Why You Might Want a HRM (Heart Rate Monitor)

I got my HRM yesterday and got to use it for the first time today. First of all, I had a hard time getting it to work, but I finally placed it up higher (really under the base of my sports bra) and it worked! And, boy was I in for some surprises!

First of all, I did 8 minutes on the elliptical for warm up for my personal trainer, which is what I usually do. I burned 51 calories. The last two times I've done this warmup, the elliptical told me I burned 81 calories. (The HRM is programmed with my age, weight, and height.)

My other surprise was during my swim. I've been unsure how to log it. When I've logged a 25 minute swim under "general", it shows I burn 168 calories. When I've logged a 25 minute swim under "crawl" (just once), it shows I burn 308 calories. Well, I only did a 13 minute swim tonight (long day!), and the HRM showed I burned only 72 calories! If I would have went for 25 minutes, it would have showed around 140 calories. So, I guess "general" is close, but "crawl" is way off. (By the way, my swim is 25 yards at a time, which takes about 33 seconds, followed with about a 30 second breather. I guess when you are logging "crawl" they might expect that you are CONSTANTLY moving.)

I got a pleasant surprise during my weight training. (Of course, I didn't know how many calories I was burning before.) I burned 271 calories in 1 hour!

I can't wait to see how my run shows tomorrow. It's going to be on an treadmill, though, because that is just how this week is working out. I really don't like running on the elliptical, but maybe with my podcast I'll be able to find the right rhytym.

Oh! In case you're wondering...I bought a Polar Women's F6 (in pink) from Amazon. It cost about $85 and shows calories burned, has a fitness "diary" (which I haven't figured out yet), and you can sync it with your computer (ditto - don't know how yet). It also shows where your HR should be and how many minutes you were in the target range. It is waterproof (thus I swam in it) and seems to be just what I needed!