Are HRM worth the money?

Options
2»

Replies

  • janf15
    janf15 Posts: 242 Member
    Options
    I don't understand why people are using the calorie burner on their HRM when there is a calorie burner on this site. It confuses the heck out of people to use both (as seen by the many discussions here). Your heart rate and MFP WILL be different because the formula to calculate the calorie spent within the soft ware is different.

    Someone said " find MFP and the equipment at the gym to be over-generous about calorie burn" - my response - if you look long enough you will find software who gives you numbers you want to hear.

    I think HR monitors are very useful to determine what zone you are in when you do cardio. I frequently train in the aerobic zone (some will incorrectly label it fat burning one) which has altered my metabolism. a lot. You are not burning fat but you are using fat as your main source of fuel (different story).

    I use the Karvonen's formula - http://www.briancalkins.com/HeartRate.htm and I will do a lot of running in the 65% of max HR. It will require a lot of self discipline but it pays off because you are running faster and faster over time. (The spread sheet is my witness). I just heard on a podcast from 'trainingbible.com' if you run the same pace when you are training as your event .... you are training too hard.

    I know they are more expensive - but I would suggest you get a Garmin or Polar with a GPS so you can really analyze what you are doing from a cardio perspective - compare and contrast. Both brand often comes with a foot pod and a cadence monitor so you can use it on the bike and running. (The fancier one you can swim with as well).
  • jasonheyd
    jasonheyd Posts: 524 Member
    Options
    very worthwhile...once i got one i realized i hadn't even been getting into the fat burning zone on the elliptical...

    That's the key right there... If you want to make sure your exercise is effective, an HRM is the best way to go.

    With that said, if you're just looking for exercise to keep yourself active, and you're not doing enough exercise that you want to make sure you "eat back" some of the calories you've burned, then you may be able to do without the HRM.


    I agree with everyone on here who's voting yes, but there is a "manual" method for guesstimating whether you're "in the zone" for exercise, too. See http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/exercise-intensity/SM00113 for some info.
  • DavPul
    DavPul Posts: 61,406 Member
    Options
    I'm going to be the bad guy here and say NO. An emphatic no. I gave serious thought to buying one earlier in the year, and decided it really wasn't going to give any info that I didn't already have. I already have a "close enough" measure for my calories burned, and for all the HRM are awesome talk on these boards, the readings you will get from a HRM are the same "close enough" variety.

    For starters, the calories burned shown by your HRM is not your actual calories, it's based on an algorithm. Essentially that means it's a best guess. Many HRMs will take your height, weight and sex into account, but without knowing your actual bodyfat %, the output isn't accurate. The calories your body burns is different depending on if you're doing a body weight supporting exercise like running or hiking than if you sitting down on a bike. That's why the algorithm built into a treadmill's calories burned reading is different from the one used on a recumbent bicycle, even if your heart rate is in the same zone. And even then, it's still based on what an average person would burn on that type of machine. The further you get from the median, whether you are taller than average, or shorter, or more or less physically fit, the further the reading is from what you actually did.

    Just so I'm clear, while I'm sure an HRM gives you a very accurate reading of your actual heart rate, I believe the calories burned info is not nearly as accurate as people on this site believe. Just spend a day counting the "Help, I'm getting a strange reading on my HRM" topics that get posted on this site seemingly every 20 mins and you'll see that even people that bought models they trust but get readings that don't pass the smell test.

    Also, while I love technology and you'd swear my Android phone is surgically attached to my hand, I just don't believe in spending any money I don't have to. You can get in shape without buying fancy equipment for your home, without paying for a gym membership or personal trainer, with $150 shoes, and without $100 worth of HRM and chest straps.
  • taxidermist15
    taxidermist15 Posts: 677 Member
    Options
    I picked up a polar ft4 for $40 online. $6 shipping.. pretty good if i dont say
    You can get new balance duo for like $20 online too, but i dont know how they fair compared to polars and garmins (which seem to be the most popular on this site0
  • Fit_Canuck
    Fit_Canuck Posts: 788 Member
    Options
    Yes and Yes!!! Get a Polar FT4 like others have suggested, amazing product.
  • Darkskinned88
    Darkskinned88 Posts: 1,177 Member
    Options
    I still don't own one...i've gone either my the machine i'm using, or taking about 250-300 cals off whatever MFP says it is (they overestimate ALOT).
  • Proverbs31Lady
    Proverbs31Lady Posts: 12
    Options
    It's absolutely worth it to me. Now that I know how many calories I'm burning, I'm trying to beat myself... I think how many more calories can I burn if I go just another 3, 4, 5 minutes, etc. The whole thing is much more satisfying, seeing something immediately for the hard work I did.

