Heart Rate Monitors

Leola2011
Leola2011 Posts: 192
edited October 2 in Health and Weight Loss
Is a HRM necessary for tracking workouts/progress? What are the pros and cons?

Replies

  • trud72
    trud72 Posts: 1,912 Member
    not necessary but helpful if you want a exact calorie burn x
  • d2footballJRC
    d2footballJRC Posts: 2,684 Member
    They are necessary to track strength training, and they are much more accurate on cardio. It's calories burnt are based on your heart rate. I find my HRM is usually a couple hundred calories burnt higher then MFP over a workout period of 1 hr plus. Ex. yesterday MFP had my total exercise at 1444 calories and my HRM had a higher calorie burnt count. It's also nice to have to know when you are getting to your target heart rate and getting the best work out. I found out I wasn't pushing myself hard enough on the recumbent bike. It allowed me to adjust my work out.
  • dad106
    dad106 Posts: 4,868 Member
    Not necessary... but like the other poster said, nice if you want a more accurate calorie estimation.

    I find that since having mine, I've become more of a numbers junkie.. which could be either good or bad :)
  • MissMaryMac33
    MissMaryMac33 Posts: 1,433 Member
    If you're trying to track calories burned and want to be accurate, then yes -- a good one with a chest strap.
    Good means you have the ability to program yours stats into the watch. (age, height , max hr v0smax etc)

    Everything else is just a guess.
  • vlc1979
    vlc1979 Posts: 227
    I love mine so I know if I need to go faster or slow down a little. I also love mine b/c I am a little crazy and need to see for myself what kicking my butt looks like for calories burned. I work harder b/c I want to see more calories gone.
  • ShannonMpls
    ShannonMpls Posts: 1,936 Member
    Calories aside, my HRM is a serious motivator for me. Based on my average and peak heartrate, I know when I'm working hard enough to be effective and when I'm slacking and need to put in more effort.

    It's not necessary but it's a helpful tool.
  • MissMaryMac33
    MissMaryMac33 Posts: 1,433 Member
    They are necessary to track strength training, and they are much more accurate on cardio. It's calories burnt are based on your heart rate. I find my HRM is usually a couple hundred calories burnt higher then MFP over a workout period of 1 hr plus. Ex. yesterday MFP had my total exercise at 1444 calories and my HRM had a higher calorie burnt count. It's also nice to have to know when you are getting to your target heart rate and getting the best work out. I found out I wasn't pushing myself hard enough on the recumbent bike. It allowed me to adjust my work out.

    LOL whatever you do please don't compare your burn numbers to a man....
    I can't think of anything I could do in 1 hour that would burn anything close to that --- let alone half of that.
    It also makes a difference how much weight you have to lose.... you will burn more if you are heavier and less if you are trying to lose that last 10 pounds.
  • mallorybriann
    mallorybriann Posts: 1,380 Member
    My HRM is a life saver. Best 80$ I ever spent.
    I would highly recommend one. The machines and MFP over and underestimate calories burned during workouts.
    I love my Polar FT4. Any one that has a chest strap and shows calories burned. Not all show cals burned.
  • sisa2324
    sisa2324 Posts: 164 Member
    Con-interference from electronics can cause HUGE discrepancies in heart rate and therefore in calories burned. Mine gets interference from treadmill, cell phone, tv, pretty much anything. But it's great for outside.
  • JamesonsMommy
    JamesonsMommy Posts: 771 Member
    I saw a ton on clearance at my local target (i'm pretty sure all targets are having this sale) There was a ton of other exercise items on clearance.. Couldn't justify spending the money since i already spend enough on a gym membership.. Adding a HRM to my christmas gift list... Going to make things easy this year since i'm soooo hard to buy for :)
  • d2footballJRC
    d2footballJRC Posts: 2,684 Member
    They are necessary to track strength training, and they are much more accurate on cardio. It's calories burnt are based on your heart rate. I find my HRM is usually a couple hundred calories burnt higher then MFP over a workout period of 1 hr plus. Ex. yesterday MFP had my total exercise at 1444 calories and my HRM had a higher calorie burnt count. It's also nice to have to know when you are getting to your target heart rate and getting the best work out. I found out I wasn't pushing myself hard enough on the recumbent bike. It allowed me to adjust my work out.

    LOL whatever you do please don't compare your burn numbers to a man....
    I can't think of anything I could do in 1 hour that would burn anything close to that --- let alone half of that.
    It also makes a difference how much weight you have to lose.... you will burn more if you are heavier and less if you are trying to lose that last 10 pounds.

