When the heart rate monitor came on the scene, it provided a window into the condition of the heart in real time. Athletes could see, beat by beat,  when they should slow down, speed up and how much more exertion their body could handle. Today, heart rate monitoring technology has evolved into easy-to-use, affordable devices accessible to elite and amateur athletes alike.

With many of you deep in training for upcoming summer and fall races, we want to give you 3 reasons why you should train and compete with a heart rate monitor.

So You Know Your Exertion Level

Imagine you've just started running a 10k race. You’re feeling great, but there is big hill up ahead. As you start up the incline your breathing is getting labored and your legs are feeling heavy. You don’t know if you should slow down and walk to save some energy for the rest of the run, or power through it. With one quick check of your heart rate monitor, you will have you answer. You can see that you are far below your maximum heart rate zone, and you can continue to run up the hill. The heart rate monitor serves to give you a gauge of your intensity whenever you need it. That feedback is crucial for those who want to know when to push and when to let up.

So You Can Better Pace Yourself

Most runners use time and distance to calculate their average pace. Say for instance you run a 10K in one hour. If you are thirty minutes into your run, but have only run 2.5k – or a quarter of the distance - logic says you need to pick up your speed to meet your previous goal time. But how do you know that your body can handle increasing your speed that much? Using your heart rate monitor will let you know your maximum level of healthy exertion. It can calculate for you the output you can give and maintain for the remainder of your run.

To Prevent Over and Under training

If you are new to a sport it’s easy to increase your speed or distance too quickly before your body is physically able to handle it. Maybe you just completed your first 5K but  for your second run, you think you can shave 10 minutes off your initial time. Using a heart rate monitor will ensure that you are exercising within healthy levels of exertion for your heart. In fact, most heart rate monitors will beep when your heart rate starts to creep above acceptable levels and into your maximum heart rate zones. That means, you keep from injuring your muscles and your respiratory system.

On the flip side, a heart rate monitor can also prevent under training. Unlike the potential injuries caused by over training, under training simply means you aren't pushing yourself hard enough. Maybe you've reached a plateau in your workouts and you are stuck there. Using a heart rate monitor will remind you that you can actually push yourself to run up that hill rather than walk and still be in within an acceptable heart rate zone. A heart rate monitor acts like a coach to help you better meet your specific health goals.

Ready to try out a heart rate monitor for yourself? Check out our recommended heart rate monitors for running:

• Soleus 3.0 GPS w/ Heart Rate Monitor
• Timex Run Trainer
• Garmin FR70 w/ Foot Pod

HeartMonitors is proud to announce a new online tool called the “Matcher,” it's the world’s first heart rate monitor and fitness device finder - and it’s only on HeartMonitors.

With so many fitness devices on the market today, we know that most people don’t have the time to go through every single product description and review and do a side-by-side comparison. But we’re betting that you do know the features that you want out of your fitness device. Now, all you have to do is check a few boxes and in seconds, our Matcher tool will present a list of fitness devices that best fit your specific needs.

Test out our Matcher now! Getting started is easy, just click the link and look at the left-hand side of the page. Start out by checking your fitness goals:  Fit Lifestyle – Advanced Performance  – Legendary Athlete.

Next, pick the activities you want to use your heart rate monitor or fitness device for – hiking, biking, cycling, swimming. Then, check all of the features you want your device to have – like calories burned, GPS, the list goes on and on. If you are looking for more specific features like women specific products or blue tooth-enabled products, simply click on the More Features tab and a drop down menu of additional options will be presented to you to choose from.

Once you’ve checked all of the boxes that apply, the Matcher will provide you with a list of products on the right-hand side of the screen that best fit your needs. What are you waiting for? Find your fitness device soul mate today!

I’ve been in the market for a better causal running watch for a while. My current running watch is the Garmin 305 Forerunner. I paid more than $200 for it three years ago while training for my first marathon. While I do love the capabilities of the watch, my biggest complaint is its size. It’s too bulky and on long runs it actually ends up causing wrist pain. On shorter runs I barely ever use the chest strap and heart rate monitor feature, as I only really want to know my time, pace and distance. 

That’s why the Soleus GPS 1.0 is perfect for me and other runners, walkers and cyclists who want a simple, sleek, affordable watch that can give you this information.

If you have just bought this running watch or are looking to buy, there are a few things you’ll want to know up front. The first is about setting up the watch. I have to be honest here and let you know that it’s not as user-friendly as a set up process as other running watches I’ve used. That being said, it just takes a little time. I’m not a direction reader by nature, but I didn’t find myself going to them. The directions provided don't really help answer your questions so I had to look online for many of the answers. I’ll walk you through some of the biggies that caused me frustration so it will be a breeze for you. But let’s start from the beginning.

When you get your new watch you’re going to want to charge it. It comes with a USB charging cord and clip. The clip end fits snuggly on the watch and the UBS has to charge through a computer port or, if you have a wall plug/USB adapter that will work too.

Out of the box to full charge took me less than 30 minutes. Then I started the set up. I always like to know the amount of calories burned from a run (so I can eat more later) so I started out by setting up my gender/age/weight/height. Since this watch doesn’t have a heart rate feature, it calculates the calories burned by a simple body weight and distance run equation. 

To set up your user preferences hit Mode until Set comes up, wait a second and then hit the Enter button. Wait until Auto Lap comes up you can then use the +/_ key to find User. Once User comes up, hit Enter and then add your gender and age. For setting your weight it’s initially going give you the units in KG. It took me forever to figure this out so here’s a little nugget of gold for you --To change this you have to go back into the Set tab and find Unit. There you will choose Miles, which then changes the weight to lbs and the height to inches from cm.

Once you’ve set your preferences, you are ready to hit the road. Once outside (and standing still) Hit Mode until Run comes up. The GPS will then begin to locate satellites. I’m happy to report that this took me just under 1 minute, much less time than with my Garmin 305. Then just hit Start and you are ready to run. Throughout your run you can toggle the View button to see your Pace, Speed, Calories and Clock. Each mode lists your distance at the top.  When you finish your run, hit the same start button and you are able to save your workouts but holding down the Save button. You can then review previous workout data later.

The watch doesn’t have an On/Off button like I am used to having with my Garmin. To turn off the GPS signal to save battery life (which is said to last 8 hours in between charges), simply hold down the GPS button for 2 seconds. Then hit Enter when you are given the option to turn GPS Off.  This is another thing that took a bit of time researching on the Internet. You can also use the watch on a bike to measure your speed, distance, pace and calories burned.

Overall I was very happy with this watch, especially for the price. It’s super comfortable to wear. I also like that it comes in fun colors like the bright all-yellow version and the back with a hint of hot pink – much more fun than my current Garmin. Just be prepared to spend a little time with the set up. Once you get used to the features and buttons this a great little running companion to have – even for a cheapskate like me.

If you have questions about the product let us know. We’re always here to help!

Today, more than 20,000 runners will hit the streets of Boston, putting months of training to the test.  To even enter the race, those runners had to successfully complete at least one previous marathon within a special qualifying time for their age division. The Boston qualifying time is considered the measuring stick of a fast runner and, simply a dream goal for thousands of others. According to statistics from Runner’s World, only about 10 percent of American marathoners are fast enough to quality for Boston. That exclusivity only adds to the allure of the storied race.

And, for 2013, those qualifying times just got a little harder reach. A full five minutes have been shaved off each time category for next year.  So how do you as a runner, get faster? Even if you’re not trying to qualify for Boston, most people who participate in any type of running events, from 5K’s to half marathons want to improve their base running pace and become faster.

And we’re going to tell you one of the best ways to do it. That’s right, you guessed it - by using a heart rate monitor during training. More and more studies are showing that to increase your base running pace over time, it’s important to do a healthy dose of your training within your aerobic zone. Makes sense in theory, but many athletes instead follow the popular motto, “no pain no gain” and train into what is known as the anaerobic zone.  While that’s great during interval training sessions, during long runs over 45 minutes, staying in the aerobic zone will mean training your body to more efficiently utilize its fat for energy. And the better you utilize fat, the better you preform.

That’s where your heart rate monitor comes in. Using a heart rate monitor means it will alert you when you are working too hard and when you start pushing above your aerobic zone. It’s easy to do if you’re used to pushing yourself to the limit. You may even feel like you’re going too slow when training in your aerobic zone.  But the key is consistency.

In addition to training your body how to most efficiently use fat for energy, doing set training workouts in the aerobic zone reduces potential injury and aids in faster recovery times.  All of which led to better, longer training sessions. But of course, this all happens over time. Experts say it takes consistent training for at least four to six weeks before you will notice improvements in overall performance and speed.

So strap your heart rate monitor on, dial into your aerobic zone and get training. We’ll see you at the finish line!

Don’t let this happen to you. Heart rate monitors are powerful tools that can prove to be an invaluable training companion. But they can also be overwhelming and confusing when you first start out. We want to make sure your love affair with your new heart rate monitor lasts the life of the product. But the first step to loving is understanding. So let’s start off talking about how a heart rate monitor works.

How it Works

A heart rate monitor uses a chest strap to measure the electrical activity of the heart. It sends the information to a receiver, most commonly worn on the wrist. In addition to relaying your heart’s beats per minute (BPM), heart rate monitors can do other cool things, like recoding the number of calories you've burned. You can set up your preferences to get calorie totals for each workout and even weekly totals.

If you are just getting back into exercising and your goal is weight loss, a heart rate monitor can help you get there faster by letting you know at what point your heart is working in the zone where it burns the most fat.

Once you open your heart rate monitor you’ll need to set up your customized profile. This means inputting your age and weight. Check your product manual for instructions on how to do this. If you are a visual learner, visit the item’s corresponding product page on HeartMonitors.com and watch a handy, step-by-step tutorial video. 

What It Can Do

Once you've set up your profile, the heart rate monitor will calculate your max heart rate from the information you've provide it. It’s important to understand your max heart rate and your training zones because all those blinking numbers your device shows you during a workout are based off those zones.

Click here for a quick crash course in heart rate zones.

If your goal is to burn fat, you’ll want to stay within Zone 2 – the fat burning zone where you are at 60-70 percent of your max heart rate. One of the great things about a heart rate monitor is not only can you see what zone you are in as you exercise, your device will often warn you if you heart rate goes above or below that range so you can adjust as needed. Check with your manual to see how to set the various notifications to your zone preferences.  Many heart rate monitors will also give you the option to view your heart rate in BPM (beats per minute) or by a percentage of your max heart rate. (The latter option will mean less math for you).

As you get more comfortable using your heart rate monitor and knowing what zones you want to be in for your individual goals, you can start testing interval training methods – keeping your heart rate lower to build endurance or raising your BPM to build speed.

For beginners, starting with a simple heart rate monitor like the Timex Target Trainer which has an interval timer, or the Timex Zone Trainer, which has a user- friendly graphic display, are both affordable options.

If you are a competitive runner and want to know how to use a heart rate monitor to go faster and build speed, stay tuned. That will be our next blog topic.

Now, in case you're a data-nut and interested in the nitty-gritty of your training watch, we've just wrapped a "How To" video to serve up just that. See how to set up your user data, turn on the GPS, configure run mode, start training, and review, save, and delete your workout sessions.

Enjoy the Timex Marathon GPS Watch "How To" Video!

The heartmontiors.com blog is coming out of its long winter hibernation.  Over the last few months, we have been so busy finding you the best deals on fitness gear - from heart monitors, to Garmin watches, to GPS sport watches -- that we’ve gotten a little behind on our updates.

But never fear. Just like all of you tough-as-nails athletes out there preparing for your next triathlon, marathon or cycling event, we too have committed ourselves to a strict regime of blog posts over the next few months (complete with Gu and hydration breaks).

Here at Heartmonitors.com we don’t just want to sell you the latest fitness gear, our mission is to provide a community where every level of athlete can find information on how to best reach their fitness goals. It doesn’t matter if your want to run a 5K or an ultra marathon, we will strive to provide you with information that is relevant to you. From product reviews, to how-to articles, to the latest product launches, you can find it all here. We encourage you to read often, comment more and train harder.

We are here to support you.

And, as part of our commitment to support your fitness goals, we’d like to introduce you to what may just become your favorite new workout partner – the Timex Marathon GPS Watch.

Heartmonitors.com has arranged an exclusive sale with our friends over at Timex.  Starting today, you will be able to order the Timex Marathon GPS Watch here for just $99.95 (retail value $125) before all of your friends. 

So, what is so great about this watch?

If you’ve ever been running, cycling, hiking or walking and found yourself wondering “How fast I’m going?” This watch will give you the answer -- and a whole lot more.

The Timex Marathon GPS Watch provides a real-time break down of your speed, distance, pace and the number of calories burned. It can also store up to 30 workout sessions on its internal memory and you have the power to delete workout sessions or save and review later for training purposes. What more could you ask for from a speed and distance watch?

For all the ladies out there, we know what your thinking, if it can do all that, it must be huge, another one of those GPS sports watches that will leave my wrist store after every long run. Not the case with the Timex Marathon GPS Watch. This watch is by far the smallest GPS unit out from Timex. It’s super slim and oh-so-easy to use and comes in all black or black with blue accents. Buy the new Timex Marathon GPS today while supplies last, exclusively on HeartMonitors.com.

Plus, at 15% or $20 off our already low prices, we guarantee that you won't find a better deal on any of our premium heart rate monitors, Including:

Garmin.
Timex.
Polar.
More!

Finally, no matter which offer you choose to take advantage of, we're giving away FREE Priority Mail Shipping on all orders.

The Scosche myTREK is a heartmonitor that straps to your forearm and provides feedback through an iPhone app.

What our customers love most about the Scosche myTrek is that it is super simple to use. All you have to do is pair the myTrek to your iPhone and download the free myTrek iPhone app (your phone will guide you through after successfully pairing).

Next, you will establish your heart rate zones by entering your age, gender, weight and resting heart rate. Then create a workout. Choose the type of activity, your target training zone, and type of workout. Next press the Start Workout button and the Schosche will begin recording your workout.

When you are done working out, you can view a chart showing your heart rate and check your stats: average pulse, distance, calories burned, average speed and workout time. All the workouts are saved to a calendar, so you can go back to check earlier workouts.

While you’re working out, you can listen to music from your iTunes library. And by using easily accessible buttons on the armband, you can even pause, play, adjust volume and skip tracks. If you’re not in your target heart rate zone, you’ll hear prompts to work harder or to slow down in between songs. You’ll also get updates as you progress through your workout, based on distance, time or calories. And you can always check your progress onscreen.

The Scosche myTrek is a simple to use and strapless heart rate monitor that allows you to challenge yourself without pushing your physical limits.

The new Timex Run Trainer is everything a runner could ask for.  It has both a complex workout support as well as s simple run recording.  Not to mention, it has timers and alert functions galore (speed, pace, recovery, eating, drinking and more.)

Summary of features:

A great deal! Under $150 with the TIMEX $50 rebate till the end of the year.

• Tons of features for the money
• Easily and accurately tracks via GPS
• Supports ANT+ Heart Rate Straps and Footpods
• Completely waterproof to 50 meters.
• Hydration/Nutrition (eat/drink) alerts are super cool.
• Heart Race, and Pace alerts are on the money.
• Complete and total customization of data fields
• Five preset heart rate zones and a customizable zone.
• Upgraded and softer strap
• Timers Galore. Loaded with lots of good stop watch and timing capabilities,
• 8 Hour Battery life in full GPS mode.
• Indiglo Night Light
• Complete and total customization of data fields.

All this just in time for Christmas!

Rebate form link: http://www.timex.com/info/TimexRunTrainer_Rebate