Don't Forget to Monitor Your Heart Rate
An often-neglected component of cardiovascular exercise is the knowledge of where your heart rate is during the training session. How many times have you gone for a walk around your neighborhood without checking your heart rate? This happens often. Although there is nothing wrong with it, you may not get the results you are capable of producing. Here's why. Since walking is so common to us (we do it every day), our heart isn't really stimulated by the activity. What you need to do is know where your heart rate is at during the walk (or any other physical activity for that matter) to achieve beneficial results.
What should your heart rate be? Let's look at a simple formula for figuring this out.
Target Heart Rate = (220 - AGE) X .60 to .90
This is a simple formula for determining target heart rate; however, there are others that take into account other variables. Generally speaking, this formula is used most often for simplicity's sake. The number "220" represents, hypothetically, the maximum a heart can beat. In order to customize this formula you subtract your age from 220, giving you the maximum your heart can beat in one minute. The .60 and .90 represent a percentage of the maximum your heart can beat.
For example, if you are 40 years old, subtract 40 from 220, for a figure of 180. 180 x .60 = 108 beats per minute, or the minimum for your cardiovascular benefit; 180 x .90 = 162 beats per minute, or the maximum for you. The higher the percentage the more intensely you are working out. This higher intensity, if it is above the intensity you normally work out at, will force your body to change in order to adapt to the new stimulus. This change is normally positive.
It is important that you monitor your heart rate at various times throughout your cardiovascular activity, in order to achieve maximum results. You can monitor your heart rate by finding your pulse. Use a watch or clock with a second hand. Count for 6 seconds and multiply that number by 10; or count for 10 seconds and multiply that number by 6. Or use a heart rate monitor. Heart rate monitors can be purchased at stores that sell sporting goods or you can buy one online. They come in a variety of models, each one with a different set of bells and whistles. A standard model, measuring only heart rate, works just fine.
