We all know it’s not easy thinking of a gift to give Dad, especially since you want to make it a special one for the man who’s been there for you, every step of the way that you took on your own. Even if you may not have caught him checking on you, or your progress through out your life. But he’s always been there for you and now its time to say a big Thank You to Dad on this Father’s Day!

But what to get him? If your lucky, your dad has taken on the responsibility of keeping himself in good shape, both physically and mentally. A good tip may be to help him stay in shape, and if he’s not, then now is a good time to offer a little “nudge” in the right direction so he gets off the couch, putting down that bag of buttery popcorn, along with that sugar soda beverage.

Whichever type of father you have, athletic, couch potato, or one who wants to test himself by taking on a triathlon event, there are plenty of gift possibilities out there, you just need to decide which one is the best fit for YOUR Dad!

No matter what condition your father is in, a good way to help him get in better shape, or add a couple of miles onto his run is a good smartwatch! One that ranks right up there with the best is the Garmin Forerunner 245 GPS Running Smartwatch  Your dad can run, walk or jog safely with the Garmin Forerunner 245, because of its advanced safety and tracking features, including incident detection, which can send your real-time location to emergency contacts through your paired compatible smartphone!

And while your dad is out there, putting himself through the paces he can track his progress, the 245 Smartwatch evaluates his/yours current training status to indicate if he’s undertraining or overdoing it. And he won’t feel like he’s doing it alone either, because he can get free adaptive training plans from Garmin Coach, or create your own custom workouts on our Garmin Connect™ online fitness community. While providing advanced running dynamics, including ground contact time balance, stride length, vertical ratio and more (When used with Running Dynamics Pod or HRM-Run™or HRM-Tri™monitors (sold separately).

And not to have him feeling daunted, this smartwatch is easy to use and can provide him with all the stats he’s ever going to need to up his game as far as fitness goes. All he needs to do is put one foot in front of the other and rely on the Garmin Forerunner 245 to keep him on track with his distance, pace and calories he’s burning!

This makes it even a great incentive for your father to get moving, even if he’s never taken his health and fitness seriously! It’s a great easy to use a smartwatch, even for a beginner to fitness. But it’s just the kind you want if you want him to take his fitness seriously and its all he’s going to need as he progresses and gets the fitness bug and wants to test himself again and again!

So what are you waiting for, after all, Father’s day is just about here, so why not click on the link below to go to HeartRateMonitorsUSA.com and order one today!

With their Free Shipping on a purchase like this, you can put a smile on your Father’s face knowing that he’s getting what he really wants, and not just another tie!

 

The sun is rising a bit earlier now, and staying light long past 7pm. With the sun getting up higher in the sky each day, a lot of us are getting the itch to see just what kind of work we need to do in order to get the winter kinks out of our golf swing. Yes, spring is the season when true golf addicts are heading out to their local golf-clubs to see if the snow has departed enough to allow them to work on their game.

Before shaking off the cobwebs, here are 10 things to keep in mind before your first round of golf in 2019:

It's colder than it feels
Let's call this the "Weather Relativity" rule. In September, coming off a sun-scorched summer, a cloudy, 50-degree day feels like you're visiting upper Maine. But after three months of winter, those same conditions translate to a trip to the beach.

Remember, your golf swing uses a unique muscle combination and memory, one that's hard to replicate in the workout room. Making your first swing of the year on the tee box is a recipe for a disaster. Golf Digest fitness editor Ron Kaspriske says it's important to "prime your muscles before an athletic activity," so prior to heading to the first hole, make sure to swing and stretch on the range. Go ahead and warm up by hitting a bucket of balls to get the kinks out of those shoulder and leg muscles, which can help you in the long run by not getting any cramping or over-extended, stretched muscles!

One good mantra is “Slow and simple, stupid”!
Not only at the range, but throughout your inaugural round, the tempo should be your primary focus. Chances are your swing is going to be rusty. Trying to smash your new driver or taking a hard whack from the rough will only aggravate any kinks. According to teachers Lynn Marriott and Pia Nilsson, establishing tempo means giving 70 percent of full effort on a swing. This will help you keep your swing under control.

