| kathi96
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Hi there....
I purchased a Polar Heart Rate Monitor several weeks ago (Thanks Angela for the recommendation!). It has been very enlightening to see my actual time "in the zone" and calories burned. Sometimes it is irritating when I want to run, though......as I have a hard time staying in the zone....so then I am constantly stopping to walk, then I feel like I don't get a very good workout in (very little sweat!). I know sweat is not necessarily an indicator of a good workout.....but for some reason it makes me feel like it was! If I run very slow.....like 4.3 I can run for longer periods of time. On the elliptical I can keep it where it needs to be without a problem.
Anyways....my questions are......how important is it to stay in the zone? Is that the only time I am actually burning fat? And when I am not in the zone that means I am just burning calories consumed that day? Or should I even be worrying about it?? :)
Thanks for your help!
Kathi |
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Sun Apr 01, 2007 3:18 pm |
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| PapaBanucci
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Here's how one is supposedly supposed to brush one's teeth.
Quote: STEP 1: Squeeze some toothpaste onto a soft-bristled toothbrush. Your toothpaste should contain fluoride and bear the American Dental Association (ADA) seal.
STEP 2: Use short, back-and-forth brushing motions to clean the outside and inside surfaces of the teeth, as well as the chewing surfaces. Follow with up-and-down motions to clean the inside surfaces of the front teeth.
STEP 3: Brush along the gum line. This is extremely important, as gum disease starts here. Brush gently to avoid damaging your gums.
STEP 4: Make sure to brush your back molars, where bacteria like to hide.
STEP 5: Brush your tongue to remove bacteria that cause bad breath.
STEP 6: Spit out the toothpaste and rinse your mouth with water or mouthwash.
STEP 7: Try to floss at least once a day, since most adult cavities occur between teeth. The most important time to floss is before going to bed. Floss before or after you brush'either is fine. Guide the floss between the teeth and use it to gently rub the side of each tooth.
http://www.ehow.com/how_3063_brush-teeth.html
I suppose this would be the "optimal" way of brushing one's teeth.
So if one doesn't follow these 7 steps, what happens? Do teeth fall out? Are the benefits of what one does completely negated? No, it's just sub-optimal.
Just as any brushing is better than no brushing, any exercise is better than no exercise.
Anyhow, I wouldn't worry about it too much. Step at a time. Day at a time. Improvement at a time. |
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Sun Apr 01, 2007 7:18 pm |
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| littleg
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Anyways....my questions are......
how important is it to stay in the zone? Depends what your goals are
Is that the only time I am actually burning fat? No, your body always burns a combination of fat and carbohydrate for energy, the % mix varies with intensity. As intensity increases substrate use shifts towards more carb and less fat.
And when I am not in the zone that means I am just burning calories consumed that day? You are never just burning the calories you consumed that day. When you use any glycogen or fat it is always from "old" energy intake.
Or should I even be worrying about it?? Worried, no, thinking about it perhaps :)
You might find this article useful about the fallacy of "fat loss" HR zones. It is a bit jargony at times, but the main point should come through. Please excuse the fact that the author talked about loosing fat rather than losing fat :)
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/satter13.htm |
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Sun Apr 01, 2007 7:52 pm |
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| kathi96
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littleg - thank you for your response and very informative article, I appreciate it.
papa - not sure if you were making fun of me with the teeth brushing example...but I do appreciate your response anyways....good point on your comments.
I just want to be sure I am making the most of my exercise time, sorry if I asked a stupid question! Thanks for your help.
Kathi |
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Sun Apr 01, 2007 8:09 pm |
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| oldpjams
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| It's very challenging to stay in a particular zone outside esp. if the terrain varies. You'll get better at it. Just do your best. HR varies with fatigue and body temp anyway, so it's never exact. |
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Sun Apr 01, 2007 8:36 pm |
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| PapaBanucci
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kathi96 wrote: papa - not sure if you were making fun of me with the teeth brushing example...but I do appreciate your response anyways....good point on your comments.
Not at all.
I believe Jams and I have different orientation about HR as I believe we look at HR from a training vs. over-training vs. recovery perspective.
From a weight loss perspective, I would see it mostly about time management frankly. As well as effort management. Working out in the target zone is very time effective and effort effective for boasting the metabolism.
For me, the question is kinda, if you could spend less time exercising, and for the effort you do put into it, get as much benefit as possible, would you do it?
If yes, you may want to consider working your way (perhaps over a few weeks or even a couple months?) into consistently working out in the target zone.
