Heart-rate training is one of the highly effective ways to improve overall performance and achieve fitness goals, especially for beginners. This form of training involves using a monitor to track your heart rate while exercising. The monitor shows you when to work harder or slow down.
Here are five reasons why you should consider heart-rate training.
1. Motivation. Switching up your workout routine prevents exercise from becoming a chore. This ultimately motivates you to keep at it long after you see the results. Heart-rate training encourages you to include a variety of exercises in your workout in order to hit the right ‘zone’ and reach your goal.
2. Train more efficiently. Whether your goal is to lose weight, improve your fitness or engage in productive activity while recovering from an injury, heart-rate training pushes you to find the right balance. Keeping track of the heart-rate monitor on your fitness tracker is a smart way to gauge whether each session is working for you, or if you need to make adjustments.
3. Avoid injury. This form of training is also one of the safest ways to maintain physical activity during recovery periods. It is also an effective alternative if weight training is part of your routine. This is because it allows for muscle recovery after a strenuous session.
4. Burn calories. If you’re looking to lose weight, this is a perfect way to burn calories because it trains the body to burn fat more efficiently. You can work with your trainer to identify the heart-rate zone you should be aiming for in order to lose the weight. You can also use this training to create a strategic programme for better results.
5. Maintain a healthy heart. The heart pumps oxygen-rich blood to all the major organs in the body. But, poor fitness can negatively impact this. Heart-rate training effectively accelerates this process, promoting a lower resting rate. This is a plus as it decreases your chances of developing heart disease in the future.
Chantal Grobler, country manager for TomTom, advises that you work with a professional trainer to help determine which of the four heart-rate zones you should aim to reach with every workout. This is based on your age, level of health and fitness as well as fitness goals. This will also help you to find your maximum heart rate, and ensure that your fitness efforts don’t reach the unhealthy territory.