Stretch out on the driving range:
Like football's mini-camps or baseball's spring training, you don't see players going 110 percent in their first foray of the season. It's about returning to a rhythm. Getting the feel of gripping that club again and feel the muscles relax after you've gone through the follow through after your release.

Now one thing you can do in order to help you work on cutting down your stroke count is to make use of some available technology. I’m speaking of using a little golfer’s helper, a golf watch. After all, without having accurate distances on the course it becomes a guessing game trying to figure out what club to hit. Often times you may come up short or worse end up in a hazard.
You can really feel lost if you do not have the correct distance.
That’s right, having yardage to each hole, straight from your wrist can really make a difference.
One of the most popular golf watches with GPS right now is the Garmin Approach S10 golf watch which comes preloaded with more than 41,000 courses worldwide. It includes all these courses and with no monthly subscription.

And its overall price is a bonus compared to some other golfer's helpers out there and you can get it from a company known for developing innovative GPS functionality that has been around and used by our military for its accuracy for years. I'm talking about the Garmin Approach S10 Golf Watch!  It provides yardages to the front, back, and middle of the green--as well as hazards and doglegs--on thousands of preloaded courses worldwide. From Garmin.

Starting off with a 9-hole round is a great way to get the kinks out and walking that course will help your leg muscles realize that it’s that time of year again where they need to perform in order to maintain your playing gait. Now, remember, your first, second, even third trip out to the links are going to keep you humble. You're not going to score well; your game is going to be off and the course won't be aesthetically pleasing. Why even bother, you might ask.

Why? Because, in spite of the less-than-ideal environment, it's still going to be a damn good time. Spring golf may not be the game at its best. But first rounds, in any walk of life, rarely are; they pave the way for better things to come.

So, go on, grab your clubs, put on that visor-golf-hat, tee up, and go have some Springtime fun.

 

Now that Spring is beginning to make itself felt across the country, you can now get outside and begin working on getting more activity, while enjoying the sun and warming weather. People that know they need to become more active because of yearly visits to their physicians who warn them that their current lifestyle is not providing enough physical activity to get their blood pressure under control. If you don’t know what your numbers are, you should not wait to find out after you’ve experienced a medical incident. Make an appointment with your physician and get an overall physical and let them tell you the results of how you fare and what if anything you need to be aware of.

High blood pressure or hypertension (blood pressure greater than 140/90 over a period of time) affects nearly 78 million Americans. Although it’s the leading cause of death worldwide (13 percent), about 30 percent of adults don’t even know they have high blood pressure. Many of those who are aware aren’t taking control of their disease. If left untreated, hypertension can increase your risk for heart attacks, strokes, and peripheral arterial disease (decreased blood flow usually to the legs and feet).

If after visiting your physician and you are told that you indeed are part of those 78 million you need to not only work at getting your blood pressure under control but you also need to monitor it so you can react if your blood pressure rises or falls so that you can take necessary action.

Using a home blood pressure monitor is a good idea so that you can track your blood pressure on a regular basis. Your doctor can advise you how often you should check your pressure and what to do if it rises or falls. One such monitor that can easily be used is the LifeSource UB351 Automatic Wrist Blood Pressure Monitor  It is a wrist based monitor that will alert you of the presence of an irregular heartbeat and provides blowrist-based and pulse rate measurements even if an irregular heartbeat occurs. It can also calculate the average of the total readings stored in its memory; a convenient way to get a snapshot of your measurements over time and provide you with an average of just what your blood pressure is over a specific timeframe.

How to use a home blood pressure monitor
Be still. Don't smoke, drink caffeinated beverages or exercise within 30 minutes before measuring your blood pressure. Empty your bladder and ensure at least 5 minutes of quiet rest before measurements.

Sit correctly. Sit with your back straight and supported (on a dining chair, rather than a sofa). Your feet should be flat on the floor and your legs should not be crossed. Your arm should be supported on a flat surface (such as a table) with the upper arm at heart level

Measure at the same time every day. It’s important to take the readings at the same time each day, such as morning and evening. It is best to take the readings daily however ideally beginning 2 weeks after a change in treatment and during the week before your next appointment.

