Heart Rate Questions

suzywantsitall

I have questions about heart rate, just where should it be at when I am doing cardio's to get the full effect. Some machines say my heart rate is 104, others say 104 is only 60% and I should be at 128. I am 60 years old and down about 42 lbs. in 6 months. Just how is heart rate figured ? age ? weight ? Should I be trying to get it at the higher numbers and for how long. Thanks for letting me babble.

bikegeorge

Heart Rate is usually calculated as follows. The General Guideline is
Maximum Heart Rate is 220 - your Age..in this case 60 therefore your maximum Heart Rate is approximately 160

You never want to get to that Number! Most training figures are calculated from that number

ie Fat burning Zone (Aerobic) is about 65 % - 70 % of your Max so for Cardio you need to be approx between 104 and 112 beats per minute.

For Threshold (lactate) Training you want to be at 85 %..which is difficult to sustain for long periods of time 136 beats a minute.

In Running or Cycling this means shorter fast bursts of speed used to elevate the HR up from aerobic to just at the anaerobic threshold.

Hope kit Helps you understand the concept :-)

ejwme

Max = 220-age is also a rule of thumb, which applies to humans on average. YMMV. Personally, my actual max (as measured via accurate HRM) is 220 (and yes, you can get there without dying, the point is you physically can't exceed it - you also can't hold it long) and I assure you I am not zero years old. My resting heart rate is about 42 - which a "regular" doctor usually gets excited about, but is perfectly reasonable for a long-term long-distance runner like me. Your heart rate numbers will be specific to YOU.

There's a lot of misinformation out there, and information that is good but poorly interpreted. Don't sit in your "fat burning zone" to lose the most weight or fat, it's far too low and you'll do better, calorie for calorie burned, to get your heart rate up higher for a shorter amount of time.

The best way to sort out where to get your heart rate is to play with it. Get on a treadmill or bicycle or go to a track, and see how long you can sustain different heart rates, and how your legs feel when you're moving enough to get to those heart rates. If your legs are strong, you'll tire due to anaerobic exhaustion before you'll tire due to muscle weakness, and find your anaerobic/aerobic threshold easily.

One way of finding that threshold is to run, or bike, as fast as you can sustain *evenly* (not comfortably, it won't be easy) for 20 minutes to half an hour or longer after a good warmup). Your average heart rate for that time should be around your lactic threshold. You'll want your aerobic work to be below it, anaerobic is above.

Word of warning - I did a 45 minute lactic threshold test a few years ago late one evening, found my threshold (at the time, it was 182), and returned home (5 minute walk), ate, and went to bed... The next day I fell when I tried to get out of bed because I didn't cool down enough and my legs literally wouldn't hold me up. So after the test, no matter how tired you are, keep moving (gently, an easy jog or so) for a good 20 minutes, clear out all the junk built up in your muscles. Your legs will thank you the next day (or at least just work properly).

ejwme

I'll add - aerobic work is something that, if given enough fuel, you can sustain long term. Long distance running, long distance biking, anything you do for more than half an hour (steady) will be aerobic.

Anaerobic is something you CAN'T sustain that long, your body simply cannot get oxygen to your muscles as fast as you are using it. Hard-core sprinting, heavy heavy lifting, bursts of speed or strength where your muscles give out - these are anaerobic.

Your lactic threshold is the line between the two, where your body clears the waste produced by your muscles just as fast as your muscles are producing it. Too much waste build up, and your muscles shut down - you're anaerobic. If you can clear it as fast or faster than you're producing it, you're aerobic and can continue with that effort until you run out of blood sugar or electrolytes or nutrients to keep the processes moving (fuel).

suzywantsitall

Heart Rate is usually calculated as follows. The General Guideline is
Maximum Heart Rate is 220 - your Age..in this case 60 therefore your maximum Heart Rate is approximately 160

You never want to get to that Number! Most training figures are calculated from that number

ie Fat burning Zone (Aerobic) is about 65 % - 70 % of your Max so for Cardio you need to be approx between 104 and 112 beats per minute.

For Threshold (lactate) Training you want to be at 85 %..which is difficult to sustain for long periods of time 136 beats a minute.

In Running or Cycling this means shorter fast bursts of speed used to elevate the HR up from aerobic to just at the anaerobic threshold.

Hope kit Helps you understand the concept :-)

suzywantsitall

Thanks George, knew I could count on you to explain in terms I would understand :-)

carrieous

you look really good for 60- dayum!

my max heart rate is supposedly 181 (220-39) but its usually at 184 when i am working my hardest

spersephone

Yes, the formula of 220 - your age isn't necessarily right for you. It's probably best to have a heart rate monitor and work out in such a way you can gauge what seems to be right for you. You can tell if you're working hard, if you're sweating your head off and your HRM says you're at 140, use that as a guide to show where your maximum effort is sitting.

I regularly get my heart rate up around 180 when running, and even higher. Supposedly I must be getting close to death at this point. I'm 38.

I can comfortably manage it sitting around 160 which is getting right up there at 90% of that maximum HR. I can even continue relatively comfortably at 170. I can keep going at 180 as long as I don't keep pushing too much more. Once it gets above 185 or so, I'm going to start feeling dizzy and have to slow myself down a bit.

It's very much an individual matter and you may need to get it checked out to be confident of the real figure for your situation. Or trust your own body to tell you when you're pushing too hard and conversely when you're really taking it too easy to get any real benefit.