How "smart" are HRMs?

anastasiaBH
anastasiaBH Posts: 268 Member
edited September 26 in Fitness and Exercise
I recently purchased a new HRM (polar FT 4), and I've used it for four of my workouts so far (love it, by the way, for those who ask about HRMs). My question is probably a technical one.... does anyone know how "smart" this little device is? I'm wondering if it knows to adjust the calories burned based on whether you're at the high end or low end of your target HR zone? Or does it just recognize that you're in the zone and the calories burned is the same....

For example, my target HR zone is 116 to 160 (I upped the top number myself from 151).

I did 90 minutes of yoga today, so my HR was hovering around the low end of my range; in fact, my average was 107, max HR was 148. I was within my target zone for approx. 32 minutes.

Last Saturday, I did a 3.5 mile run walk, 45 minutes, mostly running, with an avg heart rate of 142, max of 171, in the target zone for approx. 23 minutes. Obviously, relative to yoga, I worked up a much better sweat here....

Is the HRM going to calculate calories burned at the same rate for both of these exercises, even though the average HR for yoga is significantly lower?

I'm really just trying to educate myself, more than anything.... I've been doing P90X for a few years, combined with walking / running, and this is the first time I've actually measured calories burned.

Thanks!

Replies

  • MrsZMartin
    MrsZMartin Posts: 165 Member
    Great question. I'm curious about the answer as well....
  • JesaGrace
    JesaGrace Posts: 799 Member
    me too...
  • Trafty024
    Trafty024 Posts: 57 Member
    Not going to be a ton of help because I don't have anything to back this up...but I was under the assumption that was the whole point of an HRM that calculates calories. That it IS smart enough to adjust calories burned based on your heart rate (and the data you enter regarding your weight, height, etc).

    Again, since I don’t have any concrete data to back myself up – other than I don’t know why it wouldn’t do it that way - I’ll be interested in hearing other responses.
  • ukhennin
    ukhennin Posts: 221 Member
    There is a forum over at http://forum.polar.fi/ and I would probably ask this over there. They'll should have someone that can answer this for you.
  • anastasiaBH
    anastasiaBH Posts: 268 Member
    Yeah, I tried to register over there once I got the HRM...... had a "technical" issue with their site not recognizing my email... not offering a space to create a username.... then sending emails with two passwords about 2 hrs later..... curse words flying about.... etc. Will probably ask it there, too, and I'll share if I learn anything useful!
  • anastasiaBH
    anastasiaBH Posts: 268 Member
    :smile:
    Not going to be a ton of help because I don't have anything to back this up...but I was under the assumption that was the whole point of an HRM that calculates calories. That it IS smart enough to adjust calories burned based on your heart rate (and the data you enter regarding your weight, height, etc).

    Again, since I don’t have any concrete data to back myself up – other than I don’t know why it wouldn’t do it that way - I’ll be interested in hearing other responses.

    Yep, I know that's the point of an HRM, but my question relates to the rate of burn, I know it's different if you're at the low end vs. the high end of your range, but more to my point, does the HRM recognize that? Does it register a difference if your average HR is 107 vs avg of 142.... I posted my question on polar, we'll see what happens!!

    And my tech savvy continues, I think I messed up this post.... Happy Thursday
  • TrainerRobin
    TrainerRobin Posts: 509 Member
    Sorry that this is going to make me sound like the lawyer I am, but the real answer is "it depends."

    It depends upon the heart rate monitor you are using. In this competitive field (especially when you add in the GPS HRMs coming onto the market), different manufacturers/monitors are using different methods of calculating your calorie burn.

    A couple of basic rules are:
    Other than a few models, very few use your ACTUAL heart rate to calculate your calories burned. For those that do, yes -- the calorie reading varies depending upon the intensity of your actual heart rate during exercise.
    None of the models (that I know of) are effective when used in a non-cardio state. So keep your HR up there, for a good reading.
  • Lacey34
    Lacey34 Posts: 25 Member
    I have a Polar F6, and it definitely calculates calories based on your heart rate- the higher the rate the faster you burn.
  • callipygianchronicle
    callipygianchronicle Posts: 811 Member
    Here's a pretty detailed post that may answer your question:
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/Azdak/view/the-real-facts-about-hrms-and-calories-what-you-need-to-know-before-purchasing-an-hrm-or-using-one-21472
  • anastasiaBH
    anastasiaBH Posts: 268 Member
    That is great info, thank you!

    here's the reply I received on the polar forums:

    ... you will absolutely see a correlation between ascending HR and ascending Calories burned. This is dependent upon your specific User Settings. Those models which include the Fitness Test "OwnIndex" Feature (VO2Max approximation value) this too is used in the Calories burned calculation.
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