Heart Rate Monitor

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Hi All,

I am male, 43, 5'9 and weigh 197 pounds. I just started using a HRM. Below is usually what I average for 30-40 minutes.

AVG. HEART RATE 173
MAX. HEART RATE 194

For my age, my max heart rate is 169-178. Literature says you should not keep this rate for long periods of time. As you can see above I ran for about 40 minutes at those rates. I wasn't breathing hard or overexerting myself.(IMO)

Should I have slowed down? I probably would have been walking then. Does this show that my cardiovascular fitness needs improvement and until my body adjusts that I should exercise at a lower level? Thanks

Replies

  • kenuk1
    kenuk1 Posts: 64 Member
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    Everyone of us are slightly different, have you measured your resting heart rate? (First thing on a morning, 2 fingers on pulse and count for 60 secs, average this over 3 days)

    Have you checked your HRM against an actual measurement at resting?

    I guess you've been doing a steady jog? I've 5 11, 40 years and roughly same weight, over a 50 minute jog I averaged 148 on my HRM as a comparison. This was running at a fairly steady 05:52 min/km

    Just do a couple of checks, of course you shouldn't be exercising in the red, but, guidelines dnt give you the true reading of each individual, if in any doubt about your heart rate, go see the doc for advice.
  • CWART1
    CWART1 Posts: 3 Member
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    Thanks... Yes I have tested it with my resting heart rate. It was within one beat of what I got taking manual pulse for 60 seconds. I will keep an eye on things and track it some more. My main goal is to lose fat so if I need to slow down to get my heart rate down in a better zone I will do that. I am hopeful that as I get fitter my heart rate will level out and I'll see progress.