My hrm sucks for p90x, whats your fave?

Cougarsuz

Hi everybody! Anyone have advice on a hrm? I bought the $40 one at Walmart and it seems on target for fast paced cardio, the calorie counts are a little lower than mfp or my elliptical machine. But when I do weights or yoga (p90x) it tells me I only burned 25 calories in a 75 minute weight and calesthenics workout, that can't be right! Any other p90x'rs out there with an hrm you like? And......chest strap or no chest strap?

luv2ash

do you have an HRM with a chest strap? Those are best---look into polar FT4 or FT7

Girlypeekaboo

My Polar FT4 is coming today....I'm super excited I think in the box it has a chest strap too, I'm not 100% on that tho

FaithandFitness

I have a Garmin Forerunner 305 with a chest strap, it seems to work well during the high intensity and low intensty portions of my workout, but I have not tried it with P90X. The wrist portion is a bit large, so it does annoy me a bit with things lke Kettlebells and pushups.

INSANITY43

You definitely need a HRM with a chest strap...I have a Polar FT 7. I first purchased a HRM that was just a watch by Sportline....it was very deceiving...it was more of a pedometer...I burned more calories folding laundry and running back and forth to bedrooms to put it away (according to the HRM) than I did in my hour long Max INSANITY workout!!!! Those types "measure" the "walking" motion and determine calories burned from that (or so I was told when I questioned SPORTLINE)

crystaltrejo

Yes the Polar FT4 is aweeeeeeeeessssssssome! Love love love it. It does come with the chest strap and wouldn't exercise without it anymore. Love it. So easy to use, you won't be sad you bought it.

DoReMiFaSoLaTiDo

Ive read several times that HRMs are basically useless for anything other than cardio....

http://www.sparkpeople.com/community/ask_the_experts.asp?q=75

*Will a heart rate monitor accurately estimate how many calories I burn during strength training?
doesn't estimate calorie burn for strength training because so many variables are involved (how hard you're working, resting in between sets, the amount of weight you lift, etc.) that any estimate would not be very accurate. A heart rate monitor (HRM) is capable of estimating calorie burn pretty accurately—but only for aerobic (cardio) exercise, not for strength training. Here's why:

A HRM won't give you an accurate idea of how many calories you burn during strength training, because the relationship between heart rate and calorie expenditure is not the same during strength training as during cardio exercise, which is what the HRM's estimate is based on. Unless your weight training is very vigorous circuit training, the heart rate monitor will be overestimating your calorie burn by a fair amount.

The problem is a technical one. Calorie burning isn't determined by heart rate, it's determined by the number of muscle cells that are activated to perform a given activity. It's the working cells that actually use the energy (calories) and consume oxygen. When working muscle cells need more energy and oxygen, your heart rate goes up to deliver these things to the cells via the blood stream.

Any muscle that performs a high intensity or maximum effort (strength training) will trigger an increase in heart rate and blood flow. But if only a single muscle group is on the receiving end to utilize that extra oxygen (doing a strength exercise that isolates your biceps, for example), only a relatively small amount of oxygen (and calories) will actually be consumed.

So while a series of strength training exercises may elevate your heart rate like aerobic exercise does, you're not actually using as much oxygen and burning as many calories as you would be if you were steadily using several large muscles all at once, as when walking, running, swimming, or doing aerobics for example.

The heart rate monitor doesn’t know whether your increase in heart rate is due to several large muscle groups working (cardio), an isolated muscle group lifting a weight (strength training), or even if adrenaline or excitement is increasing your heart rate. It just knows your heart rate, and the formulas it uses to estimate calories are based on studies of aerobic exercise, not other activities. So, it's going to overestimate your calorie expenditure when the rise in heart rate is stimulated by using isolated muscles at maximum intensity, which is what occurs during strength training.

Written by Dean Anderson, Certified Personal Trainer

LoriLou67

I have a Polar F4, and it is about 5 years old now. It works great and I have never had a problem with it. I have used it to track calories burned while walking, jogging, biking, splitting wood, raking, and during various exercise DVDs....even when I used the wii for a warmup!

