Digital Heart Rate Monitor
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Digital Heart Rate Monitors
Digital Heart Rate Monitors are devices used to monitor heart rate during exercises and trainings or for general health purpose. By monitoring your heart rate, not only you can train more effectively but you get a visual indications of the condition of your physical fitness level.
Although there are many indicators (breathing rate, physical sense) of how you are doing during exercise, none is more accurate than measurement with digital heart rate monitors. You can plan how long, how fast and how hard you want to train.
The Benefits of Using Digital Heart Rate Monitors
Why is it important to monitor your heart rate when you exercise?
- Your heart rate is an accurate indicator of the intensity of your exercise.
- Knowing the intensity of your exercise will help you plan a more effective training.
- Monitoring your heart rate will prevent you from over or under trained.
- The data recorded during training can help you to analyze your progress
- Helps you fine-tune your training for the best results
Everyone reacts to physical strain differently, depending on physical fitness level, health condition and personal lifestyle. The reactions to physical stress can be accurately measured with digital heart rate monitors. No matter what is your goal for exercise, you will be more motivated when you can see your improvement through the records of digital heart rate monitors.
Your Training Session
Regardless of the type of sport you are training in, warming-up before the training and cooling-down gradually at the end of training are very important to fitness improvement and to prevent injuries. Provide recovery times after a training session is crucial to fitness, as well.
Warm-up
A proper warm-up before a training session prepares your heart and muscles for the stress that lies ahead. It stimulates blood circulation and makes muscles relax and flexible. Warming-up slowly for 5 to 10 minutes below your heart rate target zone and gradually increase the intensity of your exercise until your heart rate reaches your target zone.
Training in Target Zone
Once your heart rate has reached your target zone, maintain that intensity for about 20 minutes or more and make sure to stay inside your target zone. Keep your pace and do not push yourself over your target zone.
Cool-Down and Stretching
To cool down, gradually reducing the intensity of your exercise to bring your heart rate down to below your target zone. Do some light stretching to relax your muscles.
After a training session, make sure you give yourself enough rest and recovery before going for another training session.
Most importantly, do an analysis with the data recorded with your digital heart rate monitors and plan your next training session accordingly.
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Polar Heart Rate Monitors
Polar heart rate monitors are well known in the sport training arena competing with brand names such as Timex, Omron and others. Before 1976, there was no accurate instrument to record heart rate during training for sport men and women.
Development of Polar Heart Rate Monitors
Polar was established in the city of Oulu, Finland and started to research and development of heart rate monitors since 1977. In 1979, Polar filed their first patent for wireless heart rate monitor. In 1982, Polar launch their first wireless wearable heart rate monitor. From then on, Polar heart rate monitors have led the way and improved the effectiveness in sport training for all athletes.
After 30 years of innovation in research and development, Polar has produced a wide range of heart rate monitors covering the most basic model to sophisticated model which incorporated GPS in the design. Polar is specialized in heart rate monitors for sport training and produced intelligence instruments that guide you on how much, how often and how hard to train. Many of their innovative products are based on feedback from people using their products.
Sport Training With Polar Heart Rate Monitors
Why training with a heart rate monitor is important for everyone? A good and effective training doesn’t mean working harder, faster and longer. Training at the right intensity and for the right amount of time is the best way for improvement and getting results. With the help of a heart rate monitor, you can make sure that your every training session is more effective and produce better result. Polar heart rate monitors consist of various models catering for different sports.
Different Range of Polar Heart Rate Monitors
The Get Active Series
Models Ft4 & FT7 for those who want to know if they’re improving their fitness or burning fat with display of calories burned.
Models FT1 & FT2 for those who want an easy start to fitness with heart rate based training. Help improve fitness with safe exercise and heart rate target zone.
The Improve Fitness Series
Model FT80 for fitness enthusiasts who want to improve strength and cardio.
- Guides your strength training with heart rate based recovery periods between sets
- Creates a training program based on your personal goals and sets new weekly training targets
- The Polar Fitness test measures your aerobic fitness at rest and tells you your progress
- Comes with Polar FlowLink® for effortless data transfer to your online training diary at polarpersonaltrainer.com via both Mac and PC
Model FT40 for active exercisers who want clear guidance and to monitor their fitness level.
