GPS Runner

Getting Started With A Garmin Forerunner

2010-05-18T21:42:00.000-07:00

The Garmin Forerunner GPS-enabled fitness monitors are powerful devices. Their GPS features can be used for land navigation. Many models have a heart rate monitor that can be used to measure the intensity of your workouts. They have robust system configuration menus that let you modify the display fields to suit your individual needs for many types of activities. They have map displays that show your tracklog and waypoints graphically. And you can upload your data to your computer or favorite fitness web site to analyze your performance. Like everything in life there are trade-offs. Powerful systems with many features are hard to master.

I've helped a lot of people learn to us their Garmin Forerunners. There are a few things that I recommend you try as you're getting comfortable with your Forerunner.

1. Learn the basics. See my previous blog post on this subject.

2. Use autolap. Breaking you run into segments allows you to analyze your performance in discrete segments. You don't need to run on a track or go a set distance, you can mark the end of a lap any time by tapping the lap button. It can be very useful to have your Forerunner automatically record a lap at set distances. The auto-lap feature does this for you. It's enabled by default on 310XT. It's disabled by default on a 305. Here's how to enable it.

Power on your 305. Click on mode until you see the menu with "History, Training, Navigation, Settings" menu. Use the down arrow button the the right side to select Training, then press the enter button. Click enter again to select "Training options", then scroll down to select "Auto Lap". Click enter on the first field to select "By Distance" and then use the default of one mile. This will automatically record a lap each mile you run.

2. Use average pace and lap pace on your default display. Instantaneous pace or speed on a GPS is not very useful because the value fluctuates so much. This is because there are always small random errors in the GPS system. The average pace is very accurate because the random errors cancel each other out over time.

Average pace is a great way to see how you're doing relative to your goal for an activity. Say you want to finish a marathon in four hours. You'll need to maintain an average pace of 9:09 per mile. If you have a watch on your wrist you can do the math at each mile marker to see if you're maintaining your pace. The average pace function on your Forerunner does the math for you. By glancing at the average pace display you can tell how well you're doing. You don't need to be at a mile marker and you don't need to do any arithmetic in your head. That's a great reason to have a GPS on your wrist.

Lap pace is also very useful, especially when combined with autolap. By displaying both lap pace and average pace you can not only see how you're doing, you can see how you're doing lately. Late in a marathon the average pace will change slowly if you speed up or slow down. Lap pace tells you how fast you're going in the most recent lap. This tells you how far off of your goal pace you're running since the last lap.

To enable average and lap pace displays select "Settings" from the main menu. Select General and then press the Enter button. Select Data Fields and then hit enter. Select "Main 1" then hit enter. From there select 4 fields and then set the fields to display as "Time", "Average Pace", "Distance", and "Lap Pace".

With this set-up when you head out for a training session or race with a goal in mind, figure out the pace you need to maintain to meet the goal. Your Forerunner will tell you how well you're doing relative to your goal and the lap pace will tell you how you're doing lately (since the most recent autolap every mile).

Visualizing GPS Tracks with Google Earth

2010-01-03T13:28:00.000-08:00

It's fun to share your activities that you record with your GPS. There are a few easy ways to share the data and maps, including the Garmin Connect and RunSaturday web sites, and by saving images from SportTracks and posting them to DailyMile or emailing to your friends. You can make your story even more interesting by using Google Earth to create 3d images that show the terrain and even animated fly-overs of your activities.

The image above is a great example of a 3d image. It shows the GPS track recorded while skiing at Kirkwood superimposed on an image of the ski hill. Notice that the perspective is looking up toward the mountain, not straight down onto a flat map. This makes the image much more dramatic than the flat maps we typically share. Can you imagine skiing down those steep faces?

Making these type of images is simple. You start by recording your activity with your GPS just like you normally would. Turn on your GPS, make sure the satellites lock in, hit the start button, go have fun outdoors, then hit stop when you're finished.

I use SportTracks to track my runs. It's great as a logbook. It also provides some nice features including data smoothing and elevation correction via a plug-in. It's also very easy to export from SportTracks to Google Earth. Here's where the fun begins.

