Polar FT4 question

freshstart14

Excuse me if this is a dumb question but I am concerned Im overestimating my calories burned.

I just recently got a new polar ft4 hrm, and have never used one before. I followed all the setup instructions and used it a few times, but only at home for short Jillian michaels workouts due to a crazy work schedule. I finally got the chance to wear it to the gym today and I'm concerned it's not working correctly. After just a few minutes jogging on the treadmill I was already above my high "zone" number.

According to the watch my peak should be 167, and while jogging I was already at 180 after only half a mile. I regularly run over a mile including some bursts of faster speed. I held off on that today because the high heart rate made me nervous. I'd assume while sprinting it would be near 200. While I was in the 180s I was winded but definitely not maxed out. I moved to an elliptical and at a medium resistance I was also over 167 for most of the time.

My question is - is this normal or is it malfunctioning? Also, did that lead to an incorrect calculation of calories burned?

Thanks for the help!

freshstart14

Thank you for the help. I will try that if I keep having problems! My main question though is, do you think that the HRM itself is giving an inaccurately high bpm read out? And would that then cause it to report a greater amount of calories burned? I don't even know what's "normal" for my heart rate to be.

thanks!

freshstart14

Hmm.. I do wet it before I put it on and I think it's in the right place.. maybe I just do actually go over the "zone" while working out? I just saw a heart rate in the 180s and assumed it must be wrong.

freshstart14

Just going to bump this once to see if anyone else has had a similar issue.

nikkohli

I am always out of my zone. Right now I am treadmill running because of the weather and I can usually run at level 5.5 and still talk but my HRM says I am out of zone (by about 5 points) at that point. If I move up to 6-6.5 I can't talk as comfortably but can still get some words out and it says I am dangerously high. I don't feel uncomfortably winded so I don't know if it isn't accurate or if I have it set wrong.

freshstart14

I am always out of my zone. Right now I am treadmill running because of the weather and I can usually run at level 5.5 and still talk but my HRM says I am out of zone (by about 5 points) at that point. If I move up to 6-6.5 I can't talk as comfortably but can still get some words out and it says I am dangerously high. I don't feel uncomfortably winded so I don't know if it isn't accurate or if I have it set wrong.

This is exactly what I was talking about. Yesterday I was running at 6.0 and was winded but could definitely still speak pretty normally and my HRM was approaching 190 bpm. I lowered it to 5.5 and felt like I could be doing much more but was still "out of zone" I'm fine with listening to my body and stopping when I feel like I'm overdoing it.. but I'm interested to know if my HRM is still accurately calculating calories burned or if they are inflated.

freshstart14

You can do this, put your HRM on, and take your pulse on your wrist. Count the beats for 10 seconds. if it beats lets say 12 times in 10 seconds, multiply that by 6 (10 sec x 6 = 1 minute) 12 beats * 6 = 108bpm, compare this with your HRM.

I'll definitely try this when I first put on the hrm before the gym today to see if my resting heart rate is even accurate.

freshstart14

Awesome, thanks for all the help!

KellyUK1987

I have the same Polar FT4, and mine says my heart rate should be between 125 and 166. I'm always within the range, sometimes I go over, but that is when I'm not breathing properly whilst exercising.

SpecialSundae

I doubt the high is because your HRM is malfunctioning. It's more likely that you're going above the "peak high" rate that it has assigned to you. Generic max HRs are based on averages rather than your personal physiology. I know that I'm quite comfortable working out in the zone which should theoretically be 90-95% of my MHR. I only start to feel like I'm overdoing it when I'm over 95% of my nominal MHR.

That said, take your HRM burn with a pinch of salt no matter what your fitness level is. It won't ever be bang on.

DyanCB

I use a Polar FT80. I understand your concern as I had the same concerns at first. I thought I was not working out hard enough because the watch constantly rated my in the highest zone. I had to learn that I could workout more efficiently in the lower two zones since I am trying to burn fat. I understand that others want to fool your HRM but I have seen great results simply staying within the zones that the HRM set for me.

BlackJack96

I would bet that the monitor is accurate. There are some cool cell phone apps that use the light plus the camera to get your pulse based on light refraction. You can use this as a double check (or count it as suggested).

Maybe because you are coming from work your heart rate was higher? ALso, did you drink any caffienated beverages?

freshstart14

Maybe because you are coming from work your heart rate was higher? ALso, did you drink any caffienated beverages?

This part actually made me laugh, because I am an accountant in the middle of tax season. Never would it have occurred to me that this could be stress related! haha

jendraka

You should really figure out what your actual zones are based upon your resting rate and so on. The monitor just bases things on your age and doesn't take into account your resting rate and so therefore, doesn't know your heart rate reserve. Since you can manually adjust your zone I'd suggest going here: http://www.active.com/fitness/Articles/Calculate_your_training_heart_rate_zones. You can then input your "zone" for fat burning as the lowest number being pretty much the number you get with the 50% number and the highest number you'd input would be the 85%. You really wouldn't want to go much higher than that, not really due to any perceived strain on the heart if you're healthy, but because at that rate you move into the zone where you can build up lactic acid which can actually burn muscle if at a prolonged period of time. Going past that number at short little bursts isn't bad really, but you wouldn't want to exercise at that rate for extended periods.

WhataBroad

I would suggest that theres nothing wrong with your Polar. I have read posts like this many times so its not unusual. Remember, the equipment assumes everyone is the same but a lot of people actually do have a much higher heart rate while working out. Don't worry too much about it and over time as you fitness level increases, you may see that number drop. Additionally, do the math and set the zones yourself.

fresh_start59

You should really figure out what your actual zones are based upon your resting rate and so on. The monitor just bases things on your age and doesn't take into account your resting rate and so therefore, doesn't know your heart rate reserve. Since you can manually adjust your zone I'd suggest going here: http://www.active.com/fitness/Articles/Calculate_your_training_heart_rate_zones. You can then input your "zone" for fat burning as the lowest number being pretty much the number you get with the 50% number and the highest number you'd input would be the 85%. You really wouldn't want to go much higher than that, not really due to any perceived strain on the heart if you're healthy, but because at that rate you move into the zone where you can build up lactic acid which can actually burn muscle if at a prolonged period of time. Going past that number at short little bursts isn't bad really, but you wouldn't want to exercise at that rate for extended periods.

Interesting article. Thanks for the link! I do want to increase my cardio performance (currently very poor) and lose fat, but don't want to chance losing what little bit of lean body mass I have.

I am very out of shape and unable to sustain a workout at an elevated heart rate. So, I guess for me, it's opposite of the problem than (the other) FreshStart is having with her FT4.