Garmin Foot Pod, You'll Need One For Indoor Pace and Distance With Garmin Forerunner 620
Garmin Forerunner 620 does require a foot pod for indoor running if you want pace and distance.
Bozeman, MT (PRWEB) December 08, 2013
Garmin Forerunner 620 running watches have built-in accelerometers in the chest strap according to the Heart Rate Watch Company but these won't measure indoor pace and distance. "Consumers think this means you don't need a foot pod for running with one indoors, which is not true," says Rusty Squire, President of the Heart Rate Watch Company.
"Garmin Forerunner 620 does require a foot pod for indoor running if you want pace and distance," says Squire. This reason is because the GPS handles those functions outdoors while the accelerometers in the chest strap can handle things like cadence, run oscillation and ground contact time according to Squire.
The new HRM Run chest strap does not handle pace and distance for some very specific reasons. First, it would mean that the chest strap would have to be calibrated to an average stride length but, unlike some older running watches, the chest strap has no mechanism for doing this pairing.
Running indoors without a food pod
"Running indoors, on a track or treadmill, with no foot pod you are only going to receive heart rate data and run cadence," says Squire. He adds, "There will be no pace and distance unless you add a foot pod and calibrate it with the watch and your average stride length."
"Perhaps, in the future, Garmin's engineers will come up with a way to calibrate average stride length into the accelerometers in the chest strap that can then serve as gatherers of pace and distance information indoors," says Squire.
Features greatly improved
For all the improvements in the Garmin Forerunner 620, over its predecessor the 610, it is still the best running watch on the market today according to Squire. He adds, "They shaved 40% of the weight, made it thinner, made it fit better, added run oscillation, ground contact time and so many new improvements that it is astounding for a single generation."
Talk to the real experts
"If you'd like to talk to a real expert that can answer all your technical questions then simply call us at 866-586-7129," says Squire. He adds, "We test and use all the products we sell, so unlike most of the large online retailers we really know these products and can help you avoid mistakes."
