Regarding heart rate monitors
 

I've been out practically every day now since buying the Brommie. Love every minute of it. A few months back I purchased a heart rate monitor strap to link with an app on my iPhone. Each time I use it, I have to make sure that the electrode pads and the area around where they make contact on the skin are wet enough to send a signal for the app to pick up. I remember hearing a number of years ago that there is a sort of gel or lotion that you can apply to the electrodes of the monitor. I'll be darned if I can find any info on it. Can anyone shed some light on this for me. Getting tired of pouring water all over the place. Thanks.

Performance Bike sells Axiom Heartbeat Signal Enhancer. I've used it.

http://www.performancebike.com/bikes...400023__400023

Medical supply stores often have a similar product.

Of course there's good old spit......

might be the same stuff as they spread on a mother's belly to make the ultrasound thing work .

I've never needed more than to wet my fingers and wipe them on the strap, after that sweat does the heavy lifting.

No gel for me thanks. I just run water in the sink until it is warm, pass the strap under to get it wet, then put it on, slip my shirt on and go.

http://www.dcrainmaker.com/2010/04/t...eart-rate.html
helpful.

That was helpful. Although I'm not going to do the lick trick. I'll get the Axiom Heartbeat Signal Enhancer that JerrySTL suggested. It's most likely similar to what they use when doing ultrasounds like fietsbob mentioned. Thanks for everyone's help.

Cheers
Wayne

The "lick trick" does it for me. I wipe if off when I take it off to clean it so this is not as disgusting as it sounds..

Yes. Just one drop of water, maybe two, on each electrode is enough. I spread it with my finger, and the whole electrode doesn't need to be soaked.

My old Polar strap didn't work very well if it was just an inch or so too far down on my chest.

I used heart rate monitors before and being in hot and humid Singapore, it takes very little before my chest and the sensor is drenched. Recently, I had a heart scan and ECG done and the medical staff applied KY Lubricant on the electrodes. I asked about this and I was told it improves "the contact" and gives a more acurate reading since the hospitals are all air-conditioned and no one perspires. I inquired if this would work on the heart rate monitor as I was planning on a riding vacation in Japan during early winter and the staff member mentioned that it should work as this gel is not likely to run or freeze over. Imagine the grin on my wife's face when she saw me pack a tube of lubricant together with our bikes. Why the grin? We are in our late fifties and getting kinky is way out of our minds already.
Anyway, this gel is readily available from the drug stores and I had to bear with the grins from the checkout clerk when she packed the tube. Hey, what was she thinking of?

I'm in my late sixties, and being kinky is NOT way out of my mind :). You need to eat more nuts and berries for mood boosting. You're never too old for indoor games ;).

I bet if you told her it was for your heart rate monitor she wouldn't believe you. One can have some fun with this :D.

In all honesty, there are a lot of other lubes we used (for ourselves other than the abovementioned) that gives "more pleasure". Indeed, indoor activities is still alive for me although with less frequency. However, it's the misconception that the uninformed has about "older people" having fun. My late father, who passed on at 92, always said, "I'm not old until you nail my coffin shut!" For the issue of reduced frequency was before I had bypass surgery done. And from the numerous test done on me was how I found out that such lubes are used to enhance the electrode contacts with the skin hence my suggestion of using this for heart rate monitors.