ORIGINAL ARTICLES   

Gazzetta Medica Italiana Archivio per le Scienze Mediche 2016 March;175(3):49-58

Copyright © 2016 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA

language: English

Using heart rate monitors to assess energy expenditure in four training types

Kjell HAUSKEN ¹, Sindre M. DYRSTAD ²

¹ Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Stavanger, Stavanger, Norway; ² Department of Education and Sport Science, University of Stavanger, Stavanger, Norway

BACKGROUND: Heart rate (HR) measurements and energy expenditures (EE) are compared for zumba, interval 4x4 min spinning, interval 4x4 min running, and pyramid running (1 min recovery periods followed by activity periods decreasing from 6 min to 1 min).
METHODS: Twenty-six men and women (21.8±2.4 years) completed all four sessions. Zumba lasted 60 min, and the three other sessions lasted 45 min. EE was estimated by heart rate measured by Polar heart rate monitors.
RESULTS: During the 33% longer zumba session the participants used 592±161 kcal, which was 14.2% higher than during 4x4 running (P=0.003). The EE in kcal/min was 13.9% lower in zumba compared to 4x4 running (P<0.001). For spinning and running %HRmax exceeded 90% in all activity periods (P<0.01), and decreased below 78% in all four recovery periods (P<0.05). For pyramid running %HRmax exceeded 90% in all seven activity periods (P<0.01), and decreased below 86% in all six recovery periods (P<0.05).
CONCLUSIONS: First, we consider zumba which has hardly been analyzed. Second, we compare zumba with three forms of intervals; running 4x4, spinning 4x4, and pyramid running. Third, we explicitly analyze the time factor through the sessions. Fourth, we analyze how heart rates decrease during 3 min vs 1 min recovery periods. Fifth, we scrutinize how heart rates increase during short vs long activity periods.