Is A Heart Rate Monitor Right For You?

Exercise equipment, like Bowflex, Body by Jake etc., has advanced dramatically over the last 10 years. With the new technology, you can run on your treadmill at home and then slide it under your bed as a space saver. As a matter of fact, you can go to the, choose a program that will do just about everything for you, except exercise for you. Even with the smarter machines, more people still are not reaching their exercise goals. Why is that? The reason is because they were never shown how to exercise the proper way.

The "no pain no gain" concept is still alive in most gyms and even in the home. That concept makes a majority of people feel that exercise is just too hard. Does that sound maybe the way you think?

You put your time in either at the gym or on your home exercise equipment, but you just can't seem to reach your goal or lose those last few pounds. And it's not because you're not trying. Are you sure are that you are exercising according to your goals you want to achieve? If not, a heart rate monitor just maybe what you need to get the results you looking for.

Let's explain how a heart rate monitor can help you:

**In order to reach the goals you are trying to achieve, then you will need to exercise at the right intensity.

**The heart rate monitor is really the only accurate type of measurement for your intensity or your exertion level.

What you need is a heart rate monitor that is the easiest the most accurate way to continuously measure your heart rate.

Actually, a heart rate monitor is just a tool that will help set your pace. If you're exercising too hard, you will most likely quits before you really get the benefits. You must know somebody who gets on a treadmill, takes it up to a high gear for two minutes and gets off. Now they're exhausted and what they did was waste two minutes. Two minutes is not enough time on a treadmill.

That's where a heart rate monitor comes in. It paces you to do any kind of work out. It's almost like having a personal trainer that tells you or speed up or slow down. It also helps you change your workouts and use different activities so you don't get bored. Right now do you know if you're getting similar workouts from a treadmill or weight circuit training or just jumping rope?

You probably would not be able to tell because it's not how you feel or even how much are sweating. But your heart rate can tell you. With a heart rate monitor, you can be sure that you're working out at the right intensity no matter what kind of activity you choose whether you are running on a treadmill, jumping rope, skating, hiking... these all can be part of an effective program. Now you can tell all kind of workout is working. The heart rate monitor makes that possible.

If you are just new to exercise and you go to the gym, then you have to try and figure out what to do you get on an exercise equipment such as a treadmill. It will ask you for your level, speed, incline but you have no idea what to code in.

With a heart rate monitor all you have to figure out is your 60% to 70% target zone. Program it into your heart rate monitor. Start your treadmill. Then you can increase the level, the speed or whatever you are doing and your heart rate stays in that zone. It just takes the guesswork out of exercise and gives you the confidence to know that you were doing it right and benefiting.

Copyright 2005 Fern Kuhn, RN
Specializing in Diabetes
http://www.heartratemonitorcenter.info
http://www.diabetestestingcenter.com

You may reprint this article as long as you keep the links active