon!
I’m glad you liked the heart rate monitor!! Good luck with the house inspection – I hope everything goes well! 🙂
I am loving the sliding doors and all the natural light in your bedroom!!! Happy house inspecting! Sending good vibes our way!
I thought the smoothie in a bowl was black bean soup for a split second, haha…either way it looks tasty 🙂
We can’t WAIT for my pilot to get out next year so we can buy a house in CA. I feel your excitement….congratulations!!! 🙂
I’m looking for a heart rate monitor and the old F6 is what I use to have but the strap was an issue for me also. Thanks for the tip!
The house! the house!! YAY!!! Don’t get too stressed out over the home-inspection. Inspectors are there to make things sounds a lot worst than really are. A lot of things are easily fixed.
Thanks for posting the link about chia seeds. So many people don’t know about this magic little seed. I am absolutely addicted to them. But I had to stop adding them to foods I bring to work because they always get suck in my teeth and it makes me really self conscious.
That strap does look much more comfortable. Just the other day, I realized that my strap was set far too loose, and I had to adjust it about 3x every class period. Silly me, taking 4 months to realize “oh, hey, it’s adjustable… let’s fix that ish.” Feels so much better now, like it’s not even there!
The strap really does make all the difference!
Love that comfy-looking chest strap! And the free two-day shipping! (Amazon has ruined me for life… I’m so impatient with shipping now!)
Can’t wait to see pictures of the house!
me too! are you a prime member also? i live for amazon haha
I had the F7 and it had that soft strap, it was nice. I LOVE the look of your new watch much better!
Bella is so cute! We go through a round of “do you love _______?” every day with my dog Rascal and at some point we usually ask him if he loves lamp, which he usually does. 🙂
omg i love it
i love the look of that watch! my F7 strap is the same as that, and its super comfy.
Eeeee. house! lol
Goodluck with the inspection! I can’t wait to see how you decorate your new home! I also can’t wait to see your dinner party set ups 🙂
It’s so cute! I’m loving white anything right now.
Good luck on the inspection, I hope it’s all good news!
I remember wearing heart monitors back in school gym. I used to always hate wearing them because they were so uncomfortable. The one you just got sounds much better!
Good luck with the house inspection!
Can’t wait to see pics of the house! Hope the inspection goes well!! You’ve got me really interested in purchasing that heart rate monitor. I like that it’s white and not super bulky looking like a lot of them.
I so want a good heart rate monitor! But also one that I can affix to a spin bike and measure my cadence etc. Maybe a good xmas present. 🙂
thank you for posting this ! i might have to order it because i’m always curious to know. good luck with the house inspection, can’t wait to see pics!
You reviewed the EXACT same heart rate monitor I’ve had saved in my favorites for two weeks now! I am glad you like it…think I will definitely have to pick it up now.
And thanks for the tip on the site.
Good luck with the house inspection! Always pay extra for those little add-on inspections – moisture, mold, radon, etc! 🙂
Bella’s face cracks me up.. YAY on the house inspection.. so stinkin’ exciting!
I actually have the soft strap with my f6….you can pair it up with any of polars products 🙂
Wow, the bedroom you’ve pictured here is so light and beautiful and open…those are my main requirements for a dream house – sunshine and open spaces. can’t wait to see the rest of the pictures…bet it’s a gorgeous place 🙂 wishing you and the very best of luck with the inspection, i hope it goes well! xyx
Good luck with the house, such an exciting time for you guys in so many ways!
Ooh the house inspection is tomorrow? How exciting! Be sure to make your own notes and ask for a better explanation from the inspector, if needed… I followed ours around like a puppy dog and asked a ton of questions. Hey, we bought it, so I wanted details!
I love my HRM strap – I have the Garmin Forerunner 405 and the strap is super comfy.
Random question, what blender do you use for your smoothies?? Love spinach and kale in my smoothies, but need a better blender! Thanks 🙂
vitamix 5200… life changing 🙂
haha i had a feeling you would say that!! hoping you magically found a cheaper amazing blender.. im going to have to splurge pretty soon on that one. thanks!!
I am happy to hear you like your new toys! They are always the best. I love getting stuff in the mail too! Five days does not sound like part time! Good thing you got some coverage. Good luck with the house showings!!
yeah i’m only supposed to work 3 days so this week was a little cray cray
I wish there was a way to monitor heart rate without a chest strap. They’re such a pain in the butt to wear! 😛
So glad to hear the HR monitor is a winner!
