How High is Too High HR

groomchick

I regularly use my treadmill for exercize and do a moderate zone 2 workout. My heartbeat stays between 120/136. Recently I got on my stairclimber for the first time in 1 1/2 years and was actually frightened by my heartrate. Although my breathing was very easy and controlled my heartrate was averaging 158/ 170 for 40 minutes. I did recover quickly and was back in the teens within 5 minutes.. I wonder if there is a formula or danger zone I should gage this by? Was this too high?

GuillaineC

I think too high would be aroung 180 and up

millerch88

It probably depends on your age, gender, and level of fitness. My heart rate on the treadmill often peaks around 185 when I'm working really hard. I suppose your heart rate could be too high if you were having some sort of attack or something, but while exercising I find it hard to imagine you'd get your heart rate up to a dangerous place.

My advice would be to ask your doctor about it and what you personal target heart rate should be. But I would say 170 is nothing to worry about, just means you're working hard.

Uerzer

220 - Age = Max Heart Rate

margojr4

There's a Target Heart Rate calculator on WebMD.

When I put in my own stats, it shows 185 bpm is where I should stop. To burn calories/fat I need to hit at least 155 bmp while doing cardio.

tuffytuffy1

Very interesting question, I have wondered the same thing. My heart rate goes up into the mid-170's during sprints on the treadmill and sometimes even during a personal training session. It doesn't seem dangerous to me, but I definitely feel like I can't do anything more at that point. So for me, mid-170's is the highest I get to.

groomchick

Thanks guys....I feel much better. According to web md I am o.k. at 170.

nanegan

I am 54 and regularly see the high 170s to low 180s while running - even as high as 200! The only true test for maximum heart rate would be a VO2 max test. Your gym might offer it.

pandapwned

It depends on the person and your age. My HR has gotten to 210 before when sprinting on a treadmill and while the trainer I was with was concerned, she said as long as it goes down quickly once the exercise has stopped, it's nothing to be worried about. When working out to the point where I can really feel it, my HR is easily 180-190 though, so it's just unusually high in general. (Not when resting, my resting HR is in the 60s and normal).

RAFValentina

You can run at your Max HR...you'll just not be able to sustain it for very long before you fatigue! Athletes train at it for short periods of time for speed! If you have an iPhone download the app heart fitness which is great for it all!

AlexisOlson

Heart rate seems to vary quite a bit person to person. My dad has a slow heart and my mom has a fast heart. I seem to have inherited a fast heart whereas my brother has a slow heart. If I'm on an elliptical machine for example, I can sustain a heart rate of 180-185 bpm for at least 20 minutes at a time. That's working fairly hard, but I can easily push it over 200 for short bursts.

mlb929

I was just reading a book on this. Basically it said it's hard to judge the Too High or Perfect HR because everyone is different. And the more fit you are the harder it is to reach the maximum. Age is also a factor. There is no good answer.

I can easily workout doing an insanity workout of HIIT training and have my average be 165 for the whole 45 minutes and feel practically dead at the end. Running tho, I ran 2 hours on Saturday, with my average over the running period at 185, I felt great, was my fastest long training run and I could have easily gone further and kept going at that rate.

I've also read that over prolonged exercise your HR will increase and stay there, that doesn't really mean you are working harder tho.

ATT949

As far as I've been able to figure, our heart will continue to pump blood to supply the demand for oxygen from the muscles (among other functions) and will beat as fast as it can to get the job done*.

Because we are, generally speaking, in really poor shape, we're not used to revving up our heart so, when we get into a high BPM range, we are in uncharted, and, therefore, a little scary, territory. (Glad that sentence ended…I was out of commas!)

Assuming that you don't have any heart defects, you can rev is as high as you want. Just for G&G about two years ago, I got on the ellip and wound it up to 200 with no ill effects which is way high for a guy aged 53 (back then).

What's your max HR? It is not 220 minus your age.

This is a link from Runner's World to a column by "The Penguin".

http://thepenguin.runnersworld.com/2009/02/taking-it-to-the-max.html

I read his advice in his book "Marathoning for Mortals", a good, quick read and worth it (buy it used from Amazon!) if you have any interest in marathoning. His nickname comes from his gait and his size before he started running, BTW.

This was an interesting column, too:

http://beginners.runnersworld.com/2008/06/my-heart-rate-monitor-says-im-running-too-fast-should-i-slow-down.html


*though some folks with slight heart defects sometimes experience a little "cavitation"

Missjulesdid

I don't pay much attention to my heart rate. I can be at my "max" and still carry on a conversation!

Meggles63

Thanks for all the info.! I'm a 48 year old female, who's 85% max would be 172, and I regularly get into the 160's when doing my Insanity workouts. I usually go until I just "have" to take a break, rather than follow the HRM, or else I'd be stopping all the time.

clarissa08

It all depends- I use to be a swimmer and the objective of many of our work outs were to push our heart rate to the maximum. Just monitor it, and if you feel like you can't go harder or further, just do the best you can. If you have severe chest pain, then stop and call your doctor immediately.

Like I said it all depends, my resting heart rate is 56 bpm, but when I am working out I usually raise it between 195 and 210

groomchick

This is great info guys...I very much appreciate it!!