    Yesterday was 2 hours lol, but what I was getting at was there can be a big discrepancy between MFP and the HRM. I use the Polar FT40 and Love it. I found it on amazon on sale for $99. Well worth it!
  • mags2504
    mags2504 Posts: 275
    I have a polar ft7 and it's fab. It's just like above, gives you a more accurate count of calories, heart rate etc. I've got into my head now that if I don't earn it I don't eat it.
  • thirtyandthriving
    thirtyandthriving Posts: 613 Member
    I like mine. I just got it a week or two ago. I don't think its necessary, but useful. I like it since I have just started c25k so that I can keep track of my training, and the calories that I have burned. I only use it when I am doing purposeful exercise as in running or a workout dvd, but not for leisure activities like walking to the park with my daughter. The one I have is the Timex WR 50M. It has a stopwatch, 2 timers, activity mode (tracks the calories burned), time, and alarm. Just like a regular watch. It was about 35 dollars. There isn't any real cons for me so far.
  • martinh78
    martinh78 Posts: 601
    As well as calories/weight loss I am now using mine to keep me UNDER certain levels for recovery days, otheriwse my 20min light recovery turns into a normal workout!

    For example, today I did 40mins but averaged 117bpm, didn't exceed 122-123bpm. Without the hrm my "recovery workout" would have been nearer 140-150bpm average.

    Also helps with interval training. rtaher than upping speed or effort for 1 minute and resting 2 mins for example, you can hit your upper zone (80-90%) for 1 minute, then (hopefully) be back at your lower zone (60-70%) within the two minutes.

    Just a few more examples of how a hrm can help after/during weight loss if you decide to have fitness targets and a training plan for the future.

    It's helped me to not OVER Train, which I was certainly doing in the past.
  • pa_jorg
    pa_jorg Posts: 4,404 Member
    Not necessary, but really helpful for estimating calories. Plus, it's such a fun gadget that sometimes I feel motivated to workout longer or at a faster pace...that's a huge mental boost alone!
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
    I read an article recently that said one of the cons of HRM is that they only give an acurate reading for "fit" people. So if you are still in the process of getting fit it may overestimate the number of calories burned. "fit" is determined by how well your body using oxygen during exercise.

    I also saw results of a medical study once in which a specific HRM was tested (Polaris, but don't remember which model) and the results were very acurate for men but were overestimated for the women in the study. But that study was several years ago so newer model might perform better.
  • ladyphoto
    ladyphoto Posts: 192 Member
    I am on my third HR monitor and honestly, I LOVE it!! Like someone else said already, I tend to work harder because it is a challenge to see how many calories I can burn- if I'm under my own personal goal for the day, I know I need to do more. I am also the kind of person that gets hooked on stuff like that- so now- I basically couldn't live without my HRM... lol.
  • Leola2011
    Leola2011 Posts: 192
    Thanks everyone! Now, to find one that is cost effective, reasonably reliable, and does everything I want it to do. I was on amazon and discovered that not all HRMs count calories burned.
  • goochinator
    goochinator Posts: 383 Member
    I often joke that I'd rather workout without my legs than my Polar F6. I tend to lie to myself about how hard I workout. But looking at the % of my heart rate, I know where I should be at what level, so I always know if I need to wrok harder or not.

    I also play 'games' with it. Like trying to burn 10 calories a minute for like 15 mins, or trying to get to a certain calorie count by a certain time. Just keeps it interesting and something to think about and strive for.
  • d2footballJRC
    d2footballJRC Posts: 2,684 Member
    I read an article recently that said one of the cons of HRM is that they only give an acurate reading for "fit" people. So if you are still in the process of getting fit it may overestimate the number of calories burned. "fit" is determined by how well your body using oxygen during exercise.

    I also saw results of a medical study once in which a specific HRM was tested (Polaris, but don't remember which model) and the results were very acurate for men but were overestimated for the women in the study. But that study was several years ago so newer model might perform better.

    I've read that as well. I think this is why the new Polar ask for VO2 max now.
  • pa_jorg
    pa_jorg Posts: 4,404 Member
    Thanks everyone! Now, to find one that is cost effective, reasonably reliable, and does everything I want it to do. I was on amazon and discovered that not all HRMs count calories burned.

    I did some serious research before purchasing mine. From what I read Polar is the best brand for accuracy. The FT4 and FT7 are the best models. I got mine on Amazon.com for a decent price.
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