Hello Sparkpeeps!

Hopefully your 2013 is going smoothly so far. Mine is off to a bit of a rocky start healthy-resolution-wise. Struggling to get back to weight training yet. Between tweaking my back and being sick earlier this week, I'm making more snail than turtle-like progress.

I still have 363 days though.

Anywhoos... I was hoping you might be able to make some recommendations for me. My heart rate monitor died last summer, and I've decided that it's time to replace it. I've done some shopping online and in brick and mortar stores, and I'm more confused than when I started looking.

On the one hand, I need something like a watch with a timer that I could use for pacing during a 5K. On the other, I've been thinking about getting something like a fitbit to keep track of my overall burn rather than just an individual workout. Maybe I need/want both. I really like the idea of getting something that allows me to download data to my computer or an iPad app so I can track my progress.

What have you tried? Any suggestions on what I should look for? Right now I don't have a smartphone, so any tracking program would have to be desktop or iPad compatible. If I just went for the heart rate monitor and skipped the fancier stuff, any brands you've had success with?

Thanks for your feedback...