    They can be expensive which is why I stalked eBay. I got a new $100 model for less than $30 with shipping.
  • rm830
    rm830 Posts: 531 Member
    Options
    $70 for my polar ft7, best money spent!! It really helps if you want to stay accurate on your diary and especially if you eat your exercise calories. Mfp way overestimates calories burned
  • hopeandlove91
    hopeandlove91 Posts: 40 Member
    Options
    Yes! But I would recommend on with the chest strap. I have found mine with the chest strap is much more accurate than mine without the chest strap.
  • tnqnt
    tnqnt Posts: 397 Member
    Options
    All day long.
    My Polar FT60 serves as a coach, a tracking mechanism, a goal ....
    it is worth EVERY cent!
  • tnqnt
    tnqnt Posts: 397 Member
    Options
    It's absolutely worth it to me. Now that I know how many calories I'm burning, I'm trying to beat myself... I think how many more calories can I burn if I go just another 3, 4, 5 minutes, etc. The whole thing is much more satisfying, seeing something immediately for the hard work I did.

    EXACTLY :) I totally agree!! :):):)
  • Rumpenissen
    Rumpenissen Posts: 20 Member
    Options
    All day long.
    My Polar FT60 serves as a coach, a tracking mechanism, a goal ....
    it is worth EVERY cent!

    I have the same model. I love the training program feature. Just knowing the thing is tracking me motivates me to train more. :-D
  • tnqnt
    tnqnt Posts: 397 Member
    Options
    All day long.
    My Polar FT60 serves as a coach, a tracking mechanism, a goal ....
    it is worth EVERY cent!

    I have the same model. I love the training program feature. Just knowing the thing is tracking me motivates me to train more. :-D

    It has made such a difference in my WANTING to go to the gym and work out... its truly amazing. I honestly feel it is as important to fitness as keeping a diary is to nutrition. :)
  • WildcatMom82
    WildcatMom82 Posts: 564 Member
    Options
    I think so definitely. I find the info a lot more accurate and what I burn (according to the HRM) is vastly different from what the machines said. Plus now I workout mostly at home and don't have to guess how much I'm burning, especially since it can be different each time I do the same workout depending on how hard I push.
  • MrNoisy
    MrNoisy Posts: 69 Member
    Options
    I think they are. Once I started using one on my cardio days and hitting my target zone, I noticed a difference in my physique was occurring more rapidly.

    Of course I also hate the damn thing at the same time. Stop beeping!! Always forcing me to try harder to keep it quiet... ><
  • fatchiick
    fatchiick Posts: 105
    Options
    You don't have to get an expensive one, I've had a couple, one broke and the other I haven't seen in about a year... so if I were to buy another one it would be for my own decadence... because honestly when I had one it was nice knowing I had to push myself a little more, it was nice seeing the amount of work I had accomplished... but overall it didn't "help" I'm a slow loser... rather I pushed myself or not, id plateau that's why I've always quit.. I'm comfortable now being a slow loser, I always push myself... so a watch really wouldn't matter and wouldn't get things going any faster... but its rewarding mentally just to see what you've accomplished. But I've learned how much the watch says I burned, means nothing really other than I burned it lol...
  • scottb81
    scottb81 Posts: 2,538 Member
    Options
    If you use it to gauge your exercise intensity it's worth it. If you only use it to count calories then it's not worth it because as others have said it only gives you an estimate that may or may not be any more accurate than the estimates given by this site.
  • spartacus69
    spartacus69 Posts: 235
    Options
    I'm going to be the bad guy here and say NO. An emphatic no.

    ---

    Just so I'm clear, while I'm sure an HRM gives you a very accurate reading of your actual heart rate, I believe the calories burned info is not nearly as accurate as people on this site believe.


    One could even look at the research (28% overestimation of calorie burn in one study) but believers are gonna believe.

    http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21178923

Categories