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There is no one-size-fits-all, universal training method. Exercise must be individually
tailored to fit you. And that’s just what heart rate training provides—a
completely personalized exercise program that works for all people and all activities.
Heart rate training uses the convergence of three components: your heart’s organic
intelligence, the technology of your heart rate monitor, and your mental toughness. Put
them together and you’ll be able to better and more efficiently manage your
training.
Let’s take heart rate training apart and focus on these three words: heart, rate, and
training.
Heart
This is your cardiac muscle; you can strengthen your heart through exercise. The heart is a
use-it-or-lose-it muscle, so if you don’t perform cardiovascular exercises, you will
lose some of the heart’s functional ability. Your heart is the most important muscle
in your entire body. Treat it that way.
Rate
Rate is the speed of your heart beating; its tempo. Rate is measured in beats per minute. A
range of heart rate measurements is called a zone. There are five different heart zones.
Hundreds of research articles have documented the powerful benefits of training in
different heart zones.
Training
Training is the regime of working out with a specific goal in mind, often in preparation
for a sporting event. It’s different than merely exercising. When you exercise, you
are moving for the joy of it. When you train, you are focused on getting more fit and
improving specific aspects of your health.
Heart rate training
Using your heartbeat is a smart way to train because you are able to determine the
intensity of your workouts. This is synonymous with heart zone training. This method provides
information which can help you customize your exercise program. Heart rate training in each
of five different heart zones also provides you with the most efficient method of working
out.
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Pulsemeter vs. Heart Rate Monitors |
Don’t confuse “pulsemeter” with heart rate monitors. They are not
the same. Heart rate monitors record your heart’s electrical impulses, giving
very accurate readings of your heart rate. Pulsemeters, however, rely on light
waves passing through the blood vessels (in your fingertip or earlobe, for example)
for heart rate signal detection. Pulsemeters are only fairly accurate when you are
indoors and seated (like on an exercise bike) or at rest, and they are extremely
sensitive to changes in light in any situation.
Compared to heart rate monitors, pulsemeters simply aren’t reliable or accurate
enough. It uses old technology. Contact heart rate monitors that you see on cardiovascular
equipment in your home or at the athletic club use the latest technology. These hand
contract monitors are extremely accurate and reliable.
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The basics
A heart rate monitor is a powerful tool. It reminds me of those plastic “Transformers” kids play with: I’m always finding new ways of using it. You will too.
A heart rate monitor can motivate you to do better, coach you, or allow you to train yourself; sound
off with cheeps and chirps to slow you down or pick you up; act as a testing device, and even be your confidante and friend. Download information from your monitor into a personal computer to view your physical performance minute by minute. Sometimes my heart rate monitor even reads my mind, reflecting my emotional state in the rising and falling numbers on its face.
There are many different brands of heart rate monitors, each of which has many different models. Be advised that there are lots of
options (microchips seem to trigger some sort of deep-seated “features-and-functions”
urge in engineers). Everything is getting techier with smaller monitors, cosmetically correct
chest straps...all sorts of bells and whistles. What follows is a quick review of the basics.
Strap it on
Heart rate monitors were in the realm of sci-fi not so long ago. Researchers started checking heart
rates around 1912, using water buckets as counterweights in the first laboratory model. The first
electronic heart-monitoring tool, the electrocardiograph, was originally the size of a room, and even today you would certainly not want to carry one around. Thankfully, today we have the personal heart rate monitor. It may not do everything the EKG in your doctor’s office does, but it’s great for anyone who wants to accurately measure his or her heart rate.
Today’s heart rate monitors are the size of a wristwatch, and you can pick one up for the price of a pair of athletic shoes. Before long, heart rate monitors may resemble cell phones (think: Dick Tracy’s cartoon version). And in the not-too-distant future, you will be able to wirelessly connect to the Internet and download your data to our Web site so we can provide expert advice about your training.
The wrist monitor is a device that serves as a receiving unit. It collects the data transmitted from
the chest strap and processes it through a computer chip to calculate an accurate heart rate: the
number of beats per minute. Monitors update the information every three to five seconds—each time it gives you your new number of beats per minute. Heart rate monitors are 99 percent accurate. Most monitors can also serve as a wristwatch.
The first few numbers that appear on your monitor should be tossed out, because the software inside the computer needs enough sample heart rates to accurately calculate a value. Likewise, if you quickly accelerate or decelerate your heart rate values will always be lagging behind your real heart rate number. That’s because the software inside the integrated circuit is delayed three to five seconds because it is updating.
The second part of a heart rate monitor is the elastic strap. It is adjustable for different chest
sizes. You can order one for a child, an extremely large adult, or for a horse (which has about a 6’chest circumference).
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Manually Measuring Your Heartbeat |
As you train, it’s important to be able to quickly measure your heart rate. You can
get a rough estimate by finding your pulse in your wrist or neck and measuring your pulse
rate. If you do not have a heart rate monitor, this is the best way.
For the manual method, take a watch and count your heartbeats for six seconds then multiply
your county by ten to find your heart rate. You must stop moving to count this accurately.
You need a watch, which has seconds.
In one research study on the accuracy of manual “palpation” method of measuring
pulse rate, the group tested averaged a 14-bpm error by counting manually as compared to
using a heart rate monitor.
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The transmitter unit is attached to the elastic chest strap. The transmitter moves the data from our
heart, through electrodes, to the monitor. It too has an integrated circuit and a battery just like
your wrist monitor. Batteries last about 1,000 hours in the transmitter and about one to two years
in the monitor watch.
How it works
It is important to understand that a heart rate monitor is a personal communication device. Each time your heart “beats,” what it’s really doing is going through one cycle of contraction and relaxation. The heart does this by sending an electrical message to itself. As the heartbeat begins, a positive electric charge spreads across the cardiac membranes followed by a reversal, a negative charge that makes the muscle contract. The heart’s electrical change from the positive to the negative state is one heartbeat, and this electrical activity is what heart rate monitors (and electrocardiographs) measure, allowing them to record your heartbeats very accurately.
The transmitter unit of a heart rate monitor detects this change in polarity from positive to negative as an electrical signal. It then processes this signal using very sophisticated software programs and transmits the data to the wrist receiver unit. You see it displayed as a number—the number of beats per minute that your heart contracts.
Exercise must fit you as an individual. Heart rate training is one of the most emotionally and physically powerful tools you can use to get fit. Once you learn to use your monitor correctly, you’ll begin to see positive benefits such as having more energy and sleeping better. I predict you’ll find using a heart rate monitor one of the highlights of your training
day.
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