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Too high heart rate = no/low weight loss?

NikkiDerrig386
NikkiDerrig386 Posts: 1,096 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I was talking to my Dad and he said that he thinks I am working out too hard. I have this thing of sweating and trying to get my heart rate up as high as I can to feel like I am "working out". He told me that if I am trying to loose weight that I should focus on not getting my heart rate so high because it burns muscle and sugar and not fat. In reality I do go over 85% of my heart rate. It is good for your heart but I guess not the waist. Does anyone have any additional information about that?
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Replies

  • jewelzz
    jewelzz Posts: 326 Member
    for fat loss I do lower impact cardio and use larger muscle groups
  • amicklin
    amicklin Posts: 452
    I don't have to much to add on this as far as scientific information to prove/disprove but I do think there is some validity to what yoru dad is saying. Cardio is important for your overall health and cardiovasular system and I have heard that it can be counterproductive when trying to work on muscle gains.

    Will be interested to see what everyone has to say on this.
  • Becky1971
    Becky1971 Posts: 979 Member
    My book says that 70 - 80 is for fat and carb burning, 80-90 is for athletic training to increase performance. With that said, I can't get myself into 70. It's frustrating me, I got there once. I'm always sticky and all, but my hr doesn't get into my zone.
  • bmontgomery87
    bmontgomery87 Posts: 1,260 Member
    A lot of people do some low intensity "cardio" sessions for fat loss.

    But for overall fitness theres nothing wrong with your style of training. And If your cals are under your maintenance amount, you're still gonna lose weight.

    I'm a big fan of high intensity interval training for fat loss. I like training hard.
  • deannarey13
    deannarey13 Posts: 452
    What your dad told you is 100% true.

    I am like you. I like to do high impact fast pace cardio. My heart rate is often at 160-175. This is all fine and good for cardiovascular health, but not for fat loss. I actually found that after 3 weeks of only doing this type of cardio my weight stayed the same but my body fat % WENT UP. Meaning, I was actually burning lean muscle mass instead. Not good.

    Needless to say, I have changed my workout program.
  • NikkiDerrig386
    NikkiDerrig386 Posts: 1,096 Member
    My resting heart rate is 61 (patting self on the back thats really good) and it says I should be at heart rate 130. It is just to low for me. I am usually in the 170's to 180's. Yesterday I didnt go over 158 and I felt frustrated bc it wasnt hard enough. If thats what I need though I have to work harder and not working out so hard (that sentence just even make sense :( )..
  • Becky1971
    Becky1971 Posts: 979 Member
    Isn't that 130 just a low? Like my range is 135 to 150.
    My resting heart rate is 61 (patting self on the back thats really good) and it says I should be at heart rate 130. It is just to low for me. I am usually in the 170's. Yesterday I didnt go over 158 and I felt frustrated bc it wasnt hard enough. If thats what I need though I have to work harder and not working out so hard (that sentence just even make sense :( )..
  • Nomomush
    Nomomush Posts: 582 Member
    Yes--your father is correct. When I train with my trainer, he/she holds my HRM watch while I wear my chest strap. Once I have hit 85%, he/she makes me stop so I can bring it back down to 65% before I start my next exercises. Also, he/;she makes me maintain right at 85% for maximum fat burning without going into the anabolic stage.

    Oh and this changes when your weight changes. As I've lost weight, my MHR has changed.

    Hope that helps.
  • jamie1888
    jamie1888 Posts: 1,704 Member
    Here's an interesting read:

    http://www.alanaragon.com/myths-under-the-microscope-the-fat-burning-zone-fasted-cardio.html

    Basically, yes, if you keep your heart rate in that "fat burning zone", you will burn more fat calories DURING exercise. However, if you work in the "cardio zone", you will burn less fat calories DURING the exercise, but you keep burning fat calories long AFTER the exercise. So, in regards to fat burn, there's no difference. So, working at a higher heart rate can burn the same amount of fat, but also improve cardiovascular fitness! (that's a good thing IMO, and as far as the study shows!)
  • StacyD015
    StacyD015 Posts: 62 Member
    Yeah Ive been told this by the ppl in my gym. Theres 2 different % HR for different things you want to achieve...
    ok so im 24 years old and to get to the fat burning zone i need to be at about 118-137 on HR Monitor.

    Use this site and it gives you our target HR for entering your "fat burning zone"

    Hope this helps! :wink:

    http://www.fitsense.co.uk/fit_article.php?id=3
  • jonathandavid_t
    jonathandavid_t Posts: 107 Member
    From what I've read, although the % of fat burnt in high-intensity exercise is lower than in low-intensity exercise, the TOTAL calories of fat burnt will be higher in high-intensity exercise.

