HRM Question - When do you stop yours?

vikesfanmb

Along the lines of HRMs, I'm in the market for one--Which HRM do you recommend? What should I look for when I buy mine?

Love my Polar FT7, wife has the FT4 and honestly can't tell the difference, check on amazon.com much cheaper!

I bought the New Balance N4 Pearl, It's for woman and I love it!! I just got it at target the other day and I enjoy using it, it seem to be very accurate and it has the chest straps that fits, I was worried they wouldn't but it does and it is not bulky and ugly

I have the same HRM. And I LOVE it! It is so easy to use and not bulky and the chest strap is barely noticeable when you're exercising. I even use mine in the pool.

And by the way, I usually stop mine once my heart rate gets under 100.

ShannonMpls

I stop mine right away... after my last stride, pedal stroke, rep, etc.

This. Sometimes I'll wait until I've cleaned the machine but that's only when I've forgotten.

Mandyw58

I usually stop mine after exercise. That includes cool-down if I'm still moving around (like a walking after a run). I like to look at my average heart rate during exercise so I try not to let it run too long when my heart rate isn't elevated.

skylark94

I start mine when I start my 5 minute warmup and stop it before I cool down.

catbrand

FWIW...

I have seen in other posts that HRMs that calculate calories burned assume higher O2 burns that only occur during phyisical activity. That being true, allowing your HRM to run when you aren't at a typical exercise exertion will overestimate calories burned.

Granted, the over estimation is probably minor, but we all bought these things to get a more accurate count of calories burned, right?

If you want to let the HRM run after you finish your workout, let your breathing be the determining factor in when you turn it off... not a somewhat arbitrary HR number.

Ahh... Scientific...

While that is true (even though I won't pretend to understand it completely :embarassed: ) I'm also sure that the body does burn calories at an elevated rate for a short while after exercise, so surely using your HR as an indicator as when to stop the HRM is just as good since it's never going to be precise anyway, a HM is just the best estimate we can get. I only say this because I could be walking at a slow pace, not elevating my breathing, but still raising my heartrate above 100 and burning calories.

Love your signature by the way!

c7eat2live

Same as you, when I get down to 100

aippolito1

If I'm doing cardio on a machine at the gym, I stop when I stop. If I'm lifting, I stretch afterwards and then stop it once I'm done stretching. Same thing for my strength routine at home. Stretch, THEN stop it.

love22step

I check mine and note the time and calories expended as soon as I finish my exercise. I don't turn it off until my heart rate gets back to normal (below 75, for me). I don't actually use the calorie number, because it's always higher than the MFP charts. (If I don't have higher numbers, I don't feel obligated to eat more. So far, so good.) Because I'm older (just shy of 60), I do feel obligated to monitor my heart rate during exercise. I tend to work near or a little above my calculated maximum heart rate. I hope that's okay, because it feels okay, and I want to work as hard as I can.

CNParker

I stop mine when my HR drops to 110ish or I get to the car.

annameier8706

I've been letting mine go until my HR gets within 10 of where I started, but I'm going to start hitting my lap button the minute I'm done with my cool down to see exactly how much I'm burning while moving and how much I'm burning while my HR drops.

koosdel

I stop mine when it reads an impressive burn. Sometimes, this will be several hours after the actual workout but at least I get to eat more that way.

And it looks impressive in my food and excersize diary.