polar ft4 - erratic heart rate readings

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keepcalmandnamaste
keepcalmandnamaste Posts: 7
in Fitness and Exercise
hey all,

anyone have any tips (besides the troubleshooting in the manual) for erratic heart rate? for example, in yoga last night, i'd be around 80 bpm during a stretch, then jump do 95 or 100 when i sat up, then it jumped back down again. any ideas for how to prevent this?

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  • erxkeel
    erxkeel Posts: 553 Member
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    Have you tried the Jelly you place underneath the band yet?

    IE: http://www.amazon.com/Parker-Spectra-Electrode-Gram-Tube/dp/B0002CA8RQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=hpc&qid=1309445690&sr=8-1
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,293 Member
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    I'm assuming it is the chest strap moving as you move.
    FYI the calories burned based on your HRM will not be accurate with you HR that low, it is designed to calculate your calories burned at an elevated rate. The calculation embedded assumes you are doing aerobic activity. The HRM will still be a better estimate than most, but for non-cardio it will over estimate your burn.
  • jennmoore3
    jennmoore3 Posts: 1,015 Member
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    Have you tried the Jelly you place underneath the band yet?

    Jelly? I have the same HRM and all it says is to use water...
  • risefromruin
    risefromruin Posts: 483 Member
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    I'm pretty new to HRMs but I have the FT4. Have you made sure to wash the strap with every five uses in the washing machine? That is supposed to help keep it accurate.
  • lil_pulp
    lil_pulp Posts: 701 Member
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    Bumping to read suggestions later.
  • dad106
    dad106 Posts: 4,868 Member
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    Try wetting the electrodes more and washing the strap if you haven't yet. I'd also tighten it and see if that helps.
  • keepcalmandnamaste
    keepcalmandnamaste Posts: 7
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    haven't tried the jelly, don't want to buy it - but i will if i must!
    it's as tight as it can go, unfortunately.

    and should i just turn off my hrm after the aerobic part of each class, then? i mean, when we do vinyasas in between seated poses my heart rate goes up for a bit...
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,293 Member
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    haven't tried the jelly, don't want to buy it - but i will if i must!
    it's as tight as it can go, unfortunately.

    and should i just turn off my hrm after the aerobic part of each class, then? i mean, when we do vinyasas in between seated poses my heart rate goes up for a bit...

    I would still keep it on as you do burn calories, and it is the best estimate that you will get, just be aware that for that part of the workout your HRM will over estimate your burn.

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