heart rate questions

Cindy393

I was reading a post the other day about resting heart rates. I think mine is in the 80's. Some people were commenting that the higher your resting heart rate is, the more out of shape you are. They were averaging in the 60's. I was led to believe the higher your resting hr was, the more your metabolism was revved. Is that wrong?

Also, my max heart rate is 145. I go way over when exercising, sometimes topping 170. Is that bad? Is my body trying to focus on my heart pounding rather than burning fat? EDIT: It's very easy for my heart to beat that fast with very little cardio.....

Any help would sure be appreciated!

BeantownSooner

They are right as the lower the RHR is the more fit you are. Basically, your heart has to work less to perform the same function (pump blood) with a lower RHR.

The MaxHR you mention seems low. As a guide it is 220 - your age so your MaxHR is likely closer to the 170.

I am thinking the 145 is one of the target heart rate levels for your age such as the "fat burning zone".

If you're wearing a heart rate monitor with chest strap I'd use the following as a guide line to target your intensity. As you move up the ladder the % of fat burn decreases but that does not mean you're not burning fat. More than likely you can't sustain a Redline Zone for extended periods of time but if you keep it above 132 and try living in the 149 - 167 range for the duration of your workout you'll be kicking butt!!

Aerobic Zone = 132 - 149
Threshold Zone = 149 - 167
Redline Zone = 167 - 176

Cindy393

that's great info! Does that mean tho, that I want to avoid the red line zone?

BeantownSooner

I'm definitely not a doctor but I get into that Redline Zone as well. Now if you're doing a brisk walk and your HR is shooting up to 170 I'd probably say check with the Doc. When you're in that zone you will generally not be able to speak very well, very difficult to keep up that pace for long periods of time, etc. For fitness reasons it's probably better to stay within a Zone that you can sustain for longer periods of time. Even today perhaps Aerobic Zone is the right place.

Just an example, if you jog two miles without stopping you'll probably be in that Threshold Zone. However, if you attempt to sprint that same 2 miles you'll probably be in the Redline Zone pretty quickly and it's very likely that you cannot sprint the 2 miles (unless you're super-human! ). In the long-run you'll probably end up burning more in the lower zones as you can sustain it for a much longer period of time.

Do a little research on High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) and you'll get the sense of this dynamic. These are exercises where you work at an intense interval for a short period of time followed by a lower intensity interval. There are lots of cardiovascular benefits to this type of training. A home DVD program called Insanity which you've probably seen referenced on here is an example of a HIIT program.

tadpole242

I was reading a post the other day about resting heart rates. I think mine is in the 80's. Some people were commenting that the higher your resting heart rate is, the more out of shape you are. They were averaging in the 60's. I was led to believe the higher your resting hr was, the more your metabolism was revved. Is that wrong?

Also, my max heart rate is 145. I go way over when exercising, sometimes topping 170. Is that bad? Is my body trying to focus on my heart pounding rather than burning fat? EDIT: It's very easy for my heart to beat that fast with very little cardio.....

Any help would sure be appreciated!

To test your resting heart rate, lay down for 30 minutes, and try to nod off (nap) when you wake up take your pulse for 15 second, then again for 30 second. Multiply the first number by 4 and the second number by two. Add them together and divide by two. That will give you an average resting pulse. My resting pulse is 44, my sitting up and doing stuff is 66. Having the right numbers will help you calculate your max heart rate and allow you to calculate the zone 2 and 3 numbers.