Answers (6)
3
Hello Shawn...
Now this is a great question - thank you for bringing it up! I agree with Joanne above that it would be good to clarify what you mean by Heart Rate Training (HRT) ... but I am going to give an answer based upon the notion that you are referring to using HR zones as a way to monitor you (or your client's) training... Is that fair enough?
As Karin mentioned above, HRT can be a bit misleading and even a bit frightening IF you do not have the proper equipment. However, when you have a good monitor/system, HRT is a necessity. Let me clarify... the heart is one of the few object and true biometric feedback mechanisms we have to gage the stress being placed on the body. If you do not use HRT as part of your methodology, you really are guessing at what is going on in you or your client.
Now, I realize that many people may jump on here and argue about the whole estimated calculation for HRmax (220-age) and that it is completely arbitrary output and inaccurate and I will agree wholeheartedly with all of them. However, when you have at the proper equipment, this is minimized. I use a Polar FT80 HR monitor. Polar HR monitors have been shown to to be within a few % points of actual metabolic testing for your personalized output (metabolic testing is still advisable and New Leaf is brilliant for the Fitness industry!).
Beyond obtaining personalized information, many Polar HR monitors come with a few very important and highly recommended functions. These include the ability to measuring your HR variability. Simply put, HR variability is measure that can be used to see how stressed is the heart. It is an indicator of fatigue, which if you are a trainer, that should be VERY important for you to want to know before, during and after every session with your client.
We also need to keep in mind that hormonal responses are dictated by intensity levels and if we do not know the intensity level at which we (our client's) are working - how do we know what we or the client are getting...?
Lastly, all movement requires your heart. So all movement should be gaged. Many people are deceived into thinking that we only need to measure HR when we do "cardio". Well, every movement we do IS cardio because it requires your heart and lungs in some capacity.
Do I use HRT? - Everyday! Whether I am running, walking, lifting weights or swimming. Every movement involves the heart and I therefore measure it.
Pros:
1- allows you to know exactly what is happening to you or your client on a day to day, set, to set basis.
2- allows you to gage, monitor and track their ability to recover as well as the intensity at which they are really training. [When you get some specific HRT education you can learn how to calculate the training load of your sessions, which is the amount of stress you are placing on your body (this function is also built into the Polar Personal Trainer website
( http://www.polarpersonaltrainer.com ) - you can also get some very high level information and training through PTA GLOBAL (go to Fitness Connect on IDEA website > Find a Certification/Training > search for PTAG)
3- For clients like Karin has, the Polar FT60 or FT80 have functions that automatically adjust training zones based on the clients HR variability - very powerful AND very helpful! Yes, even for cardiac patients.
4- HRT is also an interactive tool that you and/or your clients can be engaged by to see the intensities you are training at and how fast someone actually recovers - this becomes a big deal for many of my clients and they love it. I no longer have to tell them to work harder or rest less or more - the monitor does it for me... Happy clients = happy trainer ;-)
Cons:
1- You have to wear a strap around your chest and a watch on your wrist (depending on what type of HRT system you use)
2- You may have to actually learn what HRT is and does for you and/or your client (or just get the Polar FT60 or FT80 and it does it for you)
3- You may enhance the results you get with your clients, which means you now have to reproduce this outcome.
I realize that this is a long winded answer, but in this industry, I believe we need to step up our game a bit and use technology that benefits us and our clients . HRT is objective feedback that doesn't lie when using a monitor and/or metabolic testing system. Do yourself a favor and look into it - get connected with PTA GLOBAL and learn a system to practically apply HRT for maximal results with all clients AND go get a Polar monitor - they have some of the best research and science in the world behind their products and products for all sorts of activities.
Thank you again Shawn for this great question ;-)
Now this is a great question - thank you for bringing it up! I agree with Joanne above that it would be good to clarify what you mean by Heart Rate Training (HRT) ... but I am going to give an answer based upon the notion that you are referring to using HR zones as a way to monitor you (or your client's) training... Is that fair enough?
As Karin mentioned above, HRT can be a bit misleading and even a bit frightening IF you do not have the proper equipment. However, when you have a good monitor/system, HRT is a necessity. Let me clarify... the heart is one of the few object and true biometric feedback mechanisms we have to gage the stress being placed on the body. If you do not use HRT as part of your methodology, you really are guessing at what is going on in you or your client.
Now, I realize that many people may jump on here and argue about the whole estimated calculation for HRmax (220-age) and that it is completely arbitrary output and inaccurate and I will agree wholeheartedly with all of them. However, when you have at the proper equipment, this is minimized. I use a Polar FT80 HR monitor. Polar HR monitors have been shown to to be within a few % points of actual metabolic testing for your personalized output (metabolic testing is still advisable and New Leaf is brilliant for the Fitness industry!).
Beyond obtaining personalized information, many Polar HR monitors come with a few very important and highly recommended functions. These include the ability to measuring your HR variability. Simply put, HR variability is measure that can be used to see how stressed is the heart. It is an indicator of fatigue, which if you are a trainer, that should be VERY important for you to want to know before, during and after every session with your client.