- The EnergyPointer tells you if the main effect of your training is fitness improvement or fat burning
- The Polar Fitness test measures your aerobic fitness at rest and tells you your progress
- Displays calories burned
- Comes with comfortable fabric transmitter and coded heart rate transmission to avoid cross-talk
Model RS300X for recreational athletes who require all essential heart rate and timing features.
- Helps you train at the right intensity with personal sport zones
- The Polar Fitness test measures your aerobic fitness at rest and tells you your progress
- Displays calories burned
The GPS Series
Model RS800CX for serious cyclists, a limited edition training computer with a laser engraved ID number. Comes wrapped up in a Polar Limited Edition set, with both speed and cadence sensors included.
- Helps avoid over or under training by aiding you to train at the right intensity
- Measures heart rate combined with current, average and maximum speed
- Improves your cycling technique with cadence measurement
- Comes with Polar ProTrainer 5 software for analyzing, planning, and keeping a training diary
The above are just some of the popular models of Polar heart rate monitors which can be found in Amazon.com. There are many other models and accessories available.
Products information sourced from http://www.polarusa.com
Why Use A Heart Rate Monitor Watch?
Heart rate monitor watch is a tool that helps you to keep track of the effectiveness of your training. It’s a great tool for athlete who wants to have safe and results orientated training. It’s also a great tool for those who are not athletes but just want to keep track of their health. Monitoring your heart rate will give you feedback on how you are adapting to your work out.
Your heart is the most important organ in your body. It pumps blood which carries oxygen and nutrients to every part of your body. By monitoring your heart rate you can reduce the danger from over training and still get result by staying in the target zone. Of course you can use your physical sense or how fast you are breathing to gauge how you are doing. But with a heart rate monitor watch, you can have a very accurate measurement of your heart rate and therefore can plan your training accordingly.
The Benefits Of Using A Heart Rate Monitor Watch
- Show your body’s reaction to training or exercise
- Help you train in a consistent pace and prevent you from over trained
- Help you to plan an effective training session to produce a desirable result
- Help you to progress gradually in training
- Provide accurate data for you to make adjustment to your training program
Heart rate monitor watch can drastically improve the quality of your training. It can give you accurate heart rate reading during your workout. With this detailed information you can tell if you are over training or slacking off.
Unless you have a professional coach, you will not know how much, how hard and how fast to train. With the help a heart rate monitor watch, you will know how to train and when to stop. Depending on individual physical fitness level, everyone reacts differently to physical strain and exercise. All these reactions can be recorded on a heart rate monitor watch and different work out plan can be devised for each individual.
Work Out Session With A Heart Rate Monitor Watch
Put on your heart rate monitor watch with a set target zone and start to warm up slowly. A proper warm-up will help your heart to increase blood flow to your muscle gradually. It will help your body to become more flexible and help prevent injury. Increase the intensity of your work out gradually until your heart rate reaches your target zone.
When your heart rate target zone is reached, maintain your work out intensity for the amount of time that you have planned. Make sure you stay within your target zone and be sensitive to your body reactions. If you are feeling hard to breath, you will need to slow down and set a lower target zone in your next training session.
Cooling down gradually is very important for every training session. Reducing your work out intensity and get your heart rate below your target zone and then to normal slowly. After that , you will need to stretch your muscles slowly and steadily to prevent stiffness and injuries.
Make sure you have recovered from your previous training before you start another training session. Make use of the data recorded in your heart rate monitor watch to plan your next training session.
What Are Heart Rate Monitor Watches?
Heart rate monitor watches are heart rate monitoring devices designed as watches to conveniently monitor heart rate during sport trainings and exercises. There are many manufacturers for these devices such as Polar, Timex, Omron, Suunto, Garmin, etc. Heart rate monitor watches have many different designs and models, from the inexpensive and basic models to very advance and sophisticated models which cost more.
How to use heart rate monitor watches?