Take multiple readings and record the results. Each time you measure, take two or three readings one minute apart and record the results. If your monitor has built-in memory to store your readings, take it with you to your appointments. Some monitors may also allow you to upload your readings to a secure website after you register your profile.

So just what are the numbers to be aware of? We have them listed Below:

NORMAL LESS THAN 120 and LESS THAN 80
ELEVATED 120 – 129 and LESS THAN 80

HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE
(HYPERTENSION) STAGE 1 130 – 139 or 80 – 89

HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE
(HYPERTENSION) STAGE 2 140 OR HIGHER or 90 OR HIGHER

If you get a high blood pressure reading:
A single high reading is not an immediate cause for alarm. If you get a reading that is slightly or moderately higher than normal, take your blood pressure a few more times and consult your healthcare professional to verify if there’ s a health concern or whether there may be any issues with your monitor.

If your blood pressure readings suddenly exceed 180/120 mm Hg, wait five minutes and test again. If your readings are still unusually high, contact your doctor immediately. You could be experiencing a hypertensive crisis.
If your blood pressure is higher than 180/120 mm Hg and you are experiencing signs of possible organ damage such as chest pain, shortness of breath, back pain, numbness/weakness, change in vision, difficulty speaking, do not wait to see if your pressure comes down on its own. Call 9-1-1!

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and the American College of Sports Medicine all recommend at least 150 minutes per week of moderate-intensity aerobic activity, 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic activity, or a combination of both for adults.

Intensity – Exercise at a moderate level. Use the “talk test” to help you monitor. For example, even though you may notice a slight rise in your heart rate and breathing, you should be able to carry on a conversation while walking at a moderate pace. As you walk faster, you will begin to breathe faster and have difficulty talking. At that point, you’ve achieved moderate intensity or “somewhat hard.” Vigorous exercise causes a large rise in heart rate and breathing. At this intensity, it would become difficult to talk. Most people would rate this as “hard to very hard.”

Time – Exercise 30-60 minutes per day. You can do it all at once or break it up into a few sessions of at least minutes each.

Type – Do rhythmic exercises using the large muscle groups. Try brisk walking, cycling, and swimming. Choose activities you enjoy and will do regularly in your new, more active
lifestyle. Add variety depending on the day or the season to keep your program more enjoyable.

Start by exercising on your own. Begin walking or another form of activity that you can integrate into your daily routine.

Do rhythmic exercises using large muscle groups:
Try brisk walking, cycling, and swimming. Choose activities you enjoy and will do regularly in your new, more active lifestyle. Add variety depending on the day or the season to
keep your program more enjoyable. All you really need, though, is a good pair of shoes
to get started walking. Use a Pedometer or other activity tracker to monitor your progress. Slowly work toward a goal, like maybe 10,000 steps per day.

If you have been inactive for a long time, start with short sessions (ten to 15 minutes). Add five minutes to each session, increasing every two to four weeks. Gradually build up to being active 30 minutes a day for most days of the week. Be sure to drink plenty of fluids before, during, and after exercise, especially if you plan to exercise on a hot day or for a
long time. Always cool down slowly.

If possible, measure your blood pressure before you exercise. Do not exercise if your resting systolic blood pressure (the top number) is greater than 200 or your diastolic blood pressure
(the bottom number) is greater than 115. Contact your doctor!

So, getting back to where we started, now that you have some beneficial information about how and why you check your blood pressure. It's important that "Knowing" your numbers and keeping them in line will allow you to help yourself by being more active and getting your body in better shape.

And what better time to get started then in the Spring of the new year? By walking at a brisk pace,  eating healthy, lowering your stress all these things combined can help keep you living a more healthy and active life for years to come!
 

 

 

 

Knowing which one to get shouldn’t be “Rocket Science” it should be more along “Instinct” (Get It?). Well you should, it’s a new rugged fitness tracker, GPS enabled that has a more than tough design that can take the worst your that your day can throw at it. The Garmin Instinct Rugged GPS Watch with Glonass !