We also need to keep in mind that hormonal responses are dictated by intensity levels and if we do not know the intensity level at which we (our client's) are working - how do we know what we or the client are getting...?
Lastly, all movement requires your heart. So all movement should be gaged. Many people are deceived into thinking that we only need to measure HR when we do "cardio". Well, every movement we do IS cardio because it requires your heart and lungs in some capacity.
Do I use HRT? - Everyday! Whether I am running, walking, lifting weights or swimming. Every movement involves the heart and I therefore measure it.
Pros:
1- allows you to know exactly what is happening to you or your client on a day to day, set, to set basis.
2- allows you to gage, monitor and track their ability to recover as well as the intensity at which they are really training. [When you get some specific HRT education you can learn how to calculate the training load of your sessions, which is the amount of stress you are placing on your body (this function is also built into the Polar Personal Trainer website
( http://www.polarpersonaltrainer.com ) - you can also get some very high level information and training through PTA GLOBAL (go to Fitness Connect on IDEA website > Find a Certification/Training > search for PTAG)
3- For clients like Karin has, the Polar FT60 or FT80 have functions that automatically adjust training zones based on the clients HR variability - very powerful AND very helpful! Yes, even for cardiac patients.
4- HRT is also an interactive tool that you and/or your clients can be engaged by to see the intensities you are training at and how fast someone actually recovers - this becomes a big deal for many of my clients and they love it. I no longer have to tell them to work harder or rest less or more - the monitor does it for me... Happy clients = happy trainer ;-)
Cons:
1- You have to wear a strap around your chest and a watch on your wrist (depending on what type of HRT system you use)
2- You may have to actually learn what HRT is and does for you and/or your client (or just get the Polar FT60 or FT80 and it does it for you)
3- You may enhance the results you get with your clients, which means you now have to reproduce this outcome.
I realize that this is a long winded answer, but in this industry, I believe we need to step up our game a bit and use technology that benefits us and our clients . HRT is objective feedback that doesn't lie when using a monitor and/or metabolic testing system. Do yourself a favor and look into it - get connected with PTA GLOBAL and learn a system to practically apply HRT for maximal results with all clients AND go get a Polar monitor - they have some of the best research and science in the world behind their products and products for all sorts of activities.
Thank you again Shawn for this great question ;-)
1
I'm using POLAR FT7 for my training. There are lots of benefit using the heart rate as the guideline for your cardio training. One of the best is you can training on your VT (ventilatory treshold) or VO2max where you can burn the highest quality and quantity of fats contain in your body and from time being you can measure how you cardiopulmonary tolerance improve by monitoring your HRR (Heart Rate Recovery)
p.s:How to monitoring your HRR (Heart Rate Recovery)?
The healthier a person's heart is (fitter/better endurance), the quicker it returns to its normal beat; the less healthy the heart is, the longer it takes it to recover from a fitness test.
Cons:
The person who undergo medication such as beta-blocker or HPT(hypertension) suppressor drugs, heart rate training might be not appropriate due to the drugs effect. RPE (Rating of Perceived Exertion Scales) can be used.
Sharing Is Caring!
p.s:How to monitoring your HRR (Heart Rate Recovery)?
The healthier a person's heart is (fitter/better endurance), the quicker it returns to its normal beat; the less healthy the heart is, the longer it takes it to recover from a fitness test.
Cons:
The person who undergo medication such as beta-blocker or HPT(hypertension) suppressor drugs, heart rate training might be not appropriate due to the drugs effect. RPE (Rating of Perceived Exertion Scales) can be used.
Sharing Is Caring!
0
With my clients, I rarely use heart rate training. The main reason is that a lot of my clients have physical limitations that simply do not allow them to work hard enough to get them into a pre-defined heart rate zone. That is also the reason why I do not make much of it because I do not want that my clients feel inadequate for having failed yet another fitness bar which is too high for them.
However, with a different clientele, I would certainly use it, particularly, since my husband, who is also a trainer, is trained on the New Leaf Metabolic Test, and we have the equipment in our studio. That enables us to determine the proper heart rate rather than relying on the numerical determination of 200 minus age and whatever percentage of that you want to use.
Ultimately, there are neither pros nor cons. It all depends on the person, the circumstances and the goals.
However, with a different clientele, I would certainly use it, particularly, since my husband, who is also a trainer, is trained on the New Leaf Metabolic Test, and we have the equipment in our studio. That enables us to determine the proper heart rate rather than relying on the numerical determination of 200 minus age and whatever percentage of that you want to use.
Ultimately, there are neither pros nor cons. It all depends on the person, the circumstances and the goals.
0
Rodney put it best, there is really nothing else to add.
I personally use it and with the new HR monitors it makes it really easy to check the energy expenditures on any given wrokout and sometimes it is surprising.
I personally use it and with the new HR monitors it makes it really easy to check the energy expenditures on any given wrokout and sometimes it is surprising.
0
Shawn, I don't know if you subscribe to IDEA Fitness Journal as an ACE Certified Professional.
If you do there is an nice article in the June 2011 issue of the journal highlighting this topic.
Best.
If you do there is an nice article in the June 2011 issue of the journal highlighting this topic.
Best.