Bella is SO CUTE!!!! 🙂 Glad you got the afternoon off, you’ve been working hard!
My biggest gripe about wearing the band for polar.. is my lack of girls! I am not endowed.. at all .. and always have a box sticked out on my chest!
Congrats on your home inspection!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Omg it’s a reality. Congrats, Gina!
“only gripe I had about the F6 was that the chest strap KILLED me. It left me with a nasty under-the-girls chafing and I could always feel it digging into my skin”–
I commented yesterday that I sold off my Polar F6 on Craigslist AND returned my really expensive Garmin after few uses b/c the chest straps KILLED me. They either dug in, chaffed, rubbed, or slipped. Nightmare.
I thought I was the only one who ever had issues b/c everyone always raved about how much the “love” their HRMs. Thank you for being honest about the strap issue..make me feel like an odd duck on that one.
I’m hooked on that smoothie combo– isn’t it just the best? Esp with coconut added:)
quick question about the sunwarrior protein powder I know you love…Do you still drink it during pregnancy? Have you checked the ingredient list with your doc? I am pregnant and looking for a good protein powder but most have so many ingredients. thanks!
i do still drink it while i’ve been pregnant. def check with your doc, but the sun warrior ingredient list is very simple
Good luck!!!
also, super smoothie combo.
also x2, your blog has helped inspire me to start my own! i just did my first post today! thank you 🙂
happy new blog!
Hi Gina,
First, let me just say I absolutely LOVE your blog. You’ve inspired me to get out and run, try new workouts, eat healthier and make yummy treats like breakfast cookies and Amazeballs.
Question for you: Eating healthy at home is not a problem for me. I don’t buy junk at the store, so I don’t have access to it at home, and I don’t even get cravings or get snacky at home.
My problem is when I go out to eat for lunch or dinner. My job has me out on the road a lot during the week, so eating out is pretty much a necessity. I go with intentions to get something healthy (and get lots of ideas on your blog about good things to order), but when the time comes to look at the menu and order, my willpower goes right out the window and I order unhealthy stuff. It’s like I figure that since I’m at whatever restaurant it is, I don’t want to waste the experience and get something simple (and healthy) that I could make at home. Or I worry that something healthy won’t be filling enough and I’ll be hungry later in the day. So, I end up treating myself to something fried or otherwise yucky, and feel gross afterwards.
Any advice on sticking to healthy eating when dining out? I know what to order to be healthy, I just can’t seem to get myself to stay the course!
Thanks, and keep up the great work!!!
thanks meredith!
my tip would be to figure out when it’s worth the splurge and when it isn’t. for me, if i go out to applebee’s or longhorn (chain restaurants that i could have anytime), i order something super basic and healthy, like a salad or veggies, grilled salmon and baked sweet potato. if we go to an amazing local restaurant, i’ll order something that may not be as healthy, but that i really want to try.
so maybe take a look at how often you go out to eat and plan one special splurge meal each week? hope that helps a little 🙂
xoxo
Thanks! Sounds like a good plan. I’m going to try that. You’re the best!
Thanks for the HRM review! I have the ancient Polar F4, which has been a good one, but time for an upgrade. I’ll check out the FT40 now, and thanks for the website info. Yay, two day shipping.
Oh wow, I have a Garmin HRM but now you’re making me want a Polar. I’m a bit of a fitness gadget junkie. My Garmin chest strap is not comfortable at all. I do love the Garmin Ant+ agent and how it automatically sends data to my computer. It also can get info from the spinning bikes at the gym. And I can buy a foot pod for it and it’ll track running info. But it’s uncomfortable! Oh, and, unlike Polar, it has a user replaceable battery. I bought it when my Polar battery died and I didn’t want to spend $20 and send it off and be without for two weeks while I got it replaced.
Have you done a post on how/why to use heart rate monitors? I’m curious. For example, could you wear a heart rate monitor all day to find out how many calories you are burning on average daily w/ out exercise to see how many calories you should be eating?
Congrats on the house! We JUST closed yesterday on a bank owned short sale. We made an offer Easter weekend and after so many hurdles (on the sellers part) we FINALLY closed yesterday. So crazy it actually worked out.