Are HRMs REALLY all that important?

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jeneferphillips89
jeneferphillips89 Posts: 268
in Fitness and Exercise
So I've been looking into the HUGE assortments of HRMs out there and the different reviews and prices. But is it really that important to have one in the first place? I don't mind spending some money on something that is necessary, but I'm still unsure about the fact that this is a vital piece of equipment to help with my weight loss. Do I need one or do I not??? Help please!

Replies

  • JenMc14
    JenMc14 Posts: 2,389 Member
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    I never had one and was able to lose. I did not use the MFP "eat back exercise calories" system, though, when I first lost the bulk of my weight, I factored in a guesstimate and ate within the range provided for me on another site. I did not rely on website calories burned info as gospel.
  • parkscs
    parkscs Posts: 1,639 Member
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    You don't "need" one. You might enjoy having one though.

    You can get an estimate of your exercise calories using MFP or various online calculators, or you could simply calculate your TDEE as more active and not eat back any exercise calories. There's nothing mandatory about a HRM.

    Personally, though, I love mine. I don't do steady state cardio that often, but when I do, I like to keep my HR in a fixed range and a HRM makes it easy to do this and gives me a more accurate estimate of my caloric burn. Is it necessary though? Not at all.
  • FrnkLft
    FrnkLft Posts: 1,821 Member
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    Yeah it's a cool toy and you might enjoy using one (which is great), but there's absolutely no need for one, nor are they important.

    They only accurately measure HR and calories burned while walking/jogging/running, so if you use it for something else you're going to get sloppy numbers.

    A much better way to do things is to monitor your calories and weight loss/gain over a couple weeks. From that you can calculate what your maintenance levels are with regular activity and exercise, and just subtract calories from that to plan your weight loss.

    For instance, when I workout 4 times a week on my program, I average around 2,400 calories/day to maintain my bodyweight.

    So if I eat only 1,900/day (2,400 - 500 cal), I will loose a pound a week. No HRM or guessing necessary.

    On the other hand, right now I'm injured and not working out regularly, so I'm just using conservative estimates of calories burned using the calculators on MFP, and eating back what I burn. It hasn't failed me yet.
  • hearthemelody
    hearthemelody Posts: 1,025 Member
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    I don't have a HRM, but I do have a fitbit and I adore it!

    It is great for encouraging me to be active.
  • ME0172
    ME0172 Posts: 200
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    It was for me. I eat back my cardio calories so I needed to use a HRM to know exactly how many calories I burned during my cardio. Without it I felt like I was guessing. It is what worked for me because I'm someone that will go right up to within 50 calories of my limit.
  • jwdieter
    jwdieter Posts: 2,582 Member
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    I find mine amusing. It's not at all important to my weight loss or weight gain.
  • kend61
    kend61 Posts: 29 Member
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    I lost alot of my weight without one, so its defintely not something you HAVE to have. However, I did hit a plateau and when I got with my current trainer she pushed for me to get one and it has been a huge help. HRM are more reliable than the machines so you can better gauge how hard or easy you are taking it when working out. If you dont plan on trying to workout in specific Heart Rate Zones then I dont think you need one. I love mine, but at same time Im sure I would surive without it. Its just another tool to help you be more efficient in your workouts.
  • leighloh
    leighloh Posts: 25 Member
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    I really want one, but I have managaed to lose weight just fine without one. I just make sure the calories I eat back are within reasonable range of what I burned. Ive lost 12 lbs this month, just by estimating :) though I may need one down the line when it becomes more difficult to lose weight/track calories lost while working out.
    It would be really nice to have one, but they can be so pricey!
  • Greytfish
    Greytfish Posts: 810
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    Yeah it's a cool toy and you might enjoy using one (which is great), but there's absolutely no need for one, nor are they important.

    They only accurately measure HR and calories burned while walking/jogging/running, so if you use it for something else you're going to get sloppy numbers.

    A much better way to do things is to monitor your calories and weight loss/gain over a couple weeks. From that you can calculate what your maintenance levels are with regular activity and exercise, and just subtract calories from that to plan your weight loss.

    For instance, when I workout 4 times a week on my program, I average around 2,400 calories/day to maintain my bodyweight.

    So if I eat only 1,900/day (2,400 - 500 cal), I will loose a pound a week. No HRM or guessing necessary.

    On the other hand, right now I'm injured and not working out regularly, so I'm just using conservative estimates of calories burned using the calculators on MFP, and eating back what I burn. It hasn't failed me yet.

    This.

    It's mostly a toy, unless you're an athlete looking for conditioning information.
  • brianpperkins
    brianpperkins Posts: 6,124 Member
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    Nothing electronic is needed to lose weight. What a HRM can give you is data. They are good for gleaning insight to your conditioning and can help calculate caloric burn from some activities (while nearly worthless for calculating from others). If one is right for you depends on what you plan on doing with it and what data about yourself you're looking for but don't currently have.
  • hearthemelody
    hearthemelody Posts: 1,025 Member
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    Nothing electronic is needed to lose weight. What a HRM can give you is data. They are good for gleaning insight to your conditioning and can help calculate caloric burn from some activities (while nearly worthless for calculating from others). If one is right for you depends on what you plan on doing with it and what data about yourself you're looking for but don't currently have.

    EXCEPT MY FITNESS PAL, PAL!
  • brianpperkins
    brianpperkins Posts: 6,124 Member
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    Nothing electronic is needed to lose weight. What a HRM can give you is data. They are good for gleaning insight to your conditioning and can help calculate caloric burn from some activities (while nearly worthless for calculating from others). If one is right for you depends on what you plan on doing with it and what data about yourself you're looking for but don't currently have.

    EXCEPT MY FITNESS PAL, PAL!

    Millions lose weight without MFP.
  • hearthemelody
    hearthemelody Posts: 1,025 Member
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    JOKE

    goodness.

    People worry too much.
  • jeneferphillips89
    jeneferphillips89 Posts: 268
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    Thanks for the replys everyone :-) I think I'm going to hold out on the HRM. If at some point I feel that I 'need' one then I'll invest in it. Thanks again :-D

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