Did getting an HRM bring about a change in your habits?

my eating habits were great before I even bought a HRM but yes using one changed my habits. I would push harder to keep myself in my zone and sometimes I'd go longer just because I was only 10 calories from the next 100 or whatever and it was nice to see the actual #'s and I like being able to base my food for the day based on how hard I worked out. Extra treats for extra working out!

BEST PIECE OF FITNESS EQUIPMENT EVER!!

Great question! I've been toying with the idea of getting one so I'm interested in the responses!

Same here

It didn't change my eating habit as I had MFP for that for monitoring. However, my exercising was definitely affected. I can't lie to myself anymore that I was going as hard as I possibly could. Now my HRM gives me a true reading of how hard I am working and whether or not I am hitting my target zone. It holds me accountable.

Getting a heart rate monitor gave me a more realistic idea of the calories I was burning as opposed to the estimates given by the gym machines. It's extremely helpful in showing you whether or not you are working hard enough to be burning fat effectively. The HRM I have has you enter in your resting heart rate (well, takes it while your at rest) and then uses that along with your age and weight to determine the zone at which your heart rate should be. I love it. However, mine doesn't have a chest band so I don't believe it to be 100% accurate, I have to put my finger tips on the face for it to essentially take my pulse and calculate my heart rate so it's only as effective as the frequency at which I press my fingers to it, so I do it about every 5 minutes. But I find the chest bands distracting so I'm ok with that.

Has a HRM changed my eating habits? no. It's changed my workout habits.

Absolutely. I find myself pushing myself harder on each workout. Like someone else mentioned, if I am around say 380 cals burned, I will push it to get past 400. Also, it's kind of like driving, in that the faster you drive, the faster the odometer turns. The harder you push yourself and raise your heartrate, the more cals are burned per minute and it is easily monitored. Plus, MUCH more accurate than the gym equipment or MFP's data base.

With my HRM I know when my fitness level has changed. I know when I am not working out hard enough, and I know when to push it and when to slow it down. I also try to burn a certain amount of calories when I work out, and found out that the MFP numbers were not accurate for me. I don't like to exercise without it because like I said, I try to burn a certain amount of calories.

Getting a HRM has definitely changed how I work out. And really, how I eat. Actually knowing more accurately how many calories I burn in my work out, fuels me to push harder and work out longer. I find myself wanting to beat my own records for working out..... challenging myself to do better. I can also see how if my "head" isn't in it, it reflects in how many calories i burn during my workout.

And knowing what I know about working out, the effort it takes to burn even just 200calories has kept me more focused on what i eat than before! If i wanna splurge and eat a treat.... I know almost exactly what it takes to work that treat off..... keeping me from binging on food my body doesn't need!


So, yeah, I totally love my HRM. It is helping me change my life to be healthier!

Like someone else said, if it's 330, I go ahead and go for 350, or 400. It pushes me to do more.

Exactly the same as me.
As I've gotten fitter it's harder to get my heart rate up but before I had my HRM I wasn't aware as much of my rate dropping.

It really means I burn more and i don't work out without it now.

My Polar FT7 changed my workout habits. I keep going when I am near a landmark number. It also makes me put more effort into my workouts. When I am having a lazy day I check my watch and see that I've burned less calories than the day before, I step it up. As my fitness level changes I can make sure I am burning the amount of calories I want to for the day.

Yes! When I used it at the beginning of my weight loss journey I wouldn't quit working out until I had burned 500 calories. Later I used it track my mileage when I ran. I like to use it when I do HIIT training to really keep an eye on my heart rate.

I bought my HRM (Polar FT4) about a week into my weight loss/exercise initiative. After reading so many posts about them, and thinking that I really wanted to know exactly what I was burning with my cardio, snow shoveling, drumming, etc.; as opposed to "guessing" via online averages and database reports. I knew my Xbox Your Shape game was definitely reporting my calories burned on the low side, and once I started using the HRM, I discovered it was off by a lot more than I thought.

I didn't have a lot of habits to change since I bought the HRM so early on, but it is definitely really good to see exactly what I am burning while working out, and doing other activities.

Can someone give me some suggestions on brands with a chest strap to look into?

Polar FT4 has a strap, easy to use (needs to be moistened first though or it doesn't register!) the strap can be washed and entire unit can be used while swimming or doing water aerobics so that's a plus! Reasonable too - avg price I found on/offline was about $80 before taxes and/or shipping.

My HRM keeps me honest about my workouts. No lying to myself that I worked really hard today. . . my effort shows in my calorie burn. I have a Polar F4 and find it very motivating. I don't want to do a DVD workout and find that I burned less calories this time than the last time I did it.

I don't think it's necessary to be successful. However, I know that I need frequent motivation and that is provided by MFP and my HRM.

It has kept me honest about my calorie burns - which in the end impacts what i eat. A bigger thing for me has been seeing the change in my HR over time. Since I've lost 20 pounds and gotten more cardio strength, it takes so much more effort to get my HR where I need it. My perceived effort is much higher than the readout, so I know my heart is healthier!