Garmin 305

[dthogue]

I just bought a Garmin 305 to help with my runs outside. Does anyone who has one have any helpful tips for using it? I used it last night and the distance worked great, as well as the timer, but the pace is really throwing me off. That was the main reason I bought it, so I would know how fast (or in my case, how slow) I was running and could maintain that speed. The pace seems to jump all over the pace and I know that I am not continually going faster or slower? It was set for time per mile (I beleive) and I did find out how to set for mph, but haven't had a chance to try it? Any suggestions on the pace or other useful info? I also want to use the heart rate monitor with it as well.

 

[johde]

I have a couple of suggestion that might help with your problem. First, there is a smoothing function for pace. It would be under Setting>>Running>>Speed Unit. You can then play around with the smoothing. I have mine set on most and it still bounces around some. What I do, that I think is even better, is setup an autolap and use average pace instead of pace. Depending on your speed and the accuracy you need I would set the autolap for .5 mi or 1.0 miles. Right now, I have mine set for .25 miles but I've been doing things there I want .25mi intervals. Lap pace would be your average pace over that short distance and stays fairly constant. The trouble is GPS is only accurate to within a few feet. So the distance between 2 samples can vary wildly but over time, those inaccuracies tend to cancel out.

As far as keeping a constistant pace, you can try setting pace alerts. You can set both a minimum and maximum pace. I would put a little bit of spread between them to allow for natural fluxuation in running speed and inaccuracies. I use it primarily to keep me from going too fast, and If I want to stay below a 12:00 mile I'll set it from 11:30. When I would set it for 12:00 I would average less than that because it would beep and I would over compensate.

Also, you might want to download and checkout a piece of software called SportTracks. Depending on your needs, they have a free version and a pay version of the current version. You can also find the previous version that was freeware. It allows you to do much more analysis than the Garmin Training Center Software. That being said, GTC is very nice for setiing up Advanced workout. I use it to setup workouts because I use a Galloway style walk/run. I can also put them on the calendar and upload them to the watch for easy finding.

I really like my watch and have found it useful in achieving my goals.

 

[faith-hope-joy]

Those are some good suggestions. I'll have to look into using them. I have my 305 set to autolap at 1 mile. My display has 4 boxes on the home screen.

Total elapsed time in one big box at the top. Really helps for when I'm running longer than 1 hour.

In the bottom left I have actual pace. I find that it does jump around. It seems to lag. Takes several seconds to catch up if I speed up or slow down.

In the bottom right is total distance.

I also have the second screen set to actual time. Sometimes I need to pay attention to the actual time during a run.

I use GarminConnect.com to upload my runs to. So much better than the Garmin Training Center that was suggested with the watch.

 

[johde]

I hate to admit I use all 3

Garmin Training Center - Downloads automatically and good for programming watch.
Garmin Connect - Good for sharing with friends.
Sports Track - More analysis than you can imagine, also can track show mileage.

 

[CALIFLADY]

I display my AVERAGE pace, not actual pace on my first screen. Once I've run about 1/4 mile, it doesn't bounce around nearly as bad. Then I try to run a negative split as I go, speeding up through the run. I display actual pace on the second screen.

Please note: I don't walk/run, I only run, so this may not work for walk/runners.

 

[johde]

Califlady your system would work to bad even for run/walk people. I do something similar.
For me,
On screen 1. I have overall time, overall Distance and overall average pace.
On screen 2 I have lap time, lap distance, and lap pace.
On Screen 3 I have Time of Day, HR Zone, Last lap pace and pace.

On most of my workouts Each run interval is a lap and each walk interval is a lap. So lap pace is my pace that interval. But like you, I like to see overall pace drop over time. With the walk/run it will decrease during the run then go up slightly during the walk.

 

[jmasgat]

I also use average pace--the instantaneous readout can be very variable. Also, I tried the pace alert ONCE. Drove me crazy and I wanted to turn it off but couldn't during the run.

Also, I enjoy being able to modify the display screen to select whatver you want to show, I have one screen that just has one big fat mileage counter--so I run without thinking to hard about pace.

I use the Autopause feature so that my average pace excludes any times when I have stopped (like fuel breaks, intersections)

I also use the Quick Workout "Distance and Pace setting" for my weekly LR.

So many settings! Have yet to use the heart rate monitor though (although maybe I should use it for spin class!)

Maura

 

[geaux_half]

I also use average pace smoothed out as much as possible for most of my runs.

I've been using buckeye outdoors for almost 2 years now for my training log. I'm able to sync my garmin workouts and there is code for blog sidebars and signatures to display your workout data.

 

[faith-hope-joy]

One of the things that irks me about GarminConnect is that I can't sort and manipulate data. I found another site that let me do it, but I can't remember what it was. Any suggestions? I love to crunch numbers.