When you export to Google Earth be sure to set split markers. I usually use 1 mile increments. The split markers are important for creating animated fly-overs.

Once you have the activity open in Google Earth you'll want to enable the terrain layer. The layers panel is on the lower left of the Google Earth window. Expand the panel if it's not visible, then scroll down to the Terrain section of the list and click the check-box to enable the terrain.

It's also useful to enable terrain exaggeration. You can find this on the Google Earth Preferences panel. Somewhere between 1.5 and 2.5 works best.

Now you can set your perspective by using the navigation controls in Google Earth. You can move left and right, forward and backward using the arrow keys. The tilt angle is controlled by holding down the shift key and then hitting up and down arrow. You can rotate your view by holding down shift and hitting the left and right arrow keys. Zoom in and out using your mouse scroll wheel or the on-screen zoom controls. Once you get the view you want you can save an image using the File, Save, Save Image menu options.

To create a spectacular animated fly-over you can set the perspective for each of the mile markers SportTracks created when you exported the activity. Highlight the first mile marker on the activity panel, set your view using the navigation controls, then snapshotting the view of the split marker. Do this for each split mark, then play the activity using the play arrow on the left hand side. You can then save the activity as a KMZ file and post it online or email it for your friends to play in google earth.

I created a fly-over of the Ohlone Wilderness 50K Trail Run ultra marathon course. You can download a copy at http://tinyurl.com/ohlone50k Download the .KMZ file, open it in Google Earth, then hit the play button. I think you'll agree that the animated fly-over with perspective and terrain tells a better story than a two dimensional map.

Using Navigation on your Garmin ForeRunner

2009-11-07T16:41:00.000-08:00

Your Garmin ForeRunner is a great training aid. The pace, distance, time and lap functions are easy and fun to use. But you also have a powerful navigation tool on your wrist that can help you find your way home if you get lost.

Terminology

We'll use a few concepts. First, a WAYPOINT is a saved location that you can save in your GPS memory. A waypoint has a position (latitude and longitude), and a name. You can create a waypoint any time to record your current position. You can also create a waypoint by entering the latitude and longitude manually.

POSITION corresponds to a given spot on earth. Position is referenced as latitude and longitude.

a ROUTE is list of waypoints that correspond to a course of travel. A route will typically have a small number of waypoints, each waypoint being a trail or road intersection, source of water, top of a hill, or some other significant point.

As you navigate a route you need to know the HEADING and DISTANCE to the next waypoint. This is just like google driving directions. Go north on main street for 5 miles, Turn left and go west on first ave for 3 miles.

GPS units calculate heading or direction by comparing your position over time. Most units (including Garmin ForeRunner) do not include a compass. You need to be moving to get accurate heading on a GPS unit.

Accuracy of Estimated Position

Your GPS uses signals broadcast from satellites to estimate your current position. The accuracy of the GPS's estimation is usually quite good. It can be within 10m or about 30 ft under ideal conditions. The positional accuracy depends on unobstructed signal from multiple satellites. If you're surrounded by tall buildings, heavy cloud cover, or dense forest your GPS will not be able to get a good position fix. It also takes a little bit of time for the GPS to lock into satellites whn you first turn it on.

Your Garmin ForeRunner locks into the satellites automatically and for the most part you don't need to pay attention to the satellites. But it's important to know the positional accuracy before you use yourt GPS to mark your location. If you want to get back to some point, it's important to have the correct lattitude and longitude saved in the waypoint. To see the GPS accuracy hit the mode button until you see the menu, select Navigation, then scroll down to the Satellite menu and hit Enter. You'll see a display with some vertical bars that indicate satellite signal strength. At the top of the screen you'll see Accuracy. You want the number to be small and you want to see the vertical bars with solid black. Watch this display when the device is powering up indoors so that you can learn the difference between good satellite lock and bad satellite lock.