This rugged and reliable GPS watch is designed for those exploring and working in the great outdoors. It features key sensors and exceptional navigation technology, so you’ll never lose your bearings when you’re heading off known trails, whether it’s running them, biking them or just plain hiking them! It also offers key information about your sleep, the number of steps, heart rate, intensity minutes and stress in everyday life to keep you on track when you’re back on the beaten path.

Remember we said rugged? Well, this watch is made to take the abuse of outdoor recreation that some of your fancy designed display watches would be licking their wounds from. After all, do you really enjoy seeing scratches across your watches’ display area, or your watchband getting torn from being hung up on a branch that’s sticking out on a trail? Especially if you paid, $400.00, $500.00 or more for it?

Well, with the Garmin Instinct, you won’t have to worry, with its “Fiber-Reinforced-Polymer” case it adds strength and durability to the design, and the chemically-strengthened, scratch-resistant display is high-contrast enough to read in bright sunlight. Just what you need when you’re out in the sunshine, heading up that mountain trail. This watch gives you everything you need without the bells and whistles that drive up cost on many advanced lifestyle watches.

Despite its ruggedness and a long list of features, the Garmin Instinct weighs only 1.8 oz. So you won't mind it on your wrist during the day and as you sleep at night. Instinct’s display is about 45 by 45 by 15.3 mm.

The Garmin Instinct carries a water rating of 10 ATM, meaning it can withstand pressures equivalent to being 100 meters underwater. This smartwatch received the MIL-STD-810G standard, meaning Garmin Instinct met the military standard for thermal, shock and water performance. We did say it was rugged, right?

The Garmin Instinct comes in three colors: Graphite, Tundra, and Flame-Red, with an integrated band, sized at 132 mm to 224 So you won't have any problem with a too loose or too tight band to make you uncomfortable.

The monochrome screen, one of its "Best" features, is visible in all lighting conditions, including intense sunlight, with a mini-overlay for additional information.

As for battery life, Instinct can last up to 14 days in smartwatch mode, up to 16 hours with the GPS mode on and up to 40 hours on Ultra-Trac battery save mode.

Besides the “Outdoors” rugged life, the Garmin Instinct  also tracks everyday activities and adventures. No matter how you stay fit or spend your fun time, the Garmin Instinct has a sports mode just for you. Everything from a simple walk to a snowboarding. This watch is an even bet that it has a "sports mode" that fits your lifestyle, 28 sport-mode options for active lifestyles, at that. It even includes a mode for boaters by providing information including distance, time and average nautical speed.

Grab your gear and your new best companion, the Garmin Instinct to get feedback on performance that helps you reach your sporting goals.

Sports Modes: And in case your interested, listed below are the sports modes that your Garmin Instinct will provide you with all the necessary data in order for you to meet and exceed your physical training goals.
Pool swim
Open water swim
Trail Running
Regular Running
Cycling
Mountain biking
Standup paddleboard
Walking
Treadmill
Indoor track
Hike
Climb
Indoor cycling
Ski
Snowboard
Cross country ski
Kayak
Row
Rowing
Strength training
Cardio
Yoga
Elliptical
Stair stepper
Floor climber
Tactical running
Boating

Breadcrumbs: Remember the fairy tale, Hansel and Gretel? They intended to follow the trail of breadcrumbs back to their home, but those pesky birds ate them, and they became lost in the woods. The rest is a story that you can follow up with on your own time. Getting back to the breadcrumbs. The Garmin Instinct provides you with a “Breadcrumb” trail that will get you back to where you started your trek out in those wide open spaces, This feature is especially handy for hiking, mountain biking, anywhere you're more likely to go that probably won’t have cell phone reception.

Save Locations: is another feature that'll come in handy for Garmin users. This feature marks the location from the controls menu and adds it to the list so you can navigate to it from the Navigation menu. Saved Locations can be used for planning and navigating purposes.

The Garmin Instinct also has a “Find My Phone and Find My Device” features so if you, for whatever reason, have trouble finding your smartwatch, you can use your smartphone to request an audible tone from the Garmin Instinct to help find it. You can also use the watch to find your smartphone as the Garmin Instinct can force the phone to ring via the Garmin Connect app to help you find it – even if it is on silent!

