Indoor cycling is a high-intensity exercise meant to boost your cardiovascular fitness. Whether you are in a instructor-led class or cycling on your own, knowing information about your heart rate will help dictate how you exercise. The best heart rate monitor for indoor cycling will include the right accessories and features to complement your workout.
Accessories
When considering the best heart rate monitor for indoor cycling, consider which monitors work best with accessories that favor indoor cycling. Cadence sensors attach to your feet and transmit information to your monitor about how fast you are pedaling. Monitor mounting accessories can attach your heart rate monitor to the handlebars of your indoor cycling machine via the monitor's wrist strap, which make it easier to read and use your monitor while on the bike.
Sensor
Heart rate monitors differ by the type of sensor they use, either a wireless chest strap sensor or a sensor integrated into the wrist device. Wireless sensors transmit your heart rate information to your monitor, rather than taking your heart rate at your wrist. This wireless sensor type allows you to attach your monitor to the handlebars. Monitors that do use integrated sensors are less accurate and cannot be removed from the wrist for handlebar attachment.
Features
Indoor cycling relies upon the use of interval training to raise and lower the heart rate throughout the workout. This type of exercise, known as anaerobic, has extraordinary cardiovascular fitness benefits, but relies upon specific heart rate monitoring, so you know when you've reached ideal training zone, either aerobic or anaerobic. To figure this out, choose a monitor that helps you use information about your maximum heart rate and your target heart rate range to define your aerobic and anaerobic fitness zones. Look for monitors that use alarms or warning systems to help you identify when you enter and leave your target indoor cycling zones.
Target Heart Rate
Use your heart rate monitor to identify and stay within your target heart rate range. To calculate your target rate range, first find you maximum heart rate. Maximum heart rate for men is equal to 220 minus age. Max heart rate for women is 206 minus 88 percent of age. Target heart rate range is from 50 percent to 85 percent of your maximum heart rate. Input this range into your heart rate monitor to help guide your indoor cycling workouts.
Member Comments