If you get it, and get in the target zone, and get it done, it'll boast metabolism. And then metabolism is what will give you energy, and that feel-good-feeling, and burn calories 'round the clock.
It's not that less is in-effective. More that less is less effective if that makes any sense. |
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Sun Apr 01, 2007 10:02 pm |
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| luvs_torun
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Call me crazy.......(or maybe old fashioned) :wink:
I could never be a slave to a heart-rate monitor.......... |
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Sun Apr 01, 2007 10:09 pm |
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| PapaBanucci
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It's not about slavery. It's about gadgets. :wink:
Anyhow, I'm not running with one at all right now. I prefer my GPS [gadget]. Helps me from getting lost. |
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Sun Apr 01, 2007 10:28 pm |
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| luvs_torun
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PapaBanucci wrote: It's not about slavery. It's about gadgets. :wink:
Anyhow, I'm not running with one at all right now. I prefer my GPS [gadget]. Helps me from getting lost.
I LOVE my GPS!
Mostly because I am so anal about knowing the exact distance that I run..... |
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Sun Apr 01, 2007 10:32 pm |
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| oldpjams
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| How are we of different opinions on this, PB? I'm lost. I like HR. Prefer watts. Hate being a slave to charts, graphs, data recorded at 2sec intervals, etc, but have come to realize that what "feels right" to me usually isn't. Today was my second functional threshold test in two months(doing them monthly) and it was definitely a case of "show me gains or I'm going back to the old way of relying on 'feel.'" The experts were right...much bigger gains doing it their way. |
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Sun Apr 01, 2007 10:40 pm |
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| PapaBanucci
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| I like my GPS because it gives me distance, pace, and the way back. In the last 8 days I have run in CO, CA, CO, CA, & FL. |
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Sun Apr 01, 2007 10:42 pm |
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| AbramsAM
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kathi96 wrote: Hi there....
I purchased a Polar Heart Rate Monitor several weeks ago (Thanks Angela for the recommendation!).
Glad you like it Kathi! :D
Quote: It has been very enlightening to see my actual time "in the zone" and calories burned. Sometimes it is irritating when I want to run, though......as I have a hard time staying in the zone....so then I am constantly stopping to walk, then I feel like I don't get a very good workout in (very little sweat!).
I understand what you are saying - and like others have said before - try not to give the HRM power over what you do. If you go over your target heart rate - IMO, it is okay. As certain exercises get a little easier, your heart rate will begin to stabilize more when working out and an activity that had you at maybe 165HR for example, might only get you to 150 after your body gets in shape more.
Quote: how important is it to stay in the zone?
It depends on your goals and how you want to do your cardio. Some people like staying in their zone, but for me I feel like it takes too long! I can do HIIT and get as much calories burned as i would in an hour cardio session. We still need variety - but staying in the zone isn't necessarily the only method for success.
Quote: Is that the only time I am actually burning fat?
No, we burn fat at other times of the day and with a variety of different kinds of cardio sessions.
Quote: And when I am not in the zone that means I am just burning calories consumed that day?
We never burn just the calories we consumed in that day. Depending on the time of day and what we eat before working out - there are studies that say whether or not we are burning carbs or glycogen stores, but there isn't anything that specifically burns the calories consumed that day.
Quote: Or should I even be worrying about it?? :)
IMO, don't worry about it! just do your thing and remember the bottom line is calories in vs. calories out. Experiment with what your HRM tells you. One thing that I sometimes do is see how many calories I burn in a 60 min cardio session (like elliptical or treadmil) then do a 20 min HIIT and KEEP my HRM ON for a total of 60 mins and see how the calories burned are different. Often times they are the SAME for me, so I know that I am burning an equal amount of calories in less time with the HIIT - and that is because our bodies stay revved up longer with the HIIT. - although remember we need to mix things up and shouldn't do HIIT all the time or more than a few times a week ;)
Let me know how everything goes - and glad you like your HRM :D[/quote] |
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Mon Apr 02, 2007 11:11 pm |
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| A-Rod
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AbramsAM wrote: If you go over your target heart rate - IMO, it is okay. As certain exercises get a little easier, your heart rate will begin to stabilize more when working out and an activity that had you at maybe 165HR for example, might only get you to 150 after your body gets in shape more.
this would be true if you kept doing the same workout without increasing the intensity ... for me, as i get in better shape i'm able to work out harder/longer ... and i do that rather than trying to stay in the "fat burning zone" as my fitness improves.
jams ... you were speaking GREEK to most of us! :shock: |
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Mon Apr 02, 2007 11:18 pm |
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