HR monitors
Vodkha
Posts: 352 Member
How essential are HR monitors in an exercise program? I work out quite intensely (circuit training) and right when I was finished tonite I took my HR and times the beats per 15 seconds by 4. It came out to 104. There is no possible way my HR could be that low when I am working out. I sweat like a pig and give it my all, all my muscles are screaming by the end and I am huffing and puffing. I am wondering if I should get a monitor or should I just go by MFP? I'd hate to way overestimate the calories I burn, but I just dont see how my HR could be that low with the intensity I work out at?
0
Replies
-
Get a heart rate monitor! I've used mine for 18 months straight. I'll never do a workout without it.0
-
I like mine because it gets rid of the guess work. I get done, look at how long I worked and how many calories burn and log it.1
-
Which HR monitor do you guys use?0
-
They aren't necessary at all. They can be helpful if you have appropriate expectations of them, but certainly aren't a key factor in much of anything.1
-
How essential are HR monitors in an exercise program? I work out quite intensely (circuit training) and right when I was finished tonite I took my HR and times the beats per 15 seconds by 4. It came out to 104. There is no possible way my HR could be that low when I am working out. I sweat like a pig and give it my all, all my muscles are screaming by the end and I am huffing and puffing. I am wondering if I should get a monitor or should I just go by MFP? I'd hate to way overestimate the calories I burn, but I just dont see how my HR could be that low with the intensity I work out at?
I use a heart rate monitor every workout and won't go back to the guessing game. Knowing if I'm in the cardio or fat burn range for how long and how many calories burned gives me life! It also let's me know my progress with certain workouts. It takes a lot more work/intensity level raised to get my heart rate going than it used to for cardio which is a great sign. I think you should try it.0 -
If you're doing circuit training I wouldn't bother with it. It's best used for steady-state cardio. Sweating doesn't correlate to heart rate/intensity of exercise, either.1
-
Because I'm a data geek, I like one for athletic training purposes, but the RPE (rate of perceived exertion) method is equally viable - maybe more so if you don't know your actual HR max. (Age based max estimates are inaccurate for a fairly large percentage of people.) You need true resting rate, too, but it's easy to use the HRM to get that.
They're a useful input for estimating steady-state cardio calories, but even then it's important to realize that HR is a proxy for calorie burn, not a measurement of it. Lots of things spike heart rate, but don't burn calories (strain, heat, dehydration, certain strong emotions, . . . .). The farther your exercise type from SS cardio, the worse the estimate is likely to be (likely to be terribly overstated for weight training, for example). Here, too, you may get better estimates if you know true HR max.
Don't get me wrong, I love my HRM. But surprisingly many people take their calorie estimates as gospel, when they aren't.1 -
They aren't necessary at all. They can be helpful if you have appropriate expectations of them, but certainly aren't a key factor in much of anything.
This reply doesn't apply to everyone ...
I need to watch my HR as I am over 60, have AFIB and some prescribed limits on what I should be doing (I'm trying to keep a 5 of 7 day/week workout schedule either in the gym or outdoors, depending on weather/conditions). The trick for me is to determine a dominant heartbeat when it gets a little wildly variant during exercise. I measure at set intervals (0, 25, 50, 75, 100% of planned session time, +5min after cooldown), and take 3 or 5 spot readings for each interval and do the mental arithmetic to average for a number. The gym cycle monitor is useless, can't deal with the variations. I use a fingertip pulse-ox, for long-term consistency, since I have been for years (I have "permanent" AFIB), and it's the same model as all my doctors use when they aren't running an actual strip. I have tried a couple of the Android smartphone apps for HR (which use fingertip skin color changes detectable by the phone camera) - but only for when I'm really still/at rest (such as resting HR when I wake up, or occasional checking). The apps seem roughly comparable to the pulse-ox, but I've not really done a stringent analysis. When I'm active on the gym bike, the camera doesn't seem to get a good shot, no matter how carefully I try and hold the phone. I'm looking at more purpose-designed upmarket HR monitors, since I'm working out like crazy on a new bike (local trails, etc.), and want to be sure that I am doing things ok when out-and-about. In the gym, my current target has been to stay in Training Zone 2, some Zone 3, for a full 45 to 60 minutes. Starting from essentially zero on Jan 1st, this is a good workout for me, and I seem to be on track for a good season with the base I'm building in these cool months. The "fat burning" effect of this working out - plus some dietary mods helped by MFP - has helped me drop 17lbs Jan 1st-Feb 28th.
There have been some really good discussions here on related topics recently.1 -
They aren't necessary at all. They can be helpful if you have appropriate expectations of them, but certainly aren't a key factor in much of anything.
This reply doesn't apply to everyone ...
I need to watch my HR as I am over 60, have AFIB and some prescribed limits on what I should be doing (I'm trying to keep a 5 of 7 day/week workout schedule either in the gym or outdoors, depending on weather/conditions). The trick for me is to determine a dominant heartbeat when it gets a little wildly variant during exercise. I measure at set intervals (0, 25, 50, 75, 100% of planned session time, +5min after cooldown), and take 3 or 5 spot readings for each interval and do the mental arithmetic to average for a number. The gym cycle monitor is useless, can't deal with the variations. I use a fingertip pulse-ox, for long-term consistency, since I have been for years (I have "permanent" AFIB), and it's the same model as all my doctors use when they aren't running an actual strip. I have tried a couple of the Android smartphone apps for HR (which use fingertip skin color changes detectable by the phone camera) - but only for when I'm really still/at rest (such as resting HR when I wake up, or occasional checking). The apps seem roughly comparable to the pulse-ox, but I've not really done a stringent analysis. When I'm active on the gym bike, the camera doesn't seem to get a good shot, no matter how carefully I try and hold the phone. I'm looking at more purpose-designed upmarket HR monitors, since I'm working out like crazy on a new bike (local trails, etc.), and want to be sure that I am doing things ok when out-and-about. In the gym, my current target has been to stay in Training Zone 2, some Zone 3, for a full 45 to 60 minutes. Starting from essentially zero on Jan 1st, this is a good workout for me, and I seem to be on track for a good season with the base I'm building in these cool months. The "fat burning" effect of this working out - plus some dietary mods helped by MFP - has helped me drop 17lbs Jan 1st-Feb 28th.
