What is the heart rate monitor
The heart rate monitor is a simple device that can instantly detect the heart rate, a parameter that indicates the number of beats that the heart makes in a minute.
In the early 1980s, when these devices were used to monitor and improve sports performance, the instrumentation was rather cumbersome and very expensive. Today on the market you can find many types of heart rate monitors by weight and low cost. Some models are able to offer a wide range of functions, such as pedometer, caloric and oxygen consumption, speed, altimeter, partial time, etc. The most advanced models allow you to download the data of your training on a personal computer and to draw up detailed graphs and statistics on the performance. Often the excessive number of functions makes the instrument difficult to use.
Use and maintenance
As we have seen, the heart rate monitor is made up of two distinct components: a chest strap and a wrist receiver watch. The first, ergonomic, is placed at the level of the heart, at the lower edge of the chest. Thanks to an adjustable-length elastic it is possible to keep the band attached to the chest without forcing it too much. Before using the heart rate monitor, care should be taken to moisten the electrodes slightly and make them adhere well to the skin. The ideal would be to use a saline solution such as contact lens liquid or saliva in order to promote the transmission of the electromagnetic pulse. The batteries placed inside the transmitter have an autonomy of about 2000-3000 hours.
The wrist receiver, also battery powered, should preferably be placed at a distance less than 60 cm from the electrodes. At the end of the use it is advisable to completely dry the band since the transmitter is activated when the electrodes are wet and turns off when they are completely dry. If the chest pulse sensor is not dried after use it may remain activated longer than necessary, consuming the batteries prematurely.
The wrist receiver is the true heart of the heart rate monitor. Inside there is a more or less complex software able to receive and process the impulses transmitted by the chest belt.
Heart rate monitor and heart rate
As we have seen, the heart rate monitor is a tool that can detect heart rate. This parameter is closely related to the intensity of the exercise. During a physical effort to allow a greater supply of nutrients and oxygen to the muscles the heart beats increase. The more intense the effort, the more the pulse rises. However, there is a limit beyond which the heart rate cannot increase further. In this case we speak of maximum heart rate. Although this parameter is physiological and variable from individual to individual, there is a formula that can calculate the maximum theoretical heart rate of an athlete. The discovery of this formula dates back to over 30 years ago and relates the Fc to the age of the subject according to the rule of KORVONEN from the name of the Finnish scholar who first elaborated it:
FcMax = 220 - age
Based on these parameters, a person aged 20 will, for example, have a maximum heart rate of 200 bpm (beats per minute).
The reliability of this formula is limited and its results are valid only for population studies; in fact, the existence of a difference between the real Fc max and the theoretical Fc max that can reach up to 10-15% has been demonstrated.
So, considering the previous case, a 20-year-old person could have a real maximum heart rate of 180 or 220 bpm. Hence the need to properly calibrate the heart rate monitor.
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