Heart rate monitor watches can be used to measure heart rate at rest, monitoring heart rate during training and helped to stay in target zone. It can also be used to determine maximum heart rate (HRmax) by the reading when you are going all out in your training. An easy way to determine your HRmax is by subtracting your age from the number 220. Of course this is just an estimate because different people with different physical fitness level and health condition will have different HRmax. Regular training will strengthen your heart and lower your maximum heart rate gradually.
When working out, it is advisable to stay within your target zone with the help of a heart rate monitor watch. Your heart rate target zone should be in the range between 60% and 80% of your maximum heart rate. Working within your target zone is most effective and produce better result for your training.
Which type of heart rate monitor watches should you buy?
When you are buying a heart rate monitor watch for the first time, the wide selections of different brand names, designs and models can be overwhelming. But if you stop and think about the purpose of buying it, the decision can be quite simple.
For people just want to exercise to keep fit and healthy or just want to burn up some fat to stay slim, a basic model which can show heart rate (of course) and calories burned should be suffice. For elderly people, you might want to chose a model with large display for easy reading.
For athletes or sport persons who want to do serious training, you might want to chose one that can provide more data for analysis. Some advance models can help you to create training program based on your physical fitness level and training goal.
For bikers, long distant and cross country runners, you might want to have one with built in GPS which can measures your speed and tracks your distant during your work out. Some models can even record your route so that you can view later with Google Earth.
The cost of heart rate monitor watches vary from below 50 up-to hundreds of dollars. You can compare models and prices online and buy locally or you can buy directly online. It is more convenient to buy online and prices are more competitive. Amazon.com stores a wide range and different brand names of heart rate monitor watches.
Strapless Heart Rate Monitor
Strapless heart rate monitor does not require one to wear a strap on the chest to get heart rate reading. Conventional heart rate monitor requires a strap to be worn on the chest. The strap has built-in sensors to pick up electrocardiogram signals and transmits them to a wrist unit. The wrist unit will display the heart rate reading.
For most strapless heart rate monitor, you just have to place two fingers on the sensor poles of the watch whenever you want to know your heart rate. The heart rate reading will be displayed after you touch the sensor for a few seconds. However, with these units you cannot have a continuous reading of your heart rate. Moreover the measurement is not as accurate as the conventional heart rate monitors.
Although strapless heart rate monitor does not has the uncomfortable feeling of wearing a strap on the chest, it is found to be unsuitable for most people who needs more accurate reading and continuously monitor their heart rate. It might be suitable for people who just want to check their heart rate occasionally. To get the heart rate reading on a strapless heart rate monitor while you are exercising, you will need to slow down or even stop altogether to have the reading. This usually caused the reading to be inaccurate.
So for people who really want to train and improve their fitness level, it is better to have a traditional heart rate monitor rather than a strapless heart rate monitor. A traditional heart rate monitor can provide accurate real time information for you to know how well you are doing in your work out. It will also help you to keep a consistent pace in training. Most of the traditional heart rate monitors have more advance features than strapless heart rate monitor.
In order to benefit from using a heart rate monitor, it is important to choose an appropriate unit with the right features for the type of sport or exercise that you are enjoying. Researching online may help you find the right one.
Strapless Heart Rate Monitor
If you still prefer a strapless heart rate monitor, you may want to take a look at the Impact Sports ePulse strapless heart rate monitor (picture left) at Amazon.com.
- ePulse is the world’s first armband-only continuous heart rate monitor and calorimeter.
- ePulse is worn around the forearm and can provide continuous heart rate monitoring.
- Shows current heart rate, maximum and minimum heart rates, and average heart rate
- Calculates calories burned based on personal profile and heart rate
- Includes fat burning and cardio target zones; powered by AAA batteries
The ePulse works by integrating light sensor and microchip technology–the same type used in hospital heart rate monitors–to accurately read the pulse from the forearm.
In addition, the ePulse handles a number of basic calculations, including elapsed exercise time, average heart rate, and minimum and maximum heart rates. People with specific training goals can further use the ePulse to calculate optimal heart rate exercise zones for both burning fat and boosting cardio conditioning. The ePulse will then provide a target high and low range for your heart rate, with a green LED light telling you when you’re in the target zone.