Polar In zone

Crystals422

So I worked out with my polar today and when I was done I saw that I was only in my zone for like 13 min out of 60. I was out of zone because my heart rate is higher not lower. I like to push myself and put it on a high resistance. I feel like when I am keeping in between 140 and 160 ( I think that is what it is) it is to easy. Do you think I should just keep it in that zone even if it means burining less calories?

mistawalka

There will be others here who are more qualified to talk about the virtues of exercising at the various levels of heart rate - but if you want to have the Polar 'In Zone' capture more of your higher intensity work-outs you can manually adjust the upper and lower BPM for the 'In Zone'. I found my current target heart-rate was a bit over the default 'HR Zone settings so I increased the upper one to about what my average HR is for a cardio workout.

sjgarcia9

I had a Polar and switched to an Ironman because it tracked better. There are different target HR's for the zones. You can set your target HR to be higher if you want to push yourself. Keeping it lower is a little bit of fat burning work versus full on cardio. When I run my HR gets up to around 200, but when I spin, it only gets up to about 175, but the workouts are just as intense. Likely it depends on the sport. I have my target set to 150 for low and 190 for high. I would take a look at your manual and look up Polar products online to see what your HR options are.

craigclarke

i say if you're just getting back into exercise it's really important to have a balance of enjoyment and non-burn-out.

i've just started back again myself. i'll push myself hard on the treadmill (had advice from a friend just to 'keep running' even if it's so slow i look stupid) then go at a slower pace for the remainder of my circuits or cardio work (rower, eliptical). this way i give myself the blast i need (which eats my glycogen) then bring my heart rate back to 130-150 knowing it's gonna attack my fat stores.

please don't keep blasting away because, as all of us deep down know, we burn out and then, after a few 'days off' getting back to the gym can seem torturous.

good luck finding your mix.

sabrinafaith

I have a Polar f6, and I think the zone is for optimal fat burn, but that doesn't mean you have to stay there. I'm rarely in my zone. It says everything in the manual.

Crystals422

I guess I should read my maual. It did not come with one just said to read it online. I just wanted to make sure that I am still burning fat when out of my zone.

Azdak

The answer is just to change the heart rate ranges for your "zones".

HRMs are PASSIVE tools, not active ones. To get the most out of an HRM, YOU need to supply the appropriate input. If you don't know what that is or don't know how, then you need to do some research and spend time learning about your body. Ideally, you would do that before purchasing the HRM, but that's not how most people do it. So, just spend some time observing your heart rate under different exercise conditions and learn to "calibrate" the heart rate numbers with your feelings of perceived exertion.

Whatever you do, DO NOT let an HRM control your workouts. HRMs are programmed with a number of features and the ability to set "target" heart rates and heart rate "zones". Since HRMs are being sold to millions of people, there is no way they can be set up for you out of the box. The "zone" and "calculation" settings provided out of the box are plain vanilla, guidelines made intentionally broad so that they can "fit" as many people as possible. The HRM does not "know" you, it cannot measure you, it cannot account for your individual exercise response, unless you program it properly.

If you really want to use an HRM as a training tool, you need to make sure it is customized to YOUR heart rate and other personal data.

Azdak

Oh, and you should always IGNORE any information that uses the term "fat burning zone" in any way, shape or form. (Unless, it's saying something like "fat burning zone is a myth" or "fat burning zone is stupid"--then you can read it).