HRM - Heart Rate Monitor

[Fudomyo]

I bought a new heart rate monitor. I figured I'd use it with my cardio workouts, but it turns out it's great for lifting too.

Between sets you can just wait for your heart rate to get back under your aerobic zone (around 122 seemed like a good guess). Then you pick up the weights and go.

It's funny it went from 120 or so, to 177 in about 3 DB bench presses. I always wondered how high it was getting. Should be great fun on leg day.

Anyway, you can move your workout along at the optimum rate. No guessing.

For sprint training (read Fudo cardio), i can just hit The Anaerobic Zone for 2 minutes and then rest as long it takes to get back under the anaerobic threashold (AT). I guess you "should" do that until the times are roughly equal. Well that's the best info I've found so far.

Trying to figure out a good cardio workout is tough since most of the book authors are all long distance runners. We know how good the marathoners look.

Fudo

[cursor]

I agree wholeheartedly that a heart rate monitor is one cool and useful tool. Everyone who is serious about fitness should have three gadgets: (1) a heart rate monitor, (2) a quality digital food scale, and (3) a great set of fat calipers.

Get serious, get real, be fit!

[GraemeK]

I have a Polar S210

cool piece of kit!

All the sports equipment in my gym are polar compatable so i dont even need the actual monitor for basic HR monitoring!

best thing i bought this year!

G

[StevenD]

Fudo, what brand and model of heart rate monitor do you suggest? How is the one you have working out? And, of course, how much does it cost?

Thanks,
StevenD

[Fudomyo]

Polar makes like 12 of them, and they work with the elliptical's at my gym. I got the one 3rd from the bottom. The A50? I think it was 150. They start at $80 or so.

The "range" function is useful. It beeps at you when it's out of range. You just set it at 122 - 165 (actually it picked). 122 and you are ready for you next set. The fancier ones just record everything, for your whole marathon etc. Can't say I need anything else than what I have.

I like it, it's been very interesting on my diet. Takes your body like 5 minutes to figure out you aren't eating. Damnit, damnit, damnit.

Fudo

[patchrik]

For those statistic kooks like me, the Polar website... www.polar.com has an area called "personal trainer" that logs your workouts and tracks your data!