Why monitor heart rates?
One of the goals of your aerobic workout is to improve your cardiovascular fitness. Heart rates taken during exercise indicate how hard your heart is working. Your heart rate is actually a motivating friend when you learn to monitor it properly, for this allows you to objectively detect beneficial changes which you can’t otherwise see. The benefits of monitoring your heart rate are: • Safety. The heart rate is a gauge by which to assess the intensity of your workout to make sure you’re not overexerting or overextending yourself. For example, if your heart rate is above your working heart rate range, it’s telling you to slow down a little and use fewer arm movements. • Effectiveness. If your heart rate indicates you’re not working hard enough, then you can work out a little more vigorously to maximize the effectiveness of your workout. To maximize your aerobic workout, you need to stay in your working heart rate range for at least 20 to 30 minutes continuously. • Incentive. By monitorin
