target heart rate

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wordena
wordena Posts: 177 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Can someone please eexplain to me target heart rate? As you age I know it's supposed to go down but what about cardiovascular health. There are plenty of older people who can do far more than I? How are these numbers not limiting people as they age. I've always exercised by how I feel during exercise not by the numbers. If I'm going to puke I slow down. If I find myself starring to yawn or have my mind wander I know I'm not trying hard enough. Generally I get a good sweat in between. I ask because my mother recently at the gym was told to slow down Bc her heart rate was too high for her age. Yet she said she felt bored and wanted to go faster.

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  • MikeInAZ
    MikeInAZ Posts: 483 Member
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    Men take 220 minus Your Age, Women do 225 minus Your Age. Then shoot to get your HR in 85% of that Max HR range. Strive to keep it there for 12-20 minutes (cumulative) during your workout. Also known as the Orange Zone.

    Example: 21 year old Female:

    225-21 - MAX HR: 204, 85% HR: 173

    So work to get your HR to 173 and have it at 173 or higher for 12-20Minutes over the course of an hour workout.

    The theory is that when you do this, you put your heart in a stress mode and it takes it longer to recover (about 24-36 hours), your body will burn an extra 100-200 calories while it recovers. Over time, you will have to work harder and harder to get up to 173 because your heart and lungs will become stronger.

    My MAX is 186 and my 85% is 158. I have to work pretty hard to get it up to the 160 range these days . But when I first started working out, I would jog 2 minutes and it would shoot up.

    You want to be able to get your HR way up and then when you rest, it should recover quickly. That's a sign of a good heart. Then your resting HR will be lower and lower too, which is great!

    Get yourself a Heart Rate Monitor (Polar FT4 or FT7). That's a lot more accurate than using the machine to tell you your HR. Plus they tell you your calories burned.

    I will NOTE that you should do your own research to figure out your exact MAX HR. There are a lot websites out there that have different calculators to help you figure it out. Some people will say Women should do 230-age or others 220-age. I used 225-age because that's what I was taught at the gym. So do a little Googling to figure out what is best for you!
  • wordena
    wordena Posts: 177 Member
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    Ok thanks. That explains the cardio health thing. I think she wants to be able to run for a longer period of time than her heart rate says she can.
  • MikeInAZ
    MikeInAZ Posts: 483 Member
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    Ok thanks. That explains the cardio health thing. I think she wants to be able to run for a longer period of time than her heart rate says she can.

    I don't know what kind of shape she is in now. But I would say, she needs to build up to it. It doesn't take long, 4-6 weeks and she will be running 10Ks. Unless of course she's really overweight, then that could take awhile.
  • wordena
    wordena Posts: 177 Member
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    She is very overweight. But I know she can do it because as a kid I used to watch her on the elliptical for hours.
  • Mokey41
    Mokey41 Posts: 5,769 Member
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    I'm 55 so by the calculations my max heart rate should be 165 but I run and workout quite a bit. On a run my HR is often 165 or higher and I don't start to feel like I need to slow down until I hit about 185. If I do stop it's back down to near normal in minutes. You have to learn to monitor yourself and know where your limits are. The numbers are just a guideline.
  • iWaffle
    iWaffle Posts: 2,208 Member
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    You have to learn to monitor yourself and know where your limits are. The numbers are just a guideline.

    Exactly I'm 41 so if you use that figure (220-41= 179) Then I should be working out at 152 (85% of max). This morning my heart rate was 162 average for 5 miles. Honestly it wasn't too difficult. I don't start feeling like I'm working hard till 175. I've even gone over 180 several times when I'm running up hill. Your max heart rate isn't the death threshold or anything. It's just the maximum rate that it can work at. It's not like it's going to kill you, you just start feeling winded and tire easier.

    If you're overweight or have blood pressure problems then you probably should take it easier but otherwise it's just a number. You can tell when you're at the top-end of what your heart/lungs can handle.
  • Erienneb
    Erienneb Posts: 592 Member
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    Men take 220 minus Your Age, Women do 225 minus Your Age. Then shoot to get your HR in 85% of that Max HR range. Strive to keep it there for 12-20 minutes (cumulative) during your workout. Also known as the Orange Zone.

    Example: 21 year old Female:

    225-21 - MAX HR: 204, 85% HR: 173

    So work to get your HR to 173 and have it at 173 or higher for 12-20Minutes over the course of an hour workout.

    You want to be able to get your HR way up and then when you rest, it should recover quickly. That's a sign of a good heart. Then your resting HR will be lower and lower too, which is great!

    Get yourself a Heart Rate Monitor (Polar FT4 or FT7). That's a lot more accurate than using the machine to tell you your HR. Plus they tell you your calories burned.

    I will NOTE that you should do your own research to figure out your exact MAX HR. There are a lot websites out there that have different calculators to help you figure it out. Some people will say Women should do 230-age or others 220-age. I used 225-age because that's what I was taught at the gym. So do a little Googling to figure out what is best for you!