    E.g. (made-up numbers):
    30 mins low-intensity. HR 65%max. kcal burnt 150. kcal from fat 100 (75%)
    30 mins high-intensity. HR 85%max. kcal burnt 300. kcal from fat 175 (58%)

    Lower %, but higher value.

    There are some good quality posts in the forums on this, spend an hour finding them (I didn't bookmark them unfortunately).

    I think it's been found that the best option for both fat loss AND fitness is high-intensity intervals so you alternate between say 90% max HR for 45-60sec and then drop it back down to say 65-70%max for a minute or two before working hard again.
  • W0zzie
    W0zzie Posts: 262 Member
    Hiya

    I went on a research bender a little while ago on this topic and pretty much satisfied myself that it is more or less a myth as far as weight loss goes. It "may" be useful if you are "training" to go for the fitness zone but for weight loss the more burn the better and you burn more when you work harder. Obviously don't go max though as that then starts to be a safety issue.

    The key point that changed my mind is some advice that basically fat oxidisation for the remainder of the day means the zone thing "while" you are working out becomes more or less irrelevant.

    For one of the best threads around on it check this out: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/135948-the-fat-burning-zone?hl=fat+burn+fitness#posts-1858567

    As always - different strokes for different folks - but my own view - doesn't matter - hard or soft - work how you want to work.

    Cheers
  • jmminmn
    jmminmn Posts: 28
    Not everyone fits into the "norms" of heart rates when working out. For example, I can easily get to a 180 on a brisk walk. Jogging will put me at about 200.

    (My resting heart rate is a healty 65 and I'm 34 years old)

    Listen to what your body tells you - everyone is different.
  • NikkiDerrig386
    NikkiDerrig386 Posts: 1,096 Member
    Maximal Heart Rate = 195

    Intensity Target Heart Rate
    50-55% 128-135
    60-65% 141-148
    70-75% 155-162
    80-85% 168-175
    http://www.fitwatch.com/qkcalc/thr.html

    SO where should I be to lose lbs 55% or 65%?

    That makes sense bc when I first started working out I lost so much lbs I was 114 at my lowest and I wasnt working out nearly as hard!!
  • AllyS7
    AllyS7 Posts: 480 Member
    I second the HIIT. I do this type of workout at least 2 times a week. My heart rate ranges from 174-184 during the high intensity and then 124-160 during the lower intensity. My other cardio sessions are 1 lower intensity HR (110-127) and 2 longer (167-180) sessions.

    I haven't had a problem loosing the weight (yet).
  • jamie1888
    jamie1888 Posts: 1,704 Member
    Really people, why ask if you are just going to dismiss the facts?

    Read:
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/135948-the-fat-burning-zone?hl=fat+burn+fitness#posts-1858567


    Read:
    http://www.alanaragon.com/myths-under-the-microscope-the-fat-burning-zone-fasted-cardio.html
  • scottb81
    scottb81 Posts: 2,538 Member
    Different HR intensities develop different systems in the body. For total fitness, all of them are important.
  • BerryH
    BerryH Posts: 4,698 Member
    Though differen HR "zones" burn different proportions of carbs vs fat, weight loss is simply a matter of calories in against calories out. If you train hard, you'll burn more calories, simple as that. BUT you might not be able to maintain it for long - find a level that works for you. Bear in mind that high intensity training will carry on torching calories for hours after you quit.
  • BigBoneSista
    BigBoneSista Posts: 2,389 Member
    I was talking to my Dad and he said that he thinks I am working out too hard. I have this thing of sweating and trying to get my heart rate up as high as I can to feel like I am "working out". He told me that if I am trying to loose weight that I should focus on not getting my heart rate so high because it burns muscle and sugar and not fat. In reality I do go over 85% of my heart rate. It is good for your heart but I guess not the waist. Does anyone have any additional information about that?

    If you plan on working out at that rate it should only be done for 20 to 30 minutes. Anything after that will cause you to burn more muscles and deplete your glycogen stores.
  • BigBoneSista
    BigBoneSista Posts: 2,389 Member
    Really people, why ask if you are just going to dismiss the facts?

    Read:
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/135948-the-fat-burning-zone?hl=fat+burn+fitness#posts-1858567


    Read:
    http://www.alanaragon.com/myths-under-the-microscope-the-fat-burning-zone-fasted-cardio.html

    Yep. All this zone stuff was a marketing ploy for the fitness boom.

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