Creating a Waypoint

First, make sure you've got good satellite accuracy. Then hit the Mode button until you see the menu, select Navgation, then select Navigation and then Mark Location. If you select Enter the waypoint will be saved with a default name. It's a lot easier to use waypoints that have sensical names. So navigate to the name field and create a useful name for your waypoint. You can also select an icon which will display on the map. This can be very useful.

If you're venturing out into unfamiliar territory, it's a great idea to mark the start of your route. You can then use the navigation capability of the watch to find your way back.

Navigating to a Waypoint

Your GPS can tell you how to get from your current position to a saved waypoint. To enter navigation mode hit mode until you see the menu, select Navigation, then select Find. From there you can select List All or List Nearest. List Nearest is usually the best. If you save multiple waypoints, at this point you will understand why you should create sensical names for waypoints. Highlight the waypoint you want to go to, then hit Enter. Select GOTO (the default) and then hit Enter.

Your GPS will then enter the GOTO mode. There is now a new display screen which shows distance to the waypoint, time to the waypoint, and an arrow which tells you the heading to the destination. Remember that a GPS needs to be moving to have accurate heading, so run in a straight line for a few seconds to get the correct heading. The arrow on the heading display tells you which way you need to go to reach the waypoint.

The distance and heading are as the crow flies. You can rarely travel as the crow flies. You need to follow streets, trails, and navigate around obstacles. When you're trying to find your way to a waypoint your GPS will constantly update the distance, heading and time to the marked spot, even though your path will probably not follow the as the crow files path.

Back to Start

Your ForeRunner makes it easy for you to get back to your starting point. You can do this by selecting the Back to Start option on the Navigation menu. This works even if you didn't store a waypoint at the start of the activity.

Using the Map

Most people only use the data displays on their ForeRunners. The Map display is very useful. You might need to enable the map display by selecting Show Map on the Settings, General, Map display. The map will display your activity track, waypoints, and while in GOTO mode the as the crow files line from where you started GOTO mode to the waypopint you're navigating to.

Courses and Routes

You can create a course from a saved activity. When you follow a course the GPS will alert you when you deviate form the saved course. A Route is a sequence of waypoints. You can create a route by adding saved waypoints. When you follow a route the GPS will use GOTO mode as you travel from waypoint, automatically switching to the next waypoint as you arrive at the current.

Practice and Have Fun

Like any skill, you need to practice in order to become proficient with GPS navigation. Before you set out on your next adventure into unfamiliar territory spend some time practicing your skills around your neighborhood. You can also try geocaching to set a waypoint for a destination by entering the latitude and longitude, then using the GOTO mode to help you find hidden treasure.

GPS Elevation Data Error and Correction

2009-06-05T14:00:00.000-07:00

If you have every looked at the elevation data recorded on a GPS you probably noticed that the data have a lot of errors. For many athletes this is frustrating. We like to keep track of distance, pace, heart rate and use these data to improve our performance. Keep reading to find out how to correct the elevation data so that you can have an accurate measure of ascent and descent to use for analyzing your performance.

GPS Elevation Error

Take a look at the chart below. This shows the elevation recorded using a Garmin ForeRunner 305. The sawtooth pattern makes it look like I was on a roller coaster when I recorded this activity.

The course is a 4.5 mile loop around my neighborhood on sidewalks. There is a steady incline on the first half and a steady decline on the second half. The lowest point is at 0.8 miles at 387 ft. The high point is approximately mile 2.8 at 735 ft. The total elevation gain reported by Garmin Connect is 615 ft.

Doing the Math

Common sense tells us that the elevation gain is equal to the difference between the highest point and the lowest point as long as the path is always increasing. Since this route is a steady climb, the actual elevation gain can be determined using this formula. The difference between the high and low points is 348 ft. The raw GPS data over counted the elevation gain by 267 ft, a 76% over-age.

Why Does this Happen?

The GPS system has inherent errors. The accuracy of the latitude and longitude is superior to the accuracy of the elevation data due to technical limitations of the GPS system. The GPS receiver can also filter out erroneous data points when you are moving along a path. The unfortunate consensus is that this is a limitation of the GPS system as a whole.

The software applications that calculate the total climb for an activity can't look at each successive trackpoint. If the current point's elevation is higher than the prior point's elevation, they take the difference and add that to the total climb. Each tooth in the sawtooth pattern of the data adds additional error to the total.

Improving the Data

There are two ways to improve elevation data. The first approach is smoothing, or averaging. The idea is to average the recently recorded elevation readings and then use the average. The second way is to cross-reference the latitude and longitude for each point in the GPS activity log against a known good elevation database. This latter approach to elevation correction is ideal because there very good data sets available for free from NASA. The elevation data were recorded using very precise lasers from the orbiting space shuttle.

Automating the Process

I'm aware of three ways to use elevation correction. Garmin's MotionBased Gravity system, MapMyRun, and the SportTracks Elevation Corection plug-in.

The image below shows the same GPS activity in SportTracks after the elevation correction plug-in cleaned the data.

Notice that the graph has a very smooth line and none of the saw-tooth pattern found in the un-corrected GPS data in the earlier image. Notice also that the total climb reported is 341 ft.

The Bottom Line

The bottom line is that GPS devices are very good at recording distance, speed, pace and other data, but have a lot of error in elevation data. Correcting the data is easy with the right tools. Once you have clean data, you can use it to analyze your performance using elevation gain as one of the parameters.

Live Broadcasting GPS Track

2009-04-24T14:33:00.000-07:00

Intro

Last week Greg Hendrickson of WatchMyRace, noticed from my twitter feed that I was running the Marin County half marathon on Sunday. After we exchanged greetings on twitter he asked me if I was going to broadcast my GPS live. This sounded like a fun technical challenge. I've used just about every web-based GPS track sharing service on the Internet, but I've never seen anybody broadcast their race live. There's nothing like a technology challenge to get me motivated. Here's a recap of the twitter conversation that got this started:

GregHendrickson r you carrying a GPS phone for live tracking on Sunday?
11:09 AM Apr 17th

gpsrunner I have an iPhone. I just signed up for your ning community. What else do I need?
11:33 AM Apr 17th

GregHendrickson thx for signing up! my email is greg@watchmyrace.com sign up at www.fireagle.com and www.blogloc.com w/iphone, then....
11:52 AM Apr 17th

This brief twitter dialog and a few emails we exchanged on Friday afternoon motivated me to find a way to broadcast my race in the Marin County half marathon live.

How to do it

I started out signing up for Fire Eagle. Fire Eagle, a Yahoo! service, allows you to post your current location. There are are number of applications that make this easy, including a browser interface and several mobile applications. There are also some services that can read your location from your Fire Eagle profile. It seems like a simple proposition to use this to broadcast a race. The idea is to:

Carry an iPhone or other GPS enabled smart phone on the race.
Use the GPS built into the iPhone to track position
Use one of the Fire Eagle applications to post my position on the race course to the Fire Eagle service
Use a blog widget to display my position on http://watchmyrace.ning.com/ and my blog.

I tried several free iPhone clients for Fire Eagle, including Fire Fone, Sparrow, and Yofe. They are all free and all posted position to Fire Eagle after I authorized the application to access my account.

Then I signed up for the Blog Loc service. After linking blogloc to my Fire Eagle account I was able to post my position from my iPhone and have it display in a map on my blog. This easy set-up was very promising. By Friday evening I knew that I'd have a working solution for Sunday's race.

There were three things I wasn't quite happy with.

Firstly, each of the iPhone apps require a keypress and considerable time to post a single waypoint. I wanted hands-free operation and an application that would update my position automatically as I ran the race.

Secondly, the accuracy of the location reported by the iPhone clients was low. If you have ever used the built in maps app's GPS feature you have probably seen the big blue circle that gets smaller as the iPhone locks in the GPS signal. I think that the fire eagle clients were not waiting for the GPS to lock in before they reported position. For the race broadcast to be interesting, the positional accuracy needed to be very high.

Thirdly, the blog loc standard service only shows one data point. I wanted to broadcast a GPS track that showed a trail of breadcrumbs of the race course. With three major shortcomings for this solution, it was clear that I needed to find another solution.

