When it comes to indoor cycling, there are a lot of accessories that you can get which will add to the experience. In our opinion, one of the most useful accessories is a heart rate monitor. Not only do you get lots of excellent data, but it also comes with many other benefits.
Check out my YouTube video on the top heart rate monitors!
Finding the correct heart rate monitor for you can be very challenging, and with so many on the market, it’s easy to get a bit overloaded and end up with something that might not give you the experience you want.
In this article, were going to be telling you about some of the best heart rate monitors on the market and why you might want to consider them by discussing:
- What Is A Heart Rate Monitor?
- Why Should You Use A Heart Rate Monitor?
- What Do We Look For In A Heart Rate Monitor?
- Comparison Of Heart Rate Monitors
What Is A Heart Rate Monitor?
A heart rate monitor is a small device we use to see how quickly our hearts are beating. They come in many forms, including chest straps, arm bands, and watches. Once on, it will measure your heart rate in BPM, which stands for Beats Per Minute.
Why Should You Use A Heart Rate Monitor
100% we highly recommend wearing a heart rate monitor. They come with many benefits, and here we tell you why.
Training Intensity
When using a heart rate monitor, you will be able to see how hard you’re working, which can tell you the level of intensity you are working at. If you are working too hard, then you know to lower it, or if you’re not working hard enough, you know to heighten it.
Training Progress
Another great use of a heart rate monitor is being able to see your training progress. If you were on the bike at level 10 resistance for 30 minutes and your heart rate was 150 bpm, you might see it go down to 140 bpm after a training block telling you you’re getting fitter.
Workout Optimization
Another great thing about having a heart rate monitor is optimizing your workouts. By knowing your heart rate while training, you can optimize your sessions for endurance, fat burn, high intensity, and even do intervals.
What Do We Look For When It Comes To Heart Rate Monitor?
When it comes to finding great heart rate monitors, there’s some amazing technology out there, as there’s also some you might want to avoid. Here’s what you need to know.
Design
The first thing we look for is a good design. How does it mount to the body? Is it a sleek small design or a large design? LED indicators, so you know if it’s working? These are all things I personally take into account.
Cost
Heart rate monitors vary from being cheap at $10 to very expensive at around $60. We want to know if we are spending our hard-earned money. We want to know we are getting good value.
Performance
We also want heart rate monitors that can perform. We want them to wake up, connect easily, and transmit data quickly from a good distance without any problems. Bluetooth and Ant+ systems are vital to connecting to a variety of different smart devices.
Battery Life
We also want heart rate monitors, which are going to last a good bit of time on the bike. Changing the batteries constantly and them dropping out halfway through a ride ruins the indoor cycling experience. We always like a heart rate monitor with long battery life.
Comparison Of Heart Rate Monitors
In this article, were going to be telling you about:
- Wahoo TICKR
- Moofit HR8
- COOSPO H6
- Powr Labs HR Monitor
Wahoo TICKR
The Wahoo TICKR doesn’t just have great specifications, but it performs excellently. It’s not cheap but worth the money if you have the budget.
- Looks Great
- Works Excellently
- Both Bluetooth And Ant+
- Wahoo Quality
- Not Cheap
- Price: $50
- Attachment: Chest Strap
- Connectivity: Bluetooth, Ant+
- Battery Life: 500 Hours
- Waterproof Rating: IPX7
Wahoo is a big name when it comes to indoor cycling, and they make some excellent products. When it comes to heart rate monitors, they currently have the Wahoo TICKR and the TICKR X. In this article, we are speaking about the TICKR that is coming in at $50.
It’s a chest strap monitor, which is not only a great fit when attached to the body but also very easy to adjust and comfortable. It is surprisingly flush to the body, and the unit itself doesn’t stick out your cycling kit when wearing it. We also like the fact the strap connects via the unit itself.
It has Bluetooth and Ant+ technology so that it can connect to pretty much anything, and a battery life of up to 500 hours, it lasts. We like the twin LED blue and red lights, which help you know the status when using it.
Moofit HR8
The Moofit is a good heart rate monitor. It’s not the smallest, and we would love to have some LED’s apart from that, it’s everything you will need.
- Price is excellent
- Good Battery Life
- Very Comfortable Strap
- No LED Lights
- Heart Rate Monitor Isn’t Very Flush
- Price: $25
- Attachment: Chest Strap
- Connectivity: Bluetooth, Ant+
- Battery Life: 300 Hours
- Waterproof Rating: IP67
The Moofit coming in at $25, is excellent value for money and half the price of many of the top competitors. It looks great and has some amazing features, and is definitely one to consider if you’re on a budget and want a heart rate monitor.
It’s a chest strap monitor, and the strap itself is very easy to adjust and has a nice feel. Moofit really has put time and money into the material. The monitor itself sits on top of the strap and does sit out a bit but not enough to bother me personally.
It comes with Bluetooth and Ant+ connectivity and a solid 300-hour battery life. It connects very easily and works even from a distance away. It doesn’t have lights on it, so it can be difficult to know what’s going on with the unit when connecting and pairing, but still, it’s a great unit.
COOSPO HW807
We like the COOSPO HW807 as it offers a different heart rate monitor experience. It may not be the best performing, but it’s good.
- Arm Band Is Very Comfortable
- Looks Great
- LED Lighting
- Comes With Two Straps
- Not As Responsive As Chest Strap
- USB Chargeable Isn’t Always Ideal In HR Monitors
- Not Cheap
- Price: $50
- Attachment: Arm Band
- Connectivity: Bluetooth, Ant+
- Battery Life: 20 Hours
- Waterproof Rating: IP67
The COOSPO HW807 is a very unique heart rate monitor, and it’s incredibly unique compared to other monitors on this list. It offers something very different and could be the ideal solution if you didn’t want to use a chest strap.
The HW807 comes as an armband. Not only is this a little more unique compared to the chest strap, but it also is much more comfortable. It comes with two straps and looks very professional when attached to your arm. It has Bluetooth and Ant+ technology and is very easy to get connected.
The bright green LED looks amazing, and unlike the others on this list, it’s USB chargeable and not battery operated hence the low battery life. One thing worth mentioning is that we didn’t find the monitor as responsive compared to the chest strap monitors but still very good.
Powr Labs
The Powr Labs heart rate monitor is an ideal solution as a chest strap monitor. With incredible battery life and double connectivity, what’s not to like?
- Price Is Excellent
- LED Light
- Good Connectivity
- Incredible Battery Life
- Not the most friendly strap
- Price: $32
- Attachment: Chest Strap
- Connectivity: Bluetooth, Ant+
- Battery Life: 8760 Hours
- Waterproof Rating: IP67
Powr Labs is a brand we have been seeing a lot coming up on Amazon, and they are getting excellent reviews. Coming in at only $32, it’s by all means not expensive and boasts some excellent specifications.
It’s a chest strap monitor and is very easy and fairly comfortable when it comes to wearing it and doing a spinning session. It’s very adjustable, and like the Moofit, the monitor itself sits on the strap and connects through.
It connects to both Bluetooth and Ant+ and has an incredible battery life of 8760 hours stated on the website, they say if it runs out before a year, they will send another out for you. It even has a white LED on the front, indicating when it’s working, and looks very cool.
A Final Thought
Thanks for taking the time to enjoy our article. We hope you found the perfect heart rate monitor for you and are now ready to add that data set to your indoor cycling. Make sure to watch the video for the full review.
