polar heart rate monitor

[mandimoo]

i understand from answer to a previous q. that a polar heart rate monitor is compatible with a lot of gym based equip. but i dont go the the gym... so how would a polar heart rate monitor interact with my exercise bike at home? would i just look at the display on the wristwatch rather than the gym equipment display? ive never used a heart rate monitor before and im trying to decide if i want one.

[Velvetee]

They come with a digital type watch, which displays the heartrate. Yes you can look at the watch, you don't even need to be wearing it, you can attach the watch to the bike. Unless your bike at home is Polar enabled, it will not link in with your monitor.

Heartrate monitors are useful, as for any cardiovascular exercise to be usueful, you need to be working at between 65 and 85% of your maximum heartrate, of course depending on fitness level.

They are also useful, if you had any health issues, where you were advised to work at a moderate intensity (65%), so for safety reasons, you could monitor that you weren't working too hard and your heartrate was not elevating too high.