There have been some really good discussions here on related topics recently.
Hence the part about "if you have appropriate expectations of them".
Monitoring your heart rate for medical reasons would likely be classified as an "appropriate expectation". Worrying about whether you are in the "fat burning zone" or depending upon them to calculate calorie burns from anything other than steady-state cardio are not appropriate expectations. So the reply applies perfectly.1 -
I wouldn't bother with a HRM for circuit training, it won't be accurate1
-
Yes. Clarifying: it was supposed to be, "my reply doesn't apply to everyone," not jjpptt2's reply. Just sharing my experience/constraints/concerns.
I have two cardiologists, my internist and several other docs all cheering on my biking (I'm like the old Rodney Dangerfield joke, "You know you've reached a certain age when your little black book has more doctors' names than girls...") ... but, the lack of solid information/guidelines, available outside of paywalls, is frustrating. I've talked to a number of you in several threads on related topics, getting some good info/leads to chew on. Thanks.
Since I'm newly retired, my "new job" is "get healthy." The new bike and renewed gym work is part of that. Diet plus exercise is the path. "Fat burning" is a nice byproduct of the workouts. I'm down 70lbs from my max, could go another 50, and had hit a plateau last year, plus had other complications. So, I'll take the 17lbs I've dropped since Jan 1st as a good thing.
Thanks again, all.0 -
-
I’ve never used an HR monitor in my life. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯2
-
For circuit training, worthless.1
-
I use a wahoo chest strap monitor every day, associated to my smartphone. The app posts the results on MFP automatically. Beau-ti-ful.
0 -
Because I'm a data geek, I like one for athletic training purposes, but the RPE (rate of perceived exertion) method is equally viable - maybe more so if you don't know your actual HR max. (Age based max estimates are inaccurate for a fairly large percentage of people.) You need true resting rate, too, but it's easy to use the HRM to get that.
They're a useful input for estimating steady-state cardio calories, but even then it's important to realize that HR is a proxy for calorie burn, not a measurement of it. Lots of things spike heart rate, but don't burn calories (strain, heat, dehydration, certain strong emotions, . . . .). The farther your exercise type from SS cardio, the worse the estimate is likely to be (likely to be terribly overstated for weight training, for example). Here, too, you may get better estimates if you know true HR max.
Don't get me wrong, I love my HRM. But surprisingly many people take their calorie estimates as gospel, when they aren't.
I've started taking creatine in December. I'm responding well to it. On the bike, there have been many times when RPE tells me I can put more into this hill. It's always true when I feel it. I don't bother checking my HR to see if it's true. You're right.1 -
NorthCascades wrote: »Because I'm a data geek, I like one for athletic training purposes, but the RPE (rate of perceived exertion) method is equally viable - maybe more so if you don't know your actual HR max. (Age based max estimates are inaccurate for a fairly large percentage of people.) You need true resting rate, too, but it's easy to use the HRM to get that.
They're a useful input for estimating steady-state cardio calories, but even then it's important to realize that HR is a proxy for calorie burn, not a measurement of it. Lots of things spike heart rate, but don't burn calories (strain, heat, dehydration, certain strong emotions, . . . .). The farther your exercise type from SS cardio, the worse the estimate is likely to be (likely to be terribly overstated for weight training, for example). Here, too, you may get better estimates if you know true HR max.
Don't get me wrong, I love my HRM. But surprisingly many people take their calorie estimates as gospel, when they aren't.
I've started taking creatine in December. I'm responding well to it. On the bike, there have been many times when RPE tells me I can put more into this hill. It's always true when I feel it. I don't bother checking my HR to see if it's true. You're right.
Since I'm a healthy person (no contraindications), I rarely use my HRM reading as a reason to hit the brakes.
Because I'm a lazy person, I frequently use my HRM reading as a reason to hit the accelerator.
1 -
How essential are HR monitors in an exercise program?
Essential if you're interested in tracking improvements in heart rate as one of your fitness metrics, in respect to calories expended in anything other than steady state cardio (and they're not that good for that either as there's not a linear correlation between HR and energy expended) pretty much useless.
0
This discussion has been closed.
Categories
- All Categories
- 1.4M Health, Wellness and Goals
- 393.4K Introduce Yourself
- 43.8K Getting Started
- 260.2K Health and Weight Loss
- 175.9K Food and Nutrition
- 47.4K Recipes
- 232.5K Fitness and Exercise
- 426 Sleep, Mindfulness and Overall Wellness
- 6.5K Goal: Maintaining Weight
- 8.5K Goal: Gaining Weight and Body Building
- 153K Motivation and Support
- 8K Challenges
- 1.3K Debate Club
- 96.3K Chit-Chat
- 2.5K Fun and Games
- 3.7K MyFitnessPal Information
- 24 News and Announcements
- 1.1K Feature Suggestions and Ideas
- 2.6K MyFitnessPal Tech Support Questions