Exercise Issues

Heart Rate Monitor: FABULOUS!

I bought a Polar HR monitor (Click here to find out where you can get one), and it has entirely changed my perspective on workouts. It turns out that, in an effort to really make myself feel fast and fit, I would work out at around 95% of my maximum HR. And guess what: it exhausted me every time. This has several effects:

1) You're more tired afterwards.
2) You dread working out more.
3) Your overall energy level, due to the above two factors, is actually decreased.

When I first ran with the HR monitor, I kept wanting to push the speed higher. I was thinking, "I know I can run faster than this!" Well, who cares?! If you keep yourself in the target range for the entirety of the workout, you find that:

1) You recover from the run so much faster! A five minute cool down, and I'm totally fine.
2) After your workout, you are incredibly jazzed! I listen to my iPod on the way out of the gym, and I'm practically dancing down the stairs.
3) You begin to look forward to your runs, because you know they will only give you more energy.
4) Your overall energy level is boosted, I would say by at least 10% all day, every day.

It's not the HR monitor that does this, it's just the HR monitor that tells you how, for the first time, to really work out at a level that gives you energy instead of taking it all away. Well worth any amount you spend on it.

Some notes:

1) If you just want to work out in a target range, just get a simple monitor. The more expensive ones are more expensive because they have onboard computers for things like pace, lap splits, average workout, etc. I bought a middle-range monitor, but the most benefits come from the features that were on the bottom-range monitor.
2) If you run on a treadmill, buy a monitor that's compatible with that treadmill. Then you can keep your eye on your HR as you adjust your speed during the run.
3) The watch-computer component, therefore, is mostly helpful for workouts or jogs where you are not on a treadmill, so if you often workout or run outside, then you may be more interested in the additional information that a middle-range monitor gives you (calories based on age, weight, HR, etc; averages; splits; etc).
4) Cost: $60 for the bottom range monitor, $100 for the middle range one I bought, and up to $350 for more advanced computers.