Help me understand heart rate.

trackinglou
trackinglou Posts: 6
in Fitness and Exercise
I recently bought a Polar hrm because I wanted to more accurately track the calories that I burned. I also noticed that I seem to have a faster resting heart rate so I want to be able to see if that gets any better. I've read that a slower resting heart rate is a sign that your heart is working more efficiently (or something like that) so I definitely need to figure that all out.

So I have a few questions.

1. What's the best time to try to figure out my resting heart rate? Right when I wake up, an hour or two later, or right before I go to bed?

2. My watch shows me my "target range" when I'm working out. I can usually manage to stay within these boundaries but when I run, I often go out of range. For instance, after today's workout, it shows that my max hr was 183 and I believe my target is like 127-164 or around there. What is the benefit of staying in range? Should I avoid doing exercises that are going to put me out of my range?

As a hear rate newbie, I really appreciate any help understanding this better.

Replies

  • BigT555
    BigT555 Posts: 2,067 Member
    1. right when you get up is best

    2. this is supposed to be the "energy efficient" zone for your HR, where apparently your body most efficient at burning fat. no idea how much merit this actually has
  • trackinglou
    trackinglou Posts: 6
    So there's no reason why I shouldn't go outside of that range?
  • BigT555
    BigT555 Posts: 2,067 Member
    So there's no reason why I shouldn't go outside of that range?
    i dont see any. ive always thought the higher your sustained heart rate the better, but im not much of a cardio fan, and never use a HRM
  • zenrunner1
    zenrunner1 Posts: 12
    Take your resting heart rate first thing in the morning, before you even get out of bed. To be most accurate, take it for a full minute (rather than 15 seconds and multiplying by 4). Your RHR is partially determined by genetics, so having a faster heart rate doesn't necessarily mean you are less fit than someone with an extremely low heart rate.

    To determine your ranges, I like using the Karvonen formula, which you can find here: http://www.briancalkins.com/HeartRate.htm
    Most running experts agree that it is more accurate than using a calculator based on age only.

    When I first started running with a heart rate monitor, it was really hard to stay within the recommended range! But you don't want all of your workouts to be hard workouts at the top end of your range - save that for speedwork or hills once or twice a week, depending on your level of fitness and goals. The bulk of your running should be at about 70% of max heart rate. Otherwise, you risk burnout and injury, and slow down recovery time. If you stick with the moderate pace runs, your body will adapt and you will see that you need to run at a faster pace to maintain the same heart rate.

    I don't know what kind of watch you have; but my Garmin triathlon watch allows me to set a min and max heart rate for my workout, and alerts me if I stray from it. I don't wear the monitor on every run - just for speedwork, and to "check in" once in a while to make sure I am not pushing too hard on my easy runs
  • TAsunder
    TAsunder Posts: 423 Member
    I am in the supposed anaerobic zone about 95% of the time when running, if my app is to be believed.
  • AnAbsoluteDiva
    AnAbsoluteDiva Posts: 166 Member
    Your Polar is telling you what the 65 to 80% range is of your MHR (maximum heart rate).

    When you go over 80%, you are in the anaerobic state. This is not a sustainable zone and in the world of sports, sprinters are the best example of anaerobic activity.

    If you stay within 65 to 80%, you can sustain that for hours and hours and hours depending on what sort of shape your muscles are in, your cardiovascular system, etc. Marathon runners are a classic example of athletes who perform in this zone.

    The 65 to 80 range is the ideal place to be to burn fat. In the first 20 to 30 minutes, your body is using the glycogen in your blood stream as fuel. (This is why you'll read that you should do weights before you do cardio work. Burn the glucose with iron. Burn the fat with treadmill.)

    In the anaerobic state (over 80%) you will not sustain for long and you will not burn fat for as long as you can.

    Now, as you get more and more fit, you will find that you can run faster, farther, whatever and still stay in the 65 to 80 zone. Polar HRMs are a fantastic device to gauge your level of FITNESS.

    If you want to burn fat, stay at 65 to 80. If you want to get faster or build endurance, inject periods of anaerobic activity (running and injecting a spring, running and injecting a sprint, etc.) every few minutes.

    I hope this helps.
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  • BigT555
    BigT555 Posts: 2,067 Member
    Heartbeat = good
    No heartbeat = bad
    QFT
  • cwrig
    cwrig Posts: 190 Member
    >>When you go over 80%, you are in the anaerobic state. This is not a sustainable zone and in the world of sports, sprinters are the best example of anaerobic activity.

    If you stay within 65 to 80%, you can sustain that for hours and hours and hours depending on what sort of shape your muscles are in, your cardiovascular system, etc. Marathon runners are a classic example of athletes who perform in this zone.

    The 65 to 80 range is the ideal place to be to burn fat. In the first 20 to 30 minutes, your body is using the glycogen in your blood stream as fuel. (This is why you'll read that you should do weights before you do cardio work. Burn the glucose with iron. Burn the fat with treadmill.)

    In the anaerobic state (over 80%) you will not sustain for long and you will not burn fat for as long as you can.