After a lot of Internet research I found the Instamapper service. InstaMapper is a free service that allows you to track a person or vehicle online in real time using a GPS-enabled cell phone. They have five very cool things:

Free software for iPhone and other GPS-enabled mobile phones
Phone-based clisnt software operates hands-free, sending position data to the web site automatically every minute or so
Very accurate position data. Their iPhone client knows how to lock onto the strong satellite signals
A widget for posting the GPS track (not just a single point) to a blog or web site
A facebook app that allows you to post your position to your facebook page.

Results

I was able to get the Instamapper service set up and test it out on Saturday afternoon. On Sunday morning I turned on the Instamapper GPS Tracker application on my iPhone at the start line. The results were amazing. Greg broadcast to twitter as he watched my race unfold. I was very happy with this first experiment. There are a few observations I'd like to make:

It was easy and free to broadcast my race
The Instamapper iphone app did not drain the battery. I had decent battery life remaining after over two hours of broadcasting my position
This is begging for a social sharing platform. www.watchmyrace.com will become a very interesting destination for athletes and their families, friends, and fans
It would be nice to have some context for the event in the display, incuding the start and finish points, start time, and mile markers.

Next steps

Now it's time to get serious about the technology. We need a better platform for sharing. We need better mobile applications. We need social sharing. This could be an interesting business opportunity.

If you want to try broadcasting your race and need some help feel free to contact me by leaving a comment here.

iPhone or Garmin?

2009-01-02T20:11:00.000-08:00

If you're thinking about starting to use a GPS to track your runs you've probably heard about Garmin's wrist-watch type GPS units and some of the new iPhone applications. Both options are great, but there are some things you should consider before you spend your money.

Ease of use while running

If you want to use your GPS to monitor pace or other data while running it's a lot easier to glance at your wrist than it is to look at your iPhone. iPhone applications need to conserve battery life. They also need to make sure that jostling in a pocket or while on a run doesn't become accidental keystroke input. So they dim the display and lock the input. A Garmin GPS won't dim the display or lock the input. The wristwatch format is much better for use while running.

Battery life

Using the GPS feature and display on an iPhone uses the battery very quickly. Most of the iPhone GPS applications claim to get 3-4 hours of battery life. I did a 15 mile run today with a fully charged iPhone. By the time I got home the battery was nearly dead. My Garmin ForeRunner 305 recorded data for more than 10 hours on an ultra-marathon. If you "go long" you'll want battery life that goes as long as you do.

Accessories

Garmin fitness GPS devices can be used with accessories including a heart rate monitor, a bicycle cadence monitor, and a footpod for indoor use. I haven't seen any fitness accessories for the iPhone yet.

Features

The iPhone applications are getting more sophisticated, but are far behind Garmin. I set up the display screens on my Garmin 305 like this:

Main 1: Default view, most useful things
Distance
Average Pace
Time

Main 2: Lap pace, when you need to kick it up click lap and then watch pace improve
Lap Pace
Lap Distance
Average Pace
Pace Zone (to get you used to pace zones for when you use them in workouts)

Running: It's all about heart rate zones, right?
HR Zone
Heart rate
Average HR
Heading (in case you're not sure which way you're going, it's a GPS, after all)

Defined workouts

I haven't seen any iPhone apps that allow you to create pre-defined workouts to guide your runs. The ForeRunner has a special display for work-outs. I use heart rate zone targets mixed with pace/distance targets for interval training, things like Run 1 mile at "Fast Run" pace, then run 1/2 mile in HR Zone 3, repeat three times. For recovery runs I use a HR zone stair step (5 minutes in zone 1, 12 minutes in zone 2, 5 minutes in zone 3, 13 minutes in zone 2, 5 minutes in zone 1). The Garmin will guide you through the workout and alert you with a beep when you're out of range.

