Heart Rate to stay in Fat Burning Zone hellllllp

SarahL522

Hi everyone, I'm looking for some help on the whole staying at a certain heart rate while working out to stay in your fat burning zone. I have been working out at work mon-fri for 45 min on the eliptical during my lunch hour. My diet has been pretty good.. I do have the 1 day of eating bad. not too bad.. but I will enjoy a dessert or 1 cup of wine. Anyways.. i have had weeks of losing weight and then not losing any weight. I was recently approached by our door man who said he was a personal trainer.. we were talking about my goals what im doing etc and he recommended that for my age (31) to stay in the fat burning zone my heart rate should not go any higher than 130. Well.. ive done this for 3 days now.. Im pretty darn bored! i think it takes more effort to slow down than it does when Im pushing myself. Following his plan.. I am burning 100 less calories, walking a mile less and am barely breaking a sweat. Can someone help me out here... he said if i follow through and keep doing it i will start to see better results.. the way i was working out before my heart rate was up to 180 he said i was only burning carbs... he said if i was working out to train for a marathon or a run what ever that would be good, but since my goal is to lose fat I should follow this path.. Does this sound right? Thanks for any and all help/advice!!!

Mathguy1

http://www.thewalkingsite.com/thr.html.

According to this, your maximum heart rate is 226-31=195.

So warm up zone is 50-60% or 98-117 BPM.
Fitness zone (fat burning) is 60-70% or 117-137 BPM
Aerobic Zone (Endurance Training) is 70-80% or 137-156 BPM
Anaerobic Zone (Performance Training) is 80-90% or 156-176 BPM

Granted, this isn't meant to be taken irrefutably. I found this link which appears to have different targeted heart rate zones. My reply was to show that your trainer was probably referring to the "Fitness zone" which caps at around 140 BPM for a 31 yr old female.

For myself, when I'm on the treadmill, I walk for 1/4 mile (I walk about as fast as I can. I'd guess at about 90% effort) then run for 1/4 mile (I'd say at about 75-80% effort. That way, if I turn my head to see something, I wont have to worry about falling off the back of the treadmill.). I alternate walking and running until I reach 3 miles.

My point is, to each their own. I recommend pushing yourself while on the treadmill. Granted, I'm not saying to do so until you injure yourself or faint, but push yourself so it feels like a workout and not a leisurely stroll. I push myself to work hard on the treadmill because I want to see results. I do not go by heart rate counts.

Mokey41

There's no magic fat burning zone. Workout as hard as you can and you'll be burning calories. Your body doesn't have a switch that tells it at a certain heart rate to change from one form of fuel to another.

iWaffle

I think it's true that you burn a higher percentage of fat if you stay within a specific zone but if you work out at a more intense level you'll still burn more calories from fat because your total calorie burn is higher.

to stay in the fat burning zone my heart rate should not go any higher than 130. Well.. ive done this for 3 days now.. Im pretty darn bored! i think it takes more effort to slow down than it does when Im pushing myself.

I think you've answered your question here. The best exercise is the exercise you will faithfully do. If his way is boring and non-inspiring then it's not something you're going to stick to and it won't work for you long-term. You're burning more fat your way. Of course it is using more carbs than his way but the total fat burned is higher with a higher heart rate. If you're trying to lose weight, I would go with this option. Muscle loss and specific fat burning zones are more helpful if you're trying to build muscle but for just losing weight, keep doing your thing.

SarahL522

thank you EVERYONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :happy: