I have been working out and am now using a cool heart rate monitor.  I just really dont know what it means.  I have been walking 3-4.5 miles a day followed by 30 minutes of weight training.  My last heart rate reading for yesterday was 146 average with a max of 165.  On this particular day, I walked 4 miles (a little less then an hour) and did my lower body strength training afterward (25 minutes).  I looked up my heart rate ranges for my age are 93-157 and 180 is 100% (once I got it to 171).  So what does it mean for me to keep my heart rate sustained for the entire hour?  I am still thinking about starting to jog too, but that thought is still in its infancy (maybe today if NO ONE else is on the track).  I am on most days getting 1200-1500 calories, 120 protein and 80-110 carbs and all my supplements.  Thanks to anyone *****plies!!!! Clothes are all fitting better but the scale is slow.  I expected that.  Oh ya,  On average I am stepping 11,000-13,000 steps a day!

When you exercise, your heart beats faster to meet the demand for more blood and oxygen by the muscles of the body. The more intense the activity, the faster your heart will beat. Therefore, monitoring your heart rate during exercise can be an excellent way to monitor exercise intensity.   The harder you work the higher the heart beat.  If you are looking to become a serious runner, you would need to work near or at your max heart rate.  For most people, sustaining a heart rate at 70% of max is sufficient to help sustain good health. Now I have to go look up all my info to make sure I didn't lie. Good luck

Thanks Scott, So what should I expect if I sustain my heart rate at 70% to 75% for at least an hour?  I do this at least 5 days a week.  I am trying to loose this extra 30 pounds that found me.  Am I on the right track? Dana

Here's a link to a helpful article from the American Heart Association about target heart rates - http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=4736 And another to wikipedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heart_rate What zone is right for you depends on your goals.  If you're mainly exercising for weight loss, you probably want to spend most of your time working at 70-80% of your max heart rate.  If you want to maximize your overall cardiovascular health, you want to spend some time in each of your zones over the course of a week. 

Good luck sorting out what's right for you, and keep up your exercise habit!  I'm convinced that regular exercise is key to long term weight loss maintenance -

Kellie

Hello Dana, As you asked in your PM, I know I know, I am currently working on another blog post....hope to have it done by tomorrow or over the weekend. What can i say, i am a slacker. As far as your heart rate readings.....during your exercise session it looks like your average heart for the majority of your exercise session was around 146 and the highest you got your heart rate during exercise was 165. If your are exercising around 70-85% of your max heart rate that would be roughly 126-153 so you are in the right range but as we talked about before, don't be afraid to exercise near you max heart rate as you would do while interval training. In you post you asked what it meant to keep you heart rate sustained for the entire hour. This simply mean that you want to keep your heart rate elevated during the entire exercise session which it looks like you are doing as your average hear rate was 146. Also, don't forget about the bioelectrical impedance scale or BIA. Try not to focus on just body weight but body composition.

Hi Jeremy,  Here was yesterdays work out and food intake,  So I must of read your mind: Whoop ass can was opened up again. Did 50 laps, a  little less then 5 miles alternating running for about 1.5 miles. Did upper body, 3 sets of 12.  My average heart was 154 and a max heart rate of 189. DANG I did good!!!!!!!!

Foods

	Cals	Fat	Carb	Prot
Coffee, espresso ( 4 fl oz )	11	0	2	0
upcal d ( 1 oz )	0	0	0	0
Milk, cow's, fluid, skim or nonfat, 0.5% or less butterfat ( 1 cup )	86	0	12	8
Vitamin c ( 1 serving )	0	0	0	0
prenatal ( 1 serving )	0	0	0	0
Tortilla, NFS ( 1 large tortilla (approx 8" dia) )	90	2	17	2
Egg omelet or scrambled egg, with ham or bacon ( 0.5 cup )	196	14	2	15
White potato, home fries, with green or red peppers and onions ( 0.5 cup )	63	1	13	1
iron ( 2 serving )	0	0	0	0
Water ( 48 fl oz )	0	0	0	0
Beef jerky ( 0.25 cup, pieces )	92	6	2	7
Orange, raw ( 1 medium (2-5/8" dia) )	62	0	15	1
Maximum Complex ( 1 tablespoon )	130	1	2	28
Cheese, natural, Cheddar or American type ( 1.5 slice (1 oz) )	171	14	1	11
Vitamin c ( 1 serving )	0	0	0	0
SB snack bar delights chocolate rasberry ( 1 serving )	100	3	15	5
Fast foods, submarine sandwich, with cold cuts ( 0.33 submarine )	150	6	17	7
Bread, fruit, without nuts ( 2 slice )	267	9	45	4
Total	1418	56	142	90

Thanks for the reply,  it really helps me to know that I can come here for support!

VERY NICE! Keep it up Dana.