    Now, as you get more and more fit, you will find that you can run faster, farther, whatever and still stay in the 65 to 80 zone. Polar HRMs are a fantastic device to gauge your level of FITNESS.

    If you want to burn fat, stay at 65 to 80. If you want to get faster or build endurance, inject periods of anaerobic activity (running and injecting a spring, running and injecting a sprint, etc.) every few minutes.
    >>

    That ^ was a great explanation. Thank you.
  • AnAbsoluteDiva
    AnAbsoluteDiva Posts: 166 Member
    You are most welcome! :-)
  • jarret_g
    jarret_g Posts: 1
    Heartrate is a good indication of overall health. Measure your resting heartrate right when you wake up for accuracy. You'll also have a "walking" heartrate which is just your average daily kind of sorta resting heartrate. In terms of "zones" it's not that big of a deal unless you're training your body to use different forms of fuel. Marathoners and Ironman racers, for example, train around 150bpm-ish because in that zone their body is burning 50% fat and 50% carbs for energy so they can replace carbs easier during races. If you're outside of that "fat burning zone" you're still burning calories. You're actually burning more calories (faster HR = more calories). You're just burning more carbs than fats. When your HR gets up to a certain point you're destroying muscle which is then repaired by the food you take in. The "fat burning zone" is just really good because it's usually walking pace and can be maintained for the longest amount of time but if you go into a Tempo zone and burn more carbs then your body needs to replace that glycogen in your muscles somehow. It'll do this by either using the carbs you take in directly, taking from fat stores if there are no carbs available or in a process called glyconesis to use proteins. Ideally you want to replace carbs with carbs.
  • zenrunner1
    zenrunner1 Posts: 12
    The 65 to 80 range is the ideal place to be to burn fat. In the first 20 to 30 minutes, your body is using the glycogen in your blood stream as fuel. (This is why you'll read that you should do weights before you do cardio work. Burn the glucose with iron. Burn the fat with treadmill.)

    Actually, you have enough stored glycogen in your liver to fuel your running for about 2 hours! Fat is the last resort for your body to use as fuel.
  • trackinglou
    trackinglou Posts: 6
    Thank you all for your responses!

    A lot of this is making sense to me because I am fairly new to running (I broke my femur about 9 months ago and I've finally gotten the go ahead from my doctor to start normal exercise again) and I'm doing the C25k program. I was never a strong runner before I broke my leg and I'm finding that I'm outside of the range when I'm doing the running parts. I'm doing about 5 mph on a treadmill for my runs. Since that's only about a minute or so at a time, I'm not surprised that I'm in the "anaerobic state" (hooray for new terminology). I'll be interested if my time in target range increases as I get in better shape!
  • erockem
    erockem Posts: 278 Member
    For about the first 2 years I had my Polar HRM, I was at 95%+ when jogging/running the entire time. After I dropped some lbs, increased my cardio endurance, and controlled my breathing, my % dropped into the proper target ranges for my age based on my level of intensity.
  • AnAbsoluteDiva
    AnAbsoluteDiva Posts: 166 Member
    Glycogen in the liver is not easily accessible. In the first twenty minutes, you burn the glycogen in the blood stream. Beyond that, your body is using fat for fuel. If the scientific community has come up with a new study, I am not aware of it.
  • AnAbsoluteDiva
    AnAbsoluteDiva Posts: 166 Member
    Your target range will most definitely increase as you become more fit. Stick with it. It will happen quickly. Running is a sport of diminishing returns.
  • Kimsied
    Kimsied Posts: 223 Member
    I am in the supposed anaerobic zone about 95% of the time when running, if my app is to be believed.

    Then your maximum heart rate is probably set too low for your body. The zones are based on your listed max heart rate. The default is usually a formula that maybe works for averages but is often high or low for individuals. I have the opposite problem and after some tweaking of my max heart rate setting my zones became more correct for me. There are tests in labs that will estimate this pretty accurately, and there are tests you can self administer at home that will estimate this (probably not as accurate as a lab, but cheaper). I started by looking at the highest heart rate achieved during very vigorous workouts (I used stair laps 5 floors up and down) and added 10 bpm to that max. That still seemed a little high, but better than the formula estimated. If you can comfortably sustain a heart rate for a period of time it isn't anaerobic for you. I suppose it is possible if your running is short sprints, of course.
  • zenrunner1
    zenrunner1 Posts: 12
    Glycogen in the liver is not easily accessible. In the first twenty minutes, you burn the glycogen in the blood stream. Beyond that, your body is using fat for fuel. If the scientific community has come up with a new study, I am not aware of it.

    There have been many studies on glycogen depletion. If we burned only fat for fuel after 20 minutes, there would not be the infamous "wall" in the marathon. I am an ultramarathoner who has been running for over 35 years, and I have seen a lot of change; but research results on glycogen depletion have been pretty consistent. The focus of research now is how to get your body to burn fat sooner.
  • TAsunder
    TAsunder Posts: 423 Member
    I am in the supposed anaerobic zone about 95% