Garmin 010-12520-00 Running Dynamics Pod

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.

Perfect to use with my smartwatch.

Works as stated. Great way to measure your running dynamics to see if any adjustments need to be made. Can be a little fiddly to get centered but after a few times its almost second nature. Is quite small so clip it to my laces after any runs so it doesn’t get lost. Clip seems strong enough to keep it in place and I havent had it shift yet.

Easy to wear. Easy to store. I like it.Just giving 4 stars for the battery because I got a notification that battery was low about 2 months after I purchased it. But haven’t changed the battery though and seems to be working still.

Love what stats the Dynamics pod provides! I have a Forunner 935 that syncs great with this little doodad. A few months ago I switched up my training to focus on increasing cadence as a method to fix my running form. I bought this Dynamics Pod in order to track more layers of my form while I make improvements to see where else I can focus on next. I’ve learned a lot about my contact balance when I’m in an easy jog vs race pace. If anyone else out there is using this zero-races-awful-covid-pandemic time period to get “back to the basics”, I recommend this pod. Over-training and missing important form techniques sure takes a toll over time. Might as well spend the next few months fixing the little things that will make us faster in the future! 🙂 Happy running!