    I have had my metabolism tested so I know my max heart rate, and where all my cardio "zones" are for effective weight loss. Because I'm so overweight, my numbers are much lower. As I get more fit, I'm able to increase heart rate and sustain though. I'm a 21 year old 5'11'' female, and my AT (what I assume you mean by max) is 173. I work out in zones 2-3 so I aim for my workout to be around 150-160 BPM and that's been really effective for me.
  • scottb81
    scottb81 Posts: 2,538 Member
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    Most runners generally train at too high of a heart rate. It is better to train to run faster at a lower heart rate because at that level the body is burning more fat than glycogen and can therefore go much longer at a faster pace.

    The way to do this is run a lot at around 70% and below heart rate reserve (HRR) or around 75% max heart rate. That will directly increase one's aerobic capacity while minimizing stress to the body. Also, when it comes time to run fast you will be able to do it far longer than before because your system will have greatly increased its capacity to transport oxygen to the muscles and the muscles' ability to use that oxygen to create energy from fat and glycogen.

    No, . . . Despite the common Internet knowledge, HIIT will not do it faster. HIIT will not do it at all.
  • want2belean
    want2belean Posts: 124 Member
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    I'm 41 ...Interesting Info, my goodness maybe I'm over my head, I work out try to get my heart rate up to 170, I never think about it in so much detail as everyone is discussing, but very interesting. Maybe I'm not doing something right. I have changed my eating habits and excersing and have not lost 1 lb in the 2 months I have been doing all this...
  • Mighty_Rabite
    Mighty_Rabite Posts: 581 Member
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    Even the 220 minus age thing is a very general estimate, if I do recall correctly more people are at least one standard deviation outside of the estimated number than are within it.

    Different heart rates for different folks - I feel it's best to feel it out for yourself. If you are getting light-headed, struggling to breathe enough, or anything to that effect.. time to tone it down. Likewise, if you feel pretty unencumbered.. probably time to step it up a notch.
  • madmickie
    madmickie Posts: 221 Member
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    Your target heart rate for what?

    You need to assess your Max through some sort of test rather than the old 220-age - which is only a guide. Run hard for 2 mins -rest a min then run flat out for another minute or until you have to stop - that will get you close to your MAX.

    Look up HR Training zones somewhere and calculate zones for you. Then from a training plan from these zones to get you to where you want to go.
  • scorpio516
    scorpio516 Posts: 955 Member
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    Even the 220 minus age thing is a very general estimate, if I do recall correctly more people are at least one standard deviation outside of the estimated number than are within it.

    Different heart rates for different folks - I feel it's best to feel it out for yourself. If you are getting light-headed, struggling to breathe enough, or anything to that effect.. time to tone it down. Likewise, if you feel pretty unencumbered.. probably time to step it up a notch.

    +1

    I'm 34 and my max HR is at least 194.

    A much more useful number is LTHR. your Lactic Threshold HR. It's right about where you go from aerobic to anerobic. Mine's about 175. You can stay at your LTHR for about an hour. IIRC it's also the delineation between HR zone 4 and zone 5. Use your LTHR to determine your zones then apply your zones to your training plan.

    Or get a nice HR training book. I like Joe Friel's books, but there are other authorities too.
  • reedkaus
    reedkaus Posts: 250 Member
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    a more accurate way to calculate is is 208 - (0.7*Age)

    i.e. me: 208 - (0.7*23) = 208 - (16.1) = about 192

    this is my maximum heart rate. as you can see it is fairly close to the 220-age model, but still a little lower. UCB also made a great point that this is NOT for everyone. Heart rate is a variable that is very inconsistent between individuals.

    now that you know you're max, you can figure out what sort of zone you want to be in. i recommend intervals, allowing your heart rate to bounce between zones. in the end it's up to you. good luck
  • MikeInAZ
    MikeInAZ Posts: 483 Member
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    The 85% is a target range for best results. Ideally, you should be getting it higher, closer to your max. But if you're not in shape, don't do it!
    You have to learn to monitor yourself and know where your limits are. The numbers are just a guideline.

    Exactly I'm 41 so if you use that figure (220-41= 179) Then I should be working out at 152 (85% of max). This morning my heart rate was 162 average for 5 miles. Honestly it wasn't too difficult. I don't start feeling like I'm working hard till 175. I've even gone over 180 several times when I'm running up hill. Your max heart rate isn't the death threshold or anything. It's just the maximum rate that it can work at. It's not like it's going to kill you, you just start feeling winded and tire easier.

    If you're overweight or have blood pressure problems then you probably should take it easier but otherwise it's just a number. You can tell when you're at the top-end of what your heart/lungs can handle.
  • MikeInAZ
    MikeInAZ Posts: 483 Member
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    85% is not your MAX heart rate, it's a target to aim for to reach optimal fitness. You should try and get it above 85%.
    You have to learn to monitor yourself and know where your limits are. The numbers are just a guideline.

    Exactly I'm 41 so if you use that figure (220-41= 179) Then I should be working out at 152 (85% of max). This morning my heart rate was 162 average for 5 miles. Honestly it wasn't too difficult. I don't start feeling like I'm working hard till 175. I've even gone over 180 several times when I'm running up hill. Your max heart rate isn't the death threshold or anything. It's just the maximum rate that it can work at. It's not like it's going to kill you, you just start feeling winded and tire easier.

    If you're overweight or have blood pressure problems then you probably should take it easier but otherwise it's just a number. You can tell when you're at the top-end of what your heart/lungs can handle.

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