| > | | | | Heart Rate. You can use this method with any piece |
| Would you like your cardio workouts to burn more | | | | of gym equipment and while walking or jogging |
| calories and get you really fit in the least amount of | | | | outdoors. |
| time? In about ten minutes you can learn a simple, | | | | WHAT YOU NEED TO REMEMBER is that, as your |
| gadget-free way to monitor your heart rate for optimal | | | | workout progresses, you may exercise at any one of |
| results. | | | | three levels or zones. I will describe each zone and |
| Every evening in the gym, the ladies (and a few guys) | | | | relate Heart Rate to how hard you will be breathing. |
| can be found working purposefully on bikes, treadmills | | | | ZONE 1. (50% - 65% OF MHR) Breathing is normal at |
| and elliptical trainers. The whir of machinery fills the air | | | | this level and you can easily carry on a conversation |
| and determination is fired by visions of losing weight | | | | with a workout partner. This is your warm-up and |
| and getting in really good shape. | | | | cool-down zone which will do little to get you fit unless |
| Some casually browse the pages of old magazines, | | | | you are very overweight, very out of shape or have |
| read the latest thriller or chat with friends as they | | | | been ill. |
| dutifully put in their "forty five minutes" of "slow and | | | | ZONE 2. (65% — 80% OF MHR) Your |
| steady". They are well-intentioned but clueless. I | | | | breathing becomes somewhat to very noticeable. This |
| question the results of their efforts but decide it is | | | | is your training zone where you will do most of your |
| unwise to offer unsolicited advice. | | | | work, develop cardiovascular fitness and burn calories. |
| One lady, however, is focused and pays attention to | | | | At the lower end of the range (65%), you will be able |
| what she is doing. She periodically refers to the | | | | to speak to a partner easily but your speech is |
| treadmill's glowing red display and adjusts her pace | | | | somewhat broken as you deliver phrases between |
| accordingly. Good for her! She is monitoring her heart | | | | breaths. At the top end (80%) you will be breathing |
| rate. | | | | very hard. Though conversation is possible, breathing |
| What she knows, that the others don't know, is that | | | | may be your priority. |
| your Heart Rate is a dead accurate indicator of just | | | | ZONE 3. (ABOVE 80% OF MHR) Entering zone three, |
| how hard your body is working. This is the best way | | | | you begin panting and gasping for breath. This level |
| to make sure that you are exercising vigorously | | | | can be hazardous for many of us and is best |
| enough to improve your fitness level but not so hard | | | | reserved for competitive athletes. |
| as to overexert yourself. | | | | TO GET FIT IN THE SHORTEST AMOUNT OF TIME, |
| This is also a great way to lose weight and get really | | | | DO THIS: |
| fit in the shortest amount of time. What you have to | | | | 1. Tell your doctor that you are going to begin |
| do is exercise at the correct intensity within an optimal | | | | exercising at a level where you will be breathing |
| range. This is your Target Heart Rate (THR) which is | | | | vigorously. Ask if, based on your physical condition, you |
| expressed as a percentage of your Maximum Heart | | | | should limit your effort and if so, to what level. |
| Rate (MHR). | | | | 2. Warm up at a conversational pace and then |
| You can calculate your personal Target Heart Rate, | | | | increase your speed or intensity level to 70% - 75% of |
| but this gets a bit tricky. You have to know your | | | | MHR (breathing strongly) so that after about five |
| Resting Heart Rate (RHR) and plug it into a couple of | | | | minutes you feel fatigue setting in. Back off and catch |
| formulas: (MHR — RHR X (50% - 80%) + RHR | | | | your breath at 65% of MHR or below. |
| = THR) where (Age — 220 = MHR). | | | | 3. Now really pick up the pace (fit walkers find a hill) |
| You also have to know how long to exercise, at which | | | | and push to 75% to 80% of MHR (breathing |
| point in the optimal range (50% to 80%) and you have | | | | vigorously). Hold it there, from one to three minutes, until |
| to monitor your heart rate while you are working out. | | | | your body is asking for a break and then slow down |
| There are charts that estimate your THR for you but | | | | to 60% of MHR, or below, until you recover. |
| their accuracy can vary, up or down, by as much as | | | | Repeat, gradually increasing the number, duration and |
| ten percent. | | | | intensity of intervals as you are able. If you challenge |
| Confused? Don't be. Dump the math and take a | | | | yourself to work hard your workout should, at most, |
| low-tech approach. You already have a simple, built-in | | | | take no longer than thirty minutes. |
| heart rate monitor that is perfectly calibrated to your | | | | Cool down and have a refreshing drink of water. |
| body. | | | | These interval workouts, using your breath to gauge |
| And, you already know how to use it because it's as | | | | intensity will work very effectively to burn calories and |
| simple as watching your breathing. Your respiration | | | | get you in shape. |
| rate is how you monitor the intensity level of your | | | | And always remember "Be StrongÂ…. |
| exercise and it relates very closely to your actual | | | | |