The Garmin Instinct  helps you get from point A to point B with these other navigation features:

Saved location – Beneficial for everything from saving where you parked to finding your way back to the beginning of a trail.
Sight‘n Go – Allows the user to point the device at an object in the distance such as a water tower, lock in the direction and then navigate to the object.
Coordinates – Allows you to enter the latitude and longitude of a location and name it.

Now, remember, the Garmin Instinct, despite everything else, it is an Activity Tracker!
Features like advanced sleep monitoring, number of steps, 24-hour heart rate, intensity minutes and stress tracking are as important in the city as they are in the country.

Other Features Include:
Calendar
Calories (both resting and active)
Weather and temperature
Smart notifications for phone calls, alerts, etc.
Altimeter
Compass
Barometer

The Garmin Instinct uses the “Elevate” wrist heart rate technology, which monitors changes in blood flow by shining light through the skin. With Garmin's Elevate technology, you can ditch the chest strap or other types of equipment used to measure your heart rate during your workouts. You just DON’T need it!

Garmin's All-day stress tracking feature measures your heart rate and then uses that data to reveal when your body is experiencing stress and when you are at rest and recovering. This stress-tracking feature will allow you to see how your body copes with day-to-day stresses. This tool gives a user an opportunity to observe whether the lifestyle/training changes they make are helping to change stress levels.

The smartwatch also offers the Live-Track feature that allows users to share their workout results in real-time. Once you install the Garmin Connect app on your smartphone, you can share your timed activities with your friends and family via email or social media. You can also share your heart rate or cadence from your Live-Track page as well.

And since this watch is made to go and work with you for long periods of time, it needs to have the "Juice" in order to perform the way Garmin and you need it to.
Battery life: Up to 14 days in smartwatch mode, Up to 16 hours in GPS mode, up to 40 hours in UltraTrac™ battery saver mode. So, even without a portable charging device, the Instinct probably has the "Go-Go-Juice" to take you there and back again. Sounds like the title of a book, right?

Well, go ahead and start making your own stories about how far you've traveled and how well your body's doing, after all, you have all the data you need in order to keep on keeping on.

Remember, you can TRUST your Instinct  (Smart Watch) from Garmin… Just saying.

Yes, it’s that time of year again, the holiday season is upon us, It started with Thanksgiving and ends up for most of us with New Year’s Day, and all the parties, both office, friends and family, and all the food and drinks that go with them. It’s a fact that some people, (not mentioning any names here) can gain up to 5 to 7 pounds this time of year! And that’s a pretty large amount in a 30 day plus time frame. Just think how hard it was to lose 5lbs-10lbs.during the year, with the sun shining outside and the air was warm and balmy! It’s really not too hard to find yourself in this kind of situation and if you let this go unchecked, over the next couple of years, your weight can balloon up to 20lbs or more over a 10-year spread.

The holiday season can make keeping to a consistent workout routine difficult; between the chilly temperatures, shorter daylight hours, travel to visits with family, food-oriented gatherings and crazy stress related shopping schedules, squeezing in your exercise routine is tough. Staying active and focused during the holidays can be done, but it takes the continued commitment by you to get it done and see that you maintain the focus you’re going to need to get you through this seasonal tempting time.

The big thing is not to be too hard on yourself. A lot of people who overindulged during the Thanksgiving feast simply writes their previously adopted “Healthy Lifestyle” off to, well this happens every year, so I’m going to enjoy myself now and pay for it later. Like we mentioned above. For a lot of us, that “pay for it later” attitude can wind up to not ever paying what is owed and you soon find yourself using those gift cards to buy yourself some larger pairs of pants, for the obvious reasons.

Now don’t get us wrong. We all like and enjoy the holiday fare that happens at this time of year. After all, we gather with family and friends and during those family parties, food is usually the common means by which we celebrate being together! After all, who doesn’t have fond memories of eating their favorite foods with family at this time of year? That’s part of the holiday season magic, right?

