Target heart rate and intensity question

medic933

I started working out 2 weeks ago. Was VERY sedentary for about 4 years before that. I have started doing Zumba workouts 50 min X 3 days/wk, walk/run with strength training X 2 days and rest 2 days. I find that my legs burn and get tired before I reach a heart rate above 120 which is 67% intensity (I'm 43) and about 90 pounds overweight.

My questions are:
1. Is this a good intensity or should I be trying for closer to 75%?
2. Is there anything I can do to decrease the burn in order to feel like I am working harder? I feel like I am working but that I could do more if my legs would stop burning so bad. I try to eat a PB/oatmeal/ Protein powder ball that I make (88 calories, 12g carbs, 4 fat, 3 protein) 30-40 min before I work out. Maybe I should be eating more before I work out? I workout in the am so no other food beforehand.
I know some of this is because I am so out of shape but it seems that it has been an ongoing issue from even when I was younger and working out regularly.

Thank you for any help!

LazSommer

keep doing it

3dogsrunning

1. The good intensity is the one that you can maintain for the workout. Like the person said above keep doing it, you will get fitter.
2. Probably not but you can play around with food and see how it affects you. But mostly it just sounds like a fitness issue, which will improve when your fitness improves.

In other words, keep doing it.

CincyNeid

If what your doing is working, keep doing it.

As far as the burn your body is generating lactic acid, which is a good thing. It's a compound generated when Glucose Breaks down and oxidizes.

NorthCascades

How do you know or why do you think that you're working at 67 % intensity? Did you use a formula (like "220 - age") to guess your maximum heart rate, and then figure out where you are in relation to that? If so, please forget that math because it's almost certainly not right for you.

For now, you'll get the most benefit by doing your cardio at a moderate intensity, in zone 2 (so 60 to 70 %). A good thing is that it's going to be easier, and probably get rid of the leg burn, but it's also going to produce the best fitness gains for a while. And if your schedule allows you do this longer (it won't be as challenging) you'll be able to burn more calories per workout. Down the line it will pay off to add some high intensity stuff, but for now, moderate cardio will build you a base of fitness.

The leg burn sounds like probably lactic acid build up. Doing moderate intensity cardio will help a lot with this in several ways.

pondee629

"How do you know or why do you think that you're working at 67 % intensity? Did you use a formula (like "220 - age") to guess your maximum heart rate, and then figure out where you are in relation to that? If so, please forget that math because it's almost certainly not right for you.

For now, you'll get the most benefit by doing your cardio at a moderate intensity, in zone 2 (so 60 to 70 %). "

Excuse me, but if 220 minus age is "certainly not right...", what math should be used to establish "moderate intensity zone 2, 60 to 70%"?

niblue

I think it's probably a bit too early to worry about heart rate zones - especially as I'm not convinced that the advice to do most of your exercise in Z2 is really practical when you're first starting out. It's taken me quite a while to get to the point where I can run at a Z2 HR (and even now the upper end of Z2 equates to a pretty slow run for me).

NorthCascades

pondee629 wrote: »

Excuse me, but if 220 minus age is "certainly not right...", what math should be used to establish "moderate intensity zone 2, 60 to 70%"?

Find your maximum heart rate, or your lactate threshold, using whatever method you're comfortable with. Then base it on that. 220 - age describes averages across a population, but not most individuals.

Here's how Polar describes zone 2 workouts:

Benefits: Improves general base fitness, improves recovery and boosts metabolism.
Feels like: Comfortable and easy, low muscle and cardiovascular load.
Recommended for: Everybody for long training sessions during base training periods and for recovery exercises during competition season.

niblue wrote: »

I think it's probably a bit too early to worry about heart rate zones

The question was how much intensity should my exercise be?, and was asked by somebody with an HRM. Do you have a better idea about how to answer that? Zones are a way to simplify an HRM, remember.

CincyNeid

pondee629 wrote: »

Excuse me, but if 220 minus age is "certainly not right...", what math should be used to establish "moderate intensity zone 2, 60 to 70%"?

Heart rate zones are based off of your resting heart rate, your maximum heart rate and your heart rate threshold. You need to determine those factors before you can accurately figure out your personal zones.

medic933

Thank you everyone for the great responses. I did calculate my HR using the 220-age then get the percentage from that. I physically check my heart rate throughout my workout in between songs. I can usually tell when I have gone too far as my heart will skip beats. No dizziness or chest pain I can just feel it skip. Discussed this with a Cardiologist I worked with and he said just to slow down when that happens. Usually it is when I do heavy leg exercise like squats or the Jacob's ladder stair machine. I was a paramedic for 18 years so I am aware of the cardiac stuff (that's the technical term. Lol!)

I did find other HR calculators online besides the 220-age and did those but found the results to be similar so I just went with the 220.

I will keep doing what I am doing. I am seeing results but just wanted to make sure I was doing it right.

Thanks again for everyone's help.

singingflutelady

Just to show how inaccurate 220-age is is that I'm 40 and my hr has hit 199 a few teams in step class and I didn't feel like I was dying and I'm fit.

niblue

NorthCascades wrote: »

The question was how much intensity should my exercise be?, and was asked by somebody with an HRM. Do you have a better idea about how to answer that? Zones are a way to simplify an HRM, remember.

My own experience when starting out was that the best option was to go with an intensity that could be sustained. The HRM was useful for that but not on a zone basis - more from a "my experience tells me that I can sustain an HR of 150 for the duration of this climb" or "I can run for 30 minutes non stop at HR 140". Given at that point I'd no idea what my max HR was I couldn't have told you then that for me an HR of 150 was in the middle of Z3 or that 140 was at the top end of Z2.

I'm not sure I'd want to recommend finding out what their max HR was for someone who's 2 weeks into exercising at 4 years inactivity - at least not without medical supervision!

Cherimoose

medic933 wrote: »

I find that my legs burn and get tired before I reach a heart rate above 120

On which activities?

medic933

Cherimoose wrote: »

medic933 wrote: »

I find that my legs burn and get tired before I reach a heart rate above 120

On which activities?

Mostly during Zumba class. They burn during weights but I expect that. Being so out of shape I know has a lot to do with it but just didn't know if not eating much was contributing. I haven't really worked out since I was in my early to mid 30's so maybe a part of this is just that I am now 43 and things don't quite work as well as they used to and it will take a little longer to feel improvements. I am really early in this so will have patience and keep on keeping on.

I already feel so much better overall and don't want anything to hold me back. I want to get the most out of my workouts.

rileysowner

Unless you are specifically training for some particular sort of endurance sport or some other sport where zone are helpful, just ignore them. For fat loss they make no difference. Just go at a pace where you can finish the workout and you are going as hard as you can. Again, ignore the zones, they are not particularly meaningful in your situation.

kcjchang

Lactate actually mitigate the "burn" and is not the cause. (Wish the myth would just die.) The burn is from release of hydrogen ion used to fuel the muscular activities (eg break down of ATP). You generally don't use much glycogen when you're are working out aerobically. Lactate is a byproduct of anaerobic metabolism of glycogen. Be conservative, your muscles needs conditioning to handle the demand (more and bigger mitochondria, vascularization, etc).

Lactate threshold heart rate test is the most useful in determining your zones followed by heart rate reserve. I wouldn't bother with the rest.

ninerbuff

You legs burn because you're out of shape. You should likely slow it down. In Zumba that would mean modifying the movements (reduce step size, less bending over, etc.)

Consistency will build up your endurance and fitness and you can increase intensity then.

You don't need to be totally huffing and puffing.

Last by not least, exercise is for health and fitness. Calorie deficit is for weight loss, so minding how much you eat is more important here.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition