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Maximizing Exercise: How to Monitor Your Pulse Rate
 A pulse is defined as the number of times the heart beats in one minute - i.e. the "heart rate." While pulse rates vary from individual to individual, it is a fact that a pulse remains lower when a body is at rest and increases when we exercise.
Because more oxygen-rich blood is required by the body during exercise, the pulse reflects this in its intrinsic beating. It is often concluded by health experts that the most benefit and gain in the area of lowering any kind of risks comes when exercise is performed in the target heart rate zone.
In some instances, doctors may decrease a patient's target heart rate zone when starting an exercise regimen 50-percent.
Normally, adequately healthy persons are not advised to exercise above 85-percent of their maximum heart rate because intensity at this level tends to increase both cardiovascular and orthopedic risk without healthy benefit from the exercise. Further, when beginning an exercise program - of any kind - most people are advised to gradually build to a level within his or her target heart rate zone, even more vital if the individual has not exercised on a regular basis in the past.
Learning whether or not an individual is exercising in his or her target zone - between 60 and 80-perecent of the maximum heart rate - is as simple as ceasing exercise and checking the 10-second pulse: If it falls below the target zone, it's advised that the rate of exercise be increased and if it's above the target zone, it's recommended the rate of exercise be decreased.
Personal Training in Your Home
Whether someone is just starting a fitness program or considers him or herself an experienced athlete, there can be great benefit from paying attention to heart rate during exercise. Often called a "window into the body" - much like the eyes are thought of as "windows to the soul" - heart rate provides minute-to-minute feedback regarding physical condition based on all the factors affecting it including exercise intensity, diet, temperature, humidity, altitude, fatigue and more.
By enlisting the assistance of one of our expert personal trainers, someone looking to get into better shape can learn about heart function during exercise, how heart rate monitors work, simple ways to use a heart rate monitor and advanced heart rate training techniques.
Whether it's designing a personalized program that ensures achievement of fitness goals or determining the precise and optimal pulse rate for each day's workout, devices such as heart rate monitors are paramount in keeping workout enthusiasts on target - in fact, it's almost like having a personal trainer that tells the client when to push harder and when to back off.
Other products such as power meters and accelerometers are available to compare a body's input - as measured by pulse rate - with its output power, or pace; yielding a combination that allows training at an individual's peak for the coveted competitive edge.
Our Trainers Can Help Find That Ideal Pulse Range
Making oneself aware of pulse rate numbers helps avoid injury when starting an exercise regimen and our trainers can help an individual find that edge - we measure the effectiveness of various exercise routines and determine if that person is actually over or under-training.
By monitoring a heart rate throughout an exercise session, efforts in real time can be adjusted so that desired goals and results are achieved, and that's what we're all about...because cardiovascular health, body fat reduction techniques, stamina and endurance improvement and lean-muscle mass buildup is so very vital in keeping a healthy mind and body.
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Blueberry Banana Bread-Cake
Courtesy of Live, Laugh, Eat
Packed with omega- 3, antioxidants, potassium, fiber and mono-unsaturated fatty acids.
Give this heart healthy recipe a shot for the upcoming holidays.
Ingredients
- 2 cups whole grain flour ( 1/2 c each of oat flour, oat bran, spelt flour, and whole wheat pastry flour)
- 1/4 cup ground flax seeds
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 2 med-sized bananas
- 2 TBSP avocado
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup stevia baking blend (or sugar/honey/agave nectar)
- 1/2 cup plain nonfat greek yogurt
- 1 cup blueberries
Directions
Preheat oven to 325* F. In a large bowl, combine dry ingredients. Set aside 1/2 a banana and mash into small chunks with a fork. Blend together wet ingredients using a food processor, blender, or a whisk (whisk it well!) and then mix in the banana chunks. Add the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until just incorporated. Fold in 3/4 cup of blueberries. Pour batter into a loaf pan and top with remaining blueberries. Bake for 45 minutes or when inserted toothpick comes out clean.
Substitutions
- avocado was used for oil or butter
- whole wheat pastry flour or all-purpose flour for the whole grain flours above
- Increase ground flax seed for more omega- 3 and fiber.
- sugar/agave/honey for stevia
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