But there are ways to stay the course and maintain your healthy commitment that you might have made this time, last New Year’s Eve! And its really not too hard to fit in these few activities to make sure you get a little physical, as your dashing through the snow, from store to store. But one word that we want to stress now, during this festive season, but also one that can be followed all 365 days of the year is moderation! Yes, that one word will do you a lot of good if you keep it always in mind as you’re loading up your plate at the various holiday parties you're going to be visiting this year.

But, with that said, here are a few simple things you can do that won’t really add much time to your active “Holliday’s”

As you go shopping, make it a point to park at the end of the lot and walk to and from your car depositing your packages. But put them in your trunk so they won’t be visible to people passing by. After all, how many times have you driven around a mall parking lot, trying to get as close as you could to the entrance? Why not avoid those fiercely fought over prime parking spots and park far away from the entrance. If you park five minutes away from the mall and walk at a pace of 4 miles per hour, (which is a nice steady pace), you could burn about 25 calories. Those calories definitely can add up after multiple mall visits to find perfect gifts for friends and family.

And once you get inside the mall, why not give it a once over and walk around the perimeter of it? This way you can check out any new kiosks that have made their appearance, offering specialty items for your holiday selections.

If you walk at a good brisk pace, (crowds permitting, so get there early) and do a full lap around the mall you’re going to be burning off a few more calories, without really doing anything but adding some small amount of time to your getting that perfect sweater for your Aunt Mary. In addition to beating the cold temperatures outside, you'll get some extra exercise in,  and don't forget you can window shop while you're at it.

Embracing the weather instead of vegging out like a couch potato, can help mix things up with your friends and family this time of year.

Some sports were made for the holiday season. A perfect way to bond with family and get in a workout could be a trip to the ice rink. For every hour you ice skate, you can burn about 600 calories, the same number of calories burned when you run 5 miles. Ice skating is an excellent form of exercise for people of all ages; the kids will love getting out and doing something different instead of trying to be good while the adults talk. They can let some of that bottled up energy lose as they skate around on the ice. And some of your older family members and friends will appreciate skating's low impact on the joints and its calorie-burning benefits. Along with these health benefits, bundling up in the crisp winter air to take to the ice is sure to put you in the holiday spirit.

Remember we mentioned the word moderation, in regards to food intake this time of year. The other word we'd like to have written on your forehead is “Commitment”! Schedule time each day to be active, hopefully, more of an exercise bent. Now we know we said that the whole purpose of this post is to try and get your exercise squeezed in, at this time of year. But nothing beats actually making a schedule on your calendar, that you can see every day! This way it’s a constant reminder that you need to be aware of, but don’t schedule an hour of time when you really don’t have it. Just commit to 15-20 minutes of it, enough to get your heart pumping and the blood flowing so your body’s aware that something is going on.

Remember, your body is a creature of habit, unlike many other things in your life. If it gets accustomed to working out those 20 minutes and it becomes less of a strain on you, increase your activity by doing more reps, or decrease the time spent on the treadmill, but maintain the same distance, or increase the weights or reps,  if that’s what you’re doing. So that your body feels like its being pushed. The more you do, the more your body will become used to doing. And this is how you constantly improve your goal thresholds.

Now, all this is good information, and nothing here is going to be a major hurdle in allowing you to go about your busy holiday shopping or prepping for the big day. But in order to stay on track, get reminded and be able to hold yourself accountable. You need to track just what and how much you're doing. Both this time of year and all year long. So why not get yourself an early Christmas present be getting yourself an Activity Monitor Watch like the Garmin Vivoactive HR Strapless Heart Rate SmartWatch  This “Smart Watch” is just that, Smart! It will not only track your movements, distance, steps, and calories burned but with its built-in HR and GPS, it can virtually keep you motivated by sending up your data to Garmin’s online community- Garmin Connect.

So, with everything we discussed here, there is NO reason why you can’t stay on track, keep busy getting ready for all the holiday functions that your booked to attend, and keep yourself on track to come out of the holiday season, if not even a little leaner then when it first started, then at least no heavier.

Happy Shopping, Dining, and Partying In…! What was that word again??
Oh yes, MODERATION!!

From the Holiday Staff here at HeartRateMonitorsUSA.com.