Garmin Running Dynamics Pod - 010-12520-00

Discontinued, but this is the best. I have used this with my Fenix 6x, 7x and Epix Pro. It's a great alternative to the HRM straps which I don't like wearing. The ONLY thing the HRM gives you over this is "breathing rate" which is a questionable metric anyway. The clip keeps them on all shorts. I only lost this once when they slipped off of some new slippery shorts I was wearing with a belt and shirt tucked in. My shirt got caught on it when I pulled it up and the pod fell out onto the ground. So I used my GPS track on my watch and looked to see when the cadence went to 0, walked to that spot and the pod was right there. Unfortunately, there's no other direct way of finding these as they don't have GPS built in. Other than that, these are perfect. I think Garmin discontinued this to send people to the HRM straps or to just use the built in Running Dynamics that are built into the watches. But you get more accuracy with this pod as it's located on your hip. On a treadmill for example, if you look at your watch, the cadence measurement slows or stops. With the RD Pod, you don't have to worry about that. So easy to use. Love it. Great quality. Durable. Accurate. Hooks up to the watch immediately. And the watch reminds you to remove it from your shorts or pants when the run is over. So nice.

Garmin’s tiny but entirely capable Running Dynamics Pod is a device worn on the back of your running shorts which then communicates with your Garmin running wearable to provide running dynamics in real time during your workouts. These six combined metrics will help you with your running form and efficiency and are as follows: Cadence - measured in steps per minute (spm), this is how quickly you are moving your feet. The pod overrides your watch’s included cadence sensor. This is more accurate since the pod is far more static on your torso and is therefore closer to the ground than it would be if the data were coming from a constantly moving source (wrists). Ground Contact Time Balance - shows the balance of your left and right feet at the time of impact/strike. This is presented as a numerical value on the watch in real time, showing either a perfect 50-50 balance reading or giving you a value with an arrow showing which side you are favoring. Knowing these metrics in real time or viewing this data after your run can help improve running form. Ground Contact Time - shows the length of your impact when striking the ground and is measured in milliseconds. The lower this number is, the better as there is less strain on the joints with a lower contact time. Stride Length - this measures the length of your stride in meters and is an important metric to monitor when doing speed work and pace training. Vertical Oscillation - this is the height of your bounce measured in centimeters and the lower this value is, the less strain you are putting on your body. Think of this in terms of if you jumped high and landed on your feet, the impact would be far greater on your joints as opposed to if you did a smaller jump. Vertical Oscillation Ratio - this is a combination of the values of your stride length and vertical oscillation to help gauge how much time you are spending off the ground. This metric is expressed as a percentage. The actual pod is encased in a silicone housing from which it can be removed if the batteries need to be changed. Battery life is rated for up to a year and is user replaceable. The pod is waterproof to some degree in the sense that heavy sweat and the occasional downpour during your runs will not affect performance, but one cannot fully immerse it in water for prolonged periods of time. It is only available in a single color and while that may be puzzling at first, it is actually a smart decision on Garmin's part as the unit is highly visible on nearly all colors of clothing. This is a blessing as the pod is slightly larger than a peanut M&M and can easily be forgotten about once you throw your running shorts in the hamper. The unit is so light at 12 grams that the user forgets it's even there during a workout. The silicon layered clip is strong and never once has the pod fallen off during or after a workout. There are no physical buttons on the pod, you simply either wear it, walk to your starting point and initiate a run on your watch or wake the unit by gently giving it a vertical shake or two. Pairing is extremely simple and if your Garmin wearable supports it (check Garmin's website for compatibility), you'll be up and running in under a minute. On supported devices, there will be two visible data pages consisting of the six metrics described above for monitoring dynamics in real time. This data is also saved and logged to your run statistics under your Garmin Connect account for viewing at a later time. Having used the pod for well over a month now, I can say that these metrics update with an alarming rate of frequency during a workout. If you move your feet faster, you'll see your cadence increase and your stride length decrease almost instantaneously. The same goes for all the other metrics. When the workout is over, your watch buzzes to remind you to remove the pod. Garmin's Run, Tri and now Pro chest heart rate monitors will provide these same metrics with the added benefit of giving the user heart rate data over its optical, wrist -based counterpart. But what if you have another, off-brand chest strap or simply don't like wearing heart rate monitors to begin with? That's where this little pod comes in. Bottom line, if your watch supports it and you love data, there's no reason not to have this little device in your arsenal.

This little gadget is attached to the back of my shorts and can how many time my foot is striking on each side. It also tell me my cadence. I received this in November so I haven’t drilled into all of the metrics but the ones I’ve been concerned about really help with my training. Garmin has drill workouts the set specific cadence and strides, this device have provided the info to Garmin Connect for me. What i really like is that it works while running on. A treadmill A word of caution. This thing is tiny and can easily be forgotten when changing. If you have a paired Garmin device it will remind you too remove it before changing.

I tried this a few runs and compared to my Runscribe+. Not even close to the accuracy of the Runscribe. I think this would be good for some basic oscillation information for generalized gate analysis. It is easy to use, and works well with the Fenix (unless you have the latest firmware, which it shows as connected, but doesn't record anything). This should be fixed soon enough though. I like that you just clip and go. no brainer. It's worth the cost for the average runner or person who wants to make sure they have a balanced run.

Convinient, accurate with a great price for what it does. But its limited connectivity runined its perfect fit--- very likely from the marketing decision for their higher priced product.

I use this product to guage how I'm running at a deeper data level. After an injury, I wanted to be sure that I was running balanced, right to left. That works great (be sure it is centered on your running shorts). Other data is useful too, including cadence and step duration time (faster cadence means less time on the ground with each step). I'm not exactly sure how to change vertical oscillation... But I can see it is less when I'm in the running zone, and more when I'm walking, which is actually pretty interesting. Overall, I enjoy the data, and I think it improved my form. Plus you do nothing after initially connecting it .. it just works. The only downside is that on most runs it drops the connection at least once. Then, the data is missing until it reconnects and the average is skewed. But, the graphs are still excellent for review, and I do like the device a lot, and all the data it gives me.

I don’t know what I should’ve been expecting but this felt like a waste of $30. The little extra data that it offers seem not well presented in the Connect app, and not much to do with that data. I guess for data nerds? I don’t know. But it’s just another thing you get distracted by. The friction on the clip is too great and so difficult to clip on your shorts, and when I had this on, I kept checking to see if it was still on my shorts(too distracting). Told me I’m right dominant, which was probably the only bit of data that seemed slightly useful to me, but I already knew that well duh, from walking and running all my life and paying attention? And then all the notifications to not forget to take off(yes you can opt to turn off this but still made me want to take it off and never put it on again and haven’t), and always wondering if your wasting battery on it, etc., not worth buying for me. Just another thing to haul with you on a run? No thanks. Personally have buyer’s remorse. And only saving grace is that it was cheap.

I've been running for about a year and have been looking for ways to improve. I purchased this to get some additional insight and I love it. Super easy to use and I am a much more efficient runner now (well, most of the time) as I've become much more aware of my vertical movement and my running posture. Really enjoy analyzing the data after each run. I read some reviews that complain about battery life but that has not been an issue for me (after 4 months of frequent use). And there are video explaining how to change the battery on YouTube so I don't think this should deter you if you are inclined to buy it.