One of the key elements in achieving personal fitness success is to incorporate a minimum of 2-3 days of cardio exercise into your weekly workout routine (along with a great resistance training program). You can get cardio exercise in a variety of ways, you may choose to go for a jog, swim laps at the pool, jump rope, or use one of the stationary cardio machines at your local gym. Although each of the previously described cardio methods can be great in their own right, if you want to achieve maximum effectiveness during any one cardio session, you must elevate your heart rate. To the degree that you elevate your heart rate above its resting metabolic rate the more calories and fat you can burn. Wearing a heart rate monitor during workouts will allow you to effectively monitor your heart rate, calories burned, duration, etc. A good heart rate monitor can insure you have the most effective cardio session every time, maximizing your time, efficiency, and results.
How Heart Rate Monitors Work
Using a heart rate monitor is very simple. The most effective monitors measure your heart rate with a transmitter that is placed over the heart and held in place by an adjustable strap that wraps around your chest. Just like an electrocardiogram (ECG) the transmitter detects electrical activity. This activity is relayed to a wristwatch or mobile device via a graphic display. The graphic display usually shares your instantaneous heart rate, calories burned, % of max heart rate, and other pertinent information.
Types of Heart Rate Monitors
There are a variety of heart rate monitor models on the market. The most basic monitors simply display your heart rate. More advanced models have features that include alarms that sound when you’ve gone above or below a pre-programmed heart rate value. Some require that you wear a wrist watch while others send the info via Bluetooth directly to an app on your mobile device. Other features may include pre-programmed workouts, countdown timer, calories burned, GPS with distance traveled and more.
Below you will find the “MAX IMPACT Fitness Coaches Choice” list for heart rate monitors. This list is meant to aid you in your selection of a heart rate monitor. We can recommend these selections either because we have or currently use them or it has been highly recommend by our clients. We hope this helps you decide!
($49.99 Amazon)
*Coaches’ Top Choice!
- A heart rate monitor built for Bluetooth Smart (4.0) including the iPhone 4S and newer, iPad (3rd and 4th generations), iPad Mini and select Android devices with Android operating system 4.3 or newer.
- Wireless Compatibility – The Wahoo Blue HR is enabled with Bluetooth 4.0 technology, sending and receiving signals up to 10 feet (unobstructed) and records data even when Bluetooth receiver communication is interrupted, so you don’t miss any important metrics.
- Ultra Low Energy – The Wahoo Blue HR runs on a replaceable coin cell battery and lasts up to 1 year. Also, it “sleeps” during inactivity to conserve power.
- Tracks heart rate, time spent in each heart rate zone, max heart rate, average heart rate, and calories burned while you work out
- Works with the most popular running, cycling and fitness Apps such as Runmeter, RunKeeper, Cyclemeter, Strava, MapMyRun, Endomondo, Runtastic, Wahoo Fitness (included) and dozens more. Workout data is easily and wirelessly uploaded to popular training websites such as MyFitnessPal, TrainingPeaks, MapMyRUN, Nike+, Garmin Connect or Strava so you can track your fitness over time and share with friends. You can also email your workout data to yourself or your coach.
- Waterproof up to 5 Feet – The Wahoo Blue HR is waterproof up to 5 feet to endure water and sweat, making it an ideal accessory for beach runs, jogs in the rain, and more. It will not, however, transmit data underwater or while swimming.
- Easy Set-up – Blue HR setup is super easy. Wrap the strap around your back, and snap the sensor into place. Make sure that the sensor is located on your sternum or just below your breasts, and that the Wahoo Fitness logo is facing up. Download and open the Wahoo Fitness App or one of dozens of compatible Apps. Pair the Blue HR within the App’s settings menu.
- With the Wahoo Blue HR and your favorite fitness App, you now have your heart rate data, your playlists, your phone, GPS maps and more–all in one device.
($59.89 Amazon.com)
* Extremely popular! Comes in a variety of colors.
- Provides continuous, accurate heart rate to keep your fitness training simple.
- Smart Calorie feature uses your personal data to provide accurate calories burned.
- Includes heart rate chest strap made of soft fabric material that adapts to your body shape; Requires and includes chest strap for accurate heart rate.
- Connects with compatible gym equipment using GymLink.
- Continuously displays your real-time heart rate during exercise. With this information you can gauge your intensity and stay within your target zone to maximize your workout.
- Tracks your intensity and calories burned during any activity, even playing with children and swimming.
- After each workout, the FT4 will display a training summary with your average and max heart rate and calories burned. In addition, it keeps track of your last ten workouts so you can see your fitness improvements and stay motivated to reach your goals.
- Backlight
- Time of day (12/24h) with alarm and snooze.
- User replaceable battery and water resistant (30m).
(Amazon $179.26)
*For the serious outdoor runner, biker or swimmer!
- With the Wahoo Blue HR and your favorite fitness App, you now have your heart rate data, your playlists, your phone, GPS maps and more–all in one device.
- Waterproof to a depth of 50 meters, so you can wear it in the pool or the lake to time your swim
- Tracks bike and run data and sends it wirelessly to your computer
- Track your position, distance, pace, heart rate (with bundled monitor), add accessories to measure power data and more
- Transitions Effortlessly – When you’re ready to jump out of the water and onto the bike, Forerunner 310XT moves easily from wrist to bike with the optional quick release and bike mounts, making the transition between sports effortless. Forerunner 310XT categorizes multisport activities in one workout and can also log transition time in the process, so you can analyze your performance from start to finish.
- Run, Sync, Store and Share – Once you’ve logged the miles, innovative ANT+ wireless technology automatically transfers data to your computer when Forerunner is in range. No cables, no hookups. The data’s just there, ready for you to analyze, categorize and share through our online community, Garmin Connect or our optional Garmin Training Center software. You can even plan workouts on your computer and then send them to your Forerunner.
- 20 hours of battery life.
- One-year limited warranty.
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