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Understanding your heart rate ... by Karli Taylor

We live in a society that thrives on instant gratification- we want satisfaction, and we want it now. When we put effort into something, we want to see an immediate result-right?

I hate to be the one to tell you this, but fitness doesn't work this way...Not exactly, anyway.

The problem is that we are looking for results that we can see- something tangible that we can wrap our hands around. Often with fitness, these tangible results take weeks or months to achieve. This does not mean, however, that there is nothing happening during this period of change. Even though you may not see movement on the scale or inches on your biceps, your health is changing with every single step you take on that treadmill.

Don't believe me? Think I'm trying to sugar coat things and make you feel better about not losing 10 pounds this week like they did on that show we talked about last week? What proof do I have that things are changing under your skin? Let's talk about your heart rate.

The rate at which your heart beats before, during and after a workout can be a great measure of your progress.

The first thing you need to do is figure out what your resting heart rate (RHR) is. If you wake up naturally without an alarm, take your pulse for a full minute before sitting up in bed. If you do wake up with an alarm, turn it off and lay still for 2-3 minutes before doing the same. Log this number for 3 or 4 days in a row and take the average. If you are just starting a fitness regimen, write this number down and do the same exercise about a month from now. You will more than likely see a significant drop in your RHR. This drop means that your body is running more efficiently!

If you are already reasonably fit, your resting heart rate may not change too much over time. It can only go so low!! For you, your recovery heart rate may be the number to play with.

The more fit and efficient your body becomes, the more quickly you will be able to recover from an intense effort. Here is an easy way to measure that so you can keep track of your progress:

During your normal workout, increase the intensity until your breathing becomes labored and talking is difficult. Keep this intensity for about 2 minutes and log your heart rate. Now reduce the intensity to an extremely slow pace that causes no muscle tension- almost to the point where you are barely moving. Take your heart rate after one minute at this pace. The more the count drops, the fitter you are!

Focus on these physiological changes for the first 2 months or so of your new routine- by then, the physical changes will be staring you in the face when you look in the mirror.