What is the primary purpose of a heart rate monitor for athletes?

The primary purpose of a heart rate monitor for athletes is to assess intensity and recovery. By tracking heart rate during training, athletes can determine whether they are working within their target heart rate zones, which correlates with exercise intensity. This information is crucial for optimizing workouts, ensuring that athletes are pushing themselves adequately without over-exerting themselves, which can lead to burnout or injury.

Monitoring heart rate also plays a significant role in assessing recovery. After intense workouts, athletes can observe how quickly their heart rate returns to baseline levels, indicating their cardiovascular fitness and recovery capabilities. A faster recovery suggests better fitness levels, while slow recovery times may indicate fatigue or the need for a more measured training approach.

The other options, while related to overall fitness and health, do not capture the primary function of heart rate monitors as accurately as assessing intensity and recovery does. For instance, measuring body weight changes or tracking calorie expenditure are not direct functionalities of a heart rate monitor. Similarly, evaluating muscle soreness is not a task that a heart rate monitor is designed to perform; it primarily records heartbeats rather than assessing physical discomfort or muscle condition.