Timex T5J031 Unisex Digital Fitness Heart Rate Monitor Watch

5 Responses to “Timex T5J031 Unisex Digital Fitness Heart Rate Monitor Watch”

1. citan-uzuki, on December 20th, 2009 at 7:40 am Said:

   Do you exercise because you need to and not because you love to? Are there about a million things you’d rather be doing than exercising? Are you basically a couch potato who has taken up an exercise program because you know you needed to?

   If you are the type described above, then you want to make sure that you get the most out of each and every exercise session. You know, so you get the best return for the amount of time and effort that you’re investing. And, if you’re one of those who has been out of shape for quite some time, you could certainly give yourself a little bit of safety margin by monitoring your heart rate while you work out. Because, you see, if you’re not accustomed to exercise, you are not a good judge of the intensity that your body is working. Too much can hurt you. So, what do you need to get around those problems that your humble reviewer, Ctian, mentioned above? The simplest way is to keep track of your heart rate. And this product will do just that.

   Citan, your humble author (Yes, I’ve always dreamed of being a best-selling author), is basically in good shape. However, Eighteen months of playing video games and forgoing exercise has caused him to gain 12 pounds. And to make matters worse, guess where most of those extra poundages went! In any case, wanting to get the most efficiency out of every workout (because Citan is unabashedly lazy), this “author” came to the conclusion that the best way to do that is to cut back on carbohydrates and to start a walking program. Cutting back carbs basically mean cutting back on pasta, rice, breads, and sweets. The walking/jogging bit would normally be straightforward, except it’s summer and the temperature outside is right around 100 degrees! So, the key is to get the most out of every walking/jogging session. And the way to do that is to monitor your heart rate.

   By now you have read the many other excellent reviews of this product. You already know it is very good and that it works. The key to getting accurate, reliable heart rate readings is to make sure that the chest strap and the sensors are worn properly. Citan does not recommend that you use spit/saliva to moisten the sensors. Yuck! Plain tap water works fine. However, for the sake of convenience, Citan invested in a bottle of Ultrasound Gel to use in place of water. The cost is about $5 for a 9 ounce bottle. Ok, basically, a bottle should last for years. Moisten the sensors, attach the strap, and you are good to go.

   I would have given the product 5-stars, but for the fact that the night light does not stay on long enough for me to read all of the data that I need to read without having to constantly hold down the Indiglo button. You see, Citan would rather replace the battery more often if he can just keep the illumination long enough. Battery life, to me, is no big deal as long as the battery replacement isn’t too costly.

   You’ll be happy to know that your friend, Citan, has lost 5 pounds over the last six weeks on his program. And without undue suffering, I might add. Citan eats quite well and does not starve himself. Citan also does not spend ten hours per week working out, either. Aside from cutting back on the carbs, Citan walks regularly four times per week. Each walking session lasts from 45-50 minutes at Zone 2 levels of intensity, as measured by the Timex. Citan is in relatively good shape, so basically, to get to Zone 2, he has to actually run every few minutes. He cannot just walk fast and get his heart rate up to his needed level of intensity.

   In short, this Timex is a handy tool for those who want to monitor their exercise session. Quite frankly, I am surprised that more doctors do not recommend them to out-of-shape people who are about to start an exercise program.
   Rating: 4 / 5

2. Christopher Egonio, on December 20th, 2009 at 9:07 am Said:

   I bought this product at discounted price. Except for the calorie counter,the monitor works fine. I want to know if the discounted price was given becaue of the defect. Anybody has any answer?
   Rating: 3 / 5

3. alex, on December 20th, 2009 at 11:35 am Said:

   There was nothing wrong with the functions; however, the wrist band that i received was gray. One of the reasons why I got it was because people said it looked aesthetically pleasing and it was okay to wear it when you are not working out. The images on the site show that the wrist band is black which looks nice, but the gray wrist band makes the watch looks really ugly. Decided to send it back, which was the first time i ever had to do that when i bought something online. They weren’t able to replace it, only able to refund me.
   Rating: 1 / 5

4. James M. Landreth, on December 20th, 2009 at 1:15 pm Said:

   I am enjoying this product. However, the time is harder to set than I would have liked. I’m looking forward to great use from it.
   Rating: 4 / 5

5. Johan, on December 20th, 2009 at 2:00 pm Said:

   In 1998, I bought a relatively cheap Polar heart rate monitor which lasted for 3 years and showed heart rate, time spent in zone, and calories burned. It was easy to program and worked well. What has happened to HRM’s in the last 10 years? They became extremely difficult to program, they offer useless functions, and they are not reliable. My last 2 Polar HRM’s were nothing more than junk. Therefore, I turned to Timex. I have mixed feelings about this watch. Although I am an intelligent professional person, this HRM is almost impossible to program. I am only able to get my heart rate, No time in zone or calories burned, I simply have not been able to program the two latter functions. The heart rate monitor works well but that’s the only function I could get to program. I also use the watch as an alarm clock, however I am confused on a daily basis as to how to program it. The watch also has an irritating and unnecessary security clip on the watch strap.
   Rating: 2 / 5

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