Knowing the Different Types of Heart Rate Monitors
Heart rate monitors, as the name suggests, monitors the rate of your heart beat whether you are at rest or in motion. Apart from its obvious medical benefits, HRM’s can also measure the amount of calories burned during your workout, a useful device for people who want to keep the fat off.
To measure heart rate, these devices are designed to be worn with a chest or wrist strap for more accurate measurements. Apart from the chest and wrist strap models, strapless heart rate monitors as well as HRM wristwatches are fast gaining popularity among athletes, weight watchers, as well as medical patients.
Heart Rate Monitors with Chest or Wrist Strap
The most popular models in this category are the wristwatch models which can also be worn as fashion watches. During workout, however, these watches transform to heart rate monitors and are worn with chest straps, a strong band that fits snugly around the chest for fast heartbeat analysis. It also gives out the most accurate readings as it is strapped close to the heart.
During intense workouts, the HRM emits a beeping alert when the heart rate exceeds its safe limit. Other features in these models include interval timers and stopwatch.
Strapless HRM’s
If you prefer not to wear straps or wristwatches, there are strapless heart rate monitors as well where you do not need to strap a band on your chest. This HRM model gives a heart rate reading by placing two fingers on the sensor for a few seconds. This device measures the heart’s electrical stimulation and gives out the heart rate on the display.
Strapless HRM’s have their drawbacks, however. One downside of these models is that they don’t allow the user to do constant readings. Their inability to give out precise readings all the time is another major downside of these types of heart rate monitors.