Training log Software

The iPhone apps work with web-based training log applications. Map my Run has some nice features and their iPhone application works very well. Garmin GPS devices come with Garmin Training Center and also work with motionbased, garmin connect, and many of the web-based applications. In addition, Garmin devices can be used with SportTracks or Ascent. SportTracks is the best software trainng log, hands down.

Price

If you already own an iPhone 3G you're in luck. MapMyRun.com and their iMapMyRun iPhone app are both free (for the basic service). You can get started using a GPS to track your runs by downloading the iPhone app and signing up for the service. If you don't own an iPhone 3G and are serious about logging your training get a Garmin.

The bottom line

I'm a big fan of the iPhone and am in most cases a strong proponent of web-based software. I'm also serious about my training and want to take advantage of of the full capabilities of the GPS technology. For me, there's no question, Garmin is much better than the iPhone for GPS Running. The iPhone advantage in price (if you already own one) is an important consideration.

Training Load Plug-in for SportTracks

2008-12-31T09:50:00.000-08:00

This is why you bought a GPS-Enabled training monitor with a heart rate monitor. The training load plug-in for SportTracks allows you to target race day fitness by charting your CTL (Chronic Training Load), ATL (Acute Training Load), and TSB (Training Stress Balance). These charts indicate a moving average of your training intensity by assigning a score to each activity - TSS (Training Stress Score; aka TRIMP).

I'm on week six of a 12-week training program for the Austin marathon on February 15. Using the training load plug-in I can see how my runs are contributing to my fitness. The blue portion of the graph represents my fitness level which is steadily increasing. The training load plug-in computes a long-term moving average of my training stress (sometimes called TRIMP) values from my workouts in SportTracks to plot fitness. The red line represents my fatigue, which is a short-term moving average of training stress. The orange curve at the top is a guideline for training, which defines the taper.

Performance on race day, or your form, is your fitness minus your fatigue.

Using a Garmin ForeRunner 305 with heart rate monitor with SportTracks and the training load plug-in gives you a view into your fitness that was previously only available to elite athletes with a coaching staff and fitness lab.

Sample run from mapmyrun.com

2008-12-30T21:16:00.001-08:00

Here is a sample run from mapmyrun.com

12/30/2008 Route
Find more Runs in Livermore, California

2008-12-29T21:02:00.000-08:00

I just signed up for Daily Mile This service looks interesting, but I don't see any GPS-enabled features.

Overview of training log software for GPS users

2008-12-29T19:54:00.000-08:00

There are some great software packages that you can use to log your runs and other training activities that you record with your GPS. I have a Garmin GPS-enabled fitness monitor -- a ForeRunner 305. I started out using the free Garmin Training Center (GTC) that comes with the device.

While GTC is reliable and allows you to use all of the features of the device, it has a few limitations that left me wanting more. On the one hand, I wanted better maps. The maps available at http://maps.google.com are fast, free, and accurate. Google Earth, which is also free, adds a wealth of features, including terrain and elevation and the ability to play back a recorded tour. I also wanted to be able to share routes and activities with other people. My quest led me to several great software tools, including SportTracks from Zone Five Software, Ascent from Montebello Software, and MotionBased and Garmin Connect from Garmin.

MotionBased is a web-based service that allows you to upload your activities from your GPS. The upload process is fairly easy using the provided upload agent. MotionBased has decent maps and also allows you to analyze your training and performance. You can see the details that MotionBased provides from this run I did in NYC. The maps in MotionBased are much better than GTC. I really like the list views in the MotionBased log. MotionBased's analysis is very useful and made me much more interested in understanding my fitness.

Being and on-line service, MotionBased has the promise of being a great platform for sharing training activities and finding friends. Unfortunately, I think MotionBased doesn't live up to the potential. It seems like a simple thing for MotionBased to compare my activity history to the activities uploaded by other people to find matches based on location and pace. Unfortunately MotionBased's search feature doesn't use this data and I haven't been able to figure out how to get interesting matches on MotionBased.

