Got HRM - Now what??

nichojanes

I have got myself a HRM as a lot of people say that this helps to get in the correct zone for exercise. My wife had one at home that she bought when she used to run but it has not been used much.

What should I be aiming for? My resting heart rate was about 50 bpm yesterday and I understand that this is below the average as I am 33 years old, although I found online that small people tend to have faster heart rates but as I am 6'7" I assume that this means I should expect to have a slower resting rate.

What should I be aiming for with this and how should it be used when I go running?

Also I remember from school something about recovery rates. Can anyone give me some info about this aswell.
Thanks

MrsAFR

Its funny you posted this as I am just looking into it myself - will be interested to hear replies!

langurmonkey

This link tells you a lot about the zones.

http://www.3-fitness.com/tarticles/zones.htm

I think zone 2 (130 - 145 BPM for me) is good for doing lots of time running. It's a nice comfy speed, you have to slow right down on hills though. It's the zone for building a good base for doing other stuff, so is the most useful in general fitness.

Zone 1 feels weird.

Zone 3 probably good for half hour or so - not done much in this zone.

If you are race training then worry about 4 and 5 otherwise don't bother.

Swissmiss

Actually, the lower your resting heart rate is...the better.

To find your maximum subtract your age from 220.

Multiply that by .9 will give you 90%.
Multiply by .8 for 80%
Multiply by .7 for 70%

220-33= 187
90% 168.3
80% 149.6
70% 130.9

It depends on what you want your exercises to do as to which percentage you go for.
90% is good for cardio but don't stay there too long.
80% is something that you should strive for for about an hour.
Etc...

I hope that this helps you. Don't try for max unless you are in really good shape.
Just a reminder....check with your doctor before beginning any exercise program.

a_new_dawn

I've recently bought a hrm, and i love it...it gives me extra motivation to "beat" yesterdays burn lol. The first thing you need to do it set it to monitor your personal target heart rate, especially if you are planning to use it to accurately keep track of calories burned. I googled "target heart rate" and found a few sites that will guide you into finding out these figures based on you inputting your resting heart rate, age, etc.

stick all this info into the watch and away you go!

ps a decent quality HRM is essential, preferably one with a chest strap. I have a polar and its great...but the sportsline solo watch only version i had before that was rubbish!

I have a RHR of 50 also.