Heart rate monitor
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dana2714
Posts: 13 Member
Can anyone recommend a heart rate monitor that I can use while lifting weights? I would really like an accurate one.
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Replies
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I have a MIO fuse (no chest strap) I find it easy and accurate0
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Most heart rate monitors do not work well or accurately with weightlifting. They are designed for steady state cardio and many of the changes in heart rate during lifting are not caused by cadio based changes, but by changes in interabdominal pressure and other influences that don't correlate to how fast your heart is actually beating (how much cadio based work it's doing)
That said, I use a Polar Bluetooth monitor with a chest strap on days that I'm not benching.
*edited to add: I just like to collect data points and then do science to them.0 -
I am looking for one to track calories. My employer is giving us a fitness incentive ($50 towards a fitness device) and was just wondering what to get. I am very skeptic about the Fitbit.0
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You might consider a chest strap that pairs with your phone, depending on what you lift a watch may get in the way. I've got a fenix3 that I absolutely love but I wouldn't want it on when I do certain strength exercises and I really only use it for cardio. If it's not optical you could just put a watch based unit in a pocket when needed. Hope you find a good one!0
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I am looking for one to track calories. My employer is giving us a fitness incentive ($50 towards a fitness device) and was just wondering what to get. I am very skeptic about the Fitbit.
Be skeptic of the fitbit. I had Fitbit Charge (non HRM version although the watch itself is the exact same except the HRM piece) and went through three of them in the past year. The last one lasted 6 months... The hardware (watch band it self) has many design flaws such as the band comes apart and the side button falls off... Fitbit does have the best app for weight loss (I am no longer loosing weight so I can use the calories in/out that Garmin uses for my daily beneft).
I ditched it and went with Garmin Vivosmart. Depending on your needs, I really do love this one a lot better. I do use a soft strap HRM with my garmin and really do love it and have no issues with wearing the soft strap during all of my cardio and weight lifting activities.
My daughter uses the vivofit (no HRM) and really loves this one (she has the large size and wears it on her ankle)...
edited to add: MFP will state the calorie burn during weight lifting does not matter or is not relevant (which is all good) however, I do use the calories it gives me to log it as an activity that did last more than 30 minutes up to an hour.. I still record it as an activity and choose not to eat any calories back, etc.. FOr weight lifting your diet is different any ways depending if cutting or bulking..
Even the calorie burn for cardio will never be 100% accurate using HRM...
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No commercial device accurately tracks caloric burn from lifting.0
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Polar M400 has profiles, one for strength training, get your heart rate when paired with a chest strap. I have a V800 and use that profile when I'm lifting, it doesn't give me an outrageous calorie burn, not to much more than my BMR.0
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Can anyone recommend a heart rate monitor that I can use while lifting weights? I would really like an accurate one.
There's no such thing. Using an HRM for that kind of activity is the calorie tracking equivalent of living in a state of mortal sin, and you will get ridiculously over-estimated numbers. Unless you're in really really bad shape - in which case it'll over-estimate even worse.
If you absolutely *have* to use a number, put down 150 calories an hour.
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I certainly had a loss of faith in heart rate monitors tonight. I normally use kettlebells which gives about 95% max and 80% average of calculated maximum heart rate and the PT4 & standard math models give the close to the same result. Tonight I did some steady state low intensity cardio as a recovery activity (way less energy than kettlebells). The calorie burn given by the PT4 < spreadsheet < MFP (significantly). The dreadmill which does not know my weight or age was amazingly neither highest or lowest reported calories burned! I used the lowest number from the PT4.
The lesson learned is be vary wary of the calorie burns that you find in MFP and heart rate monitors, especially if you are eating those carbs back since no two are alike and you will probably be over eating. I thought that heart rate monitors were for steady state cardio, but got more divergence than with intervals (HIIT) which as an aside I am firmly convinced burn more calories than steady state.
As for long rest between sets lifting, I agree that the HRM is probably of little of no value. Interesting. Let the user beware.0 -
I certainly had a loss of faith in heart rate monitors tonight. ... The calorie burn given by the PT4 < spreadsheet < MFP (significantly). The dreadmill which does not know my weight or age was amazingly neither highest or lowest reported calories burned! I used the lowest number from the PT4.
The lesson learned is be vary wary of the calorie burns that you find in MFP and heart rate monitors
You've been extolling your FT4s accuracy for activities it probably isn't anywhere near accurate for, and now you want to dismiss it outright because the number it gave you is lower than two other sources?
That makes no sense.
I trust my Garmin for steady state cardio calorie burn estimates - for running - precisely because it usually is the lower of all estimates.
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I am looking for one to track calories. My employer is giving us a fitness incentive ($50 towards a fitness device) and was just wondering what to get. I am very skeptic about the Fitbit.
Heart rate is not a reliable indicator of calorie expenditure in resistance training or circuit type training, there is no reliable consumer device that'll help.
With respect to step tracking, I'd share a degree of skepticism around their usefulness, but that depends very much on your lifestyle and how you're motivated. Mine doesn't tell me much I didn't know already, I sit in meetings a lot but when I run I take a lot of steps. I'm not motivated to go out and randomly walk just to hit a daily target, because I'm a fairly serious runner, equally it doesn't credit me with time on my bike, so it's not fully representative of what's going on. All that said, it is another feed of data, which adds to the whole picture.
Just don't wear something designed for the wrist, on the ankle.
I use a Garmin for running and cycling. Mostly the calorie information comes from the distance that I've covered, rather than the HR data. I use the HR data to inform my training, rather than anything else.0 -
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I think you missed my point. I don't dismiss it. Your heart rate goes up as you do more work so it is telling you something. My surprise was in the variance in an activity that it is supposed to be the most accurate for. I'll still use it, just conservatively when it comes to eating back the calories.
The whole MFP thing has been very useful to me. Even with all the measurement errors in counting both calories in and out, it is better than the "I don't eat that much" that let my weight creep up.
The nay sayers are probably right about the difficulty of accurately measuring calorie burn from HIIT, intervals and circuit training but I like what they do for my conditioning better.
It's not that I don't understand what running does for you. Back in the days of the running craze (remember Jin Fixx) I was fully addicted to running. Needs change with age. Now, maintaining strength and work capacity are more important to me. Steady state cardio does less to address those needs which is my primary reason for the change in how I exercise.
It would be nice to be able to accurately measure calorie burn, especially for the kind of exercise that I find most efficient. In the end, long term results is the best measure and what matters.0 -
I think you missed my point. I don't dismiss it. Your heart rate goes up as you do more work so it is telling you something.
Absolutely - it is telling you your heart rate went up.
The problem is one of modelling. Algorithms for calorie expenditure based on HR info alone can only go so far. When you are lifting kettlebells the watch doesn't know that. If it is aware of movement (via GPS or accelerometer) it doesn't see you moving much. The device might know your age and weight but weight doesn't factor much into the calculation for lifting.
For running you've got movement (distance) and velocity (pace) and heart rate and age and weight - more variables making for a more robust estimate due to the algorithms developed and tested against various population groups.My surprise was in the variance in an activity that it is supposed to be the most accurate for.
You seemed to be surprise there was variance between the device, MFP, and some other source. Why?
Be surprised if you run the same distance on a treadmill at the same pace for the same length of time at the same general heart rate after having warmed up the same, and your device gives you wildly varying results. From what you've reported, this wasn't the case.
If my Garmin running GPS watch gives me a 10% variance one day to the next for an outdoor run I think nothing of it. Individual variability and run-time specifics can easily account for this. That said I've seen remarkably repeatable results with very little variance.I'll still use it, just conservatively when it comes to eating back the calories. The whole MFP thing has been very useful to me. Even with all the measurement errors in counting both calories in and out, it is better than the "I don't eat that much" that let my weight creep up.
Using the calorie intake tracking and any method of gaining a sense of your activity is a good thing. We should just not expect perfection and then we won't be disappointed! Ultimately the scale tells us how good our various approaches for estimates are working, as you have pointed out elsewhere. If the scale creeps up, adjust!It's not that I don't understand what running does for you. Back in the days of the running craze (remember Jin Fixx) I was fully addicted to running. Needs change with age.
That's not what this, or your other, discussion are about! Some of us have merely been pointing out what HRMs are good at and what they aren't good at doing. Running happens to be one of the things they are good at providing accurate-enough feedback on.
What every chest-mounted heart rate monitor is good at: telling you your heart rate.
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Thanks, that is of course what I expected it to do and what I bought it for. The surprise was the wide delta in calories calculated with the same heart rate and different tools. Wider with steady state than intervals. That I didn't expect. As you say don't expect too much accuracy. Since my focus at this time is fast loss I'll use a reduced number for easy back.0
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Thank everyone who took their time to answer. I did my share of running( a few halfs some biathlons) before getting pregnant. After having my daughter (4 months ago) I returned to the gym and started lifting. I love it. There is no doubt in my mind that the calorie burn has to be decent while lifting and I guess I just wanted to see how much.0
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There is no doubt in my mind that the calorie burn has to be decent while lifting and
I'm with Mr Knight on that one, c 150-200 cals per hour. You're moving relatively small weights relatively short distances, and doing a lot of waiting around between sets.
Personally I don't count resistance training calories at all, they're just not worth it.
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I am looking at Garmin vivofit 2 bundle. Any thoughts on it?0
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