While HRM may not be the best for tracking calories burned during strength training, I believe it to be much more accurate than some other estimators. And, notice that in logging exercise here, it does say cardio.

When I started P90x, I knew it to be some cardio and some strength training - thus my decision to bike for 30 minutes before starting the day's P90x workout....then it becomes a goal to keep my heart rate up there. Even when I used to workout in the gym, I would do cardio beforehand and then a weights circuit.

P90x is not just strength training and you should wear a HRM. Chest strap is more accurate than just the watch and no, you don't even feel the chest strap. Happy shopping!

Bootzey

For workouts like yoga, cardio and such, use what's in the database

wsheaf82

Ive read several times that HRMs are basically useless for anything other than cardio....

http://www.sparkpeople.com/community/ask_the_experts.asp?q=75

This is what I heard as well.

I have a Polar FT7. Just got it yesterday. So far I like it.

MinnieInMaine

I've been using a Polar F6 for 3 or 4 years now and really like it. The only problem with the older models like this one though is that you can't replace the battery in the watch or the chest strap transmitter yourself, you have to ship it out. Since both batteries seem to be on the way out now, instead of bothering to go through shipping for maintenance, I've asked for an shiny new Polar FT4 for my b-day. Really looking forward to getting years of use out of that since I'll be able to change the batteries myself.

LoriLou67

I've been using a Polar F6 for 3 or 4 years now and really like it. The only problem with the older models like this one though is that you can't replace the battery in the watch or the chest strap transmitter yourself, you have to ship it out. Since both batteries seem to be on the way out now, instead of bothering to go through shipping for maintenance, I've asked for an shiny new Polar FT4 for my b-day. Really looking forward to getting years of use out of that since I'll be able to change the batteries myself.

I have had a local battery shop (Batteries+) replace the battery in the watch without batting an eye...since the store I purchased the HRM from would not touch it. I have never had to do anything with the chest strap.

Cougarsuz

Thank you everyone!!! Will look into Polar FT's online, my birthday is coming up!

Cougarsuz

Just ordered the Polar FT4, can't wait!!!!

wisers

I have been doing PX90 for 4 weeks now and i am looking for a reliable HRM. I'm not so keen on the ones with the strap and don't see any of the people on the video's wearing one. Does anyone have any suggestions? Sometimes i do the workout and then walk or jog afterwords. I wuld like to also have it count calories burned

Greenrun99

I have been doing PX90 for 4 weeks now and i am looking for a reliable HRM. I'm not so keen on the ones with the strap and don't see any of the people on the video's wearing one.

They most likely are wearing them under the shirts,.. but the ones with a chest strap are the most accurate for the cardio workouts.. you can also use this website to determine other calories burn (its a generic site though)
http://p90xcalories.com/

mndamon

If it doesn't have a chest strap then don't bother with one at all. I'd recommend anything Polar makes, the FT7 I have has been solid.

contingencyplan

All HRMs are inaccurate for any form of strength training that involves isolating specific muscle groups, as you do with the strength workouts on P90X. The way they work makes it impossible to get an accurate read on these and they overestimate by a LOT. You can find numerous articles on the subject on google.

NotThePest

Resistance Work, aka Strength Training and Yoga work, DO NOT burn the same calories the short run as Cardio. I'm am currently doing EASA NFL Training Camp (Video Game) and although it is a Circuit type Training like it's sister/brother EASA 2.0 Personal Trainer game, there is a greater emphesis on strength work than Cardio. EASA2.0 has more cardio and focus on leg work then NFL. The calorie burn is almost half of EASA2.0; however, over the long haul the work the body has to do to maintain the muscle created by NFL is causing me weight loss which I'm not really looking for at this time.

Resistance, Stretch, Strength Training Work builds muscle over time and burns calories 24/7 because of the greater muscle bulk; cardio burns calories during the workout; however, not so much after the workout. It's six of one and half a dozen of the other.