SportTracks is a shareware PC application that you can download and use for free. ZoneFiveSoftware asks for a donation if you like SportTracks. I've been using it for over a year and am sure that you'll love it too. SportTracks is a full-featured training log. The primary display is the daily activity vew. This page displays the list of activities you recorded for the week, your weekly totals, a map of the highlighted activity, and a detail view of the data for the activity. SportTracks also has a report view which shows weekly or monthly totals so that you can track your training over time.

Many people have created plug-ins for SportTracks that extend the application. My favorites are the elevation correction, unique routes, and training load. If you have every tried to determine your total climb using your GPS you have probably noticed that the data fluctuate and the software reports climbs much greater than you would estimate if you simply subtracted the elevation at the lowest point of a run from the elevation at the highest point in your run. This happens in all GPS receivers and in all software applications because the GPS system has relatively low accuracy for elevation. The elevation correction plug-in is a huge improvement.

SportTracks is really great for analyzing your fitness and training. The graphs and reports allow you to monitor just about everything, including the miles you put on your shoes and the pounds you put on during the holidays. The only drawback to SportTracks is that it only runs on a PC. If you have a Mac you can run SportTracks on a virtual PC like Fusion or Parallels. Or you can use Ascent. Stay tuned for more about Ascent in a future posting.

Getting started with your GPS

2008-12-25T06:25:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas GPS Runners. I'm sure that many of you are excited to try out the new running GPS you got for Christmas this year. Here are a few tips to help you get started.

GPS receivers use signals from orbiting satellites to determine location. They need to have unobstructed view of at least three satellites to lock in the position. This means that they don't work very well indoors or under thick tree cover. I've used my Garmin ForeRunner extensively in New York City (Midtown Manhattan), and can tell you that it works extremely well even when surrounded by tall buildings after you get the satellites locked in. Here's an example of a New York City run I recorded.

Give the battery a good charging.
Take a quick glance at the owners manual. Don't be intimidated. If it's confusing come back to the owners manual later. It will make more sense after you use your GPS.
If your unit has a heart rate monitor strap it on.
Go outside to an open area with unobstructed view of the sky.
Power on your unit and give it a minute or two to sync with the GPS satellites. The first time you power it on (or if you travel a long distance between use) the receiver will take a little bit longer to lock in the satellites.
Hit your start button and start walking quickly.
Experiment with the different displays to learn how the unit works. Take the time to go through all the menus.
Find the function that allows you to mark your current location. If you run in far-away locations you can mark your starting point and then easily find your way back later using your GPS. Save your curent position so that you can experiment with the go to function later.
If your unit has a heart rate monitor watch your heart rate as you walk steadily, then pick up the pace or walk up a hill or some stairs. Watch how the unit displays your heart rate.
Most importantly, record a short run by hitting the start button and then running a decent distance, at least a half mile. This will be the first run that you import into your computer.
Hit your stop button at the end of your run.
When you get back home install the software that came with your GPS so that you can upload your activity. You should be able to see your route, pace, and other parameters. Make sure that the route displayed on the map accurately shows the route you ran.

Now that you have recorded a run and uploaded it to your computer take a few minutes to read through the owners manual. You should also run through the personal set-up options to define your maximum heart rate and other settings.

Congratulations, you're on your way to better fitness and a lot of fun.

In my next postings I'll give you some tips about how to use your log book software to record, share, and analyze your activities.

Welcome GPS Runners

2008-12-21T07:58:00.000-08:00

Hello fellow runners and GPS enthusiasts. I've been using a Garmin ForeRunner 305 for nearly two years to track my running. I've learned a lot in the process and decided to create this blog to share some tips and tricks for using a GPS-enabled fitness monitor.

I'm an average marathon runner with a personal best time of 4:07. I run about 30 miles per week with my dog Abbie. I'm not a fitness pro by any means. I've spent my career in the high-tech industry, so I'm comfortable with the Internet.

Like many of my colleagues in high-tech, sitting at a computer for hours on end took it's toll on my health. Between march 2007 and December 2008 I've run 2346 miles, worn out six pairs of running shoes and improved my average pace from 12 to 10 minute miles. Using my GPS-enabled fitness monitor has been a lot of fun and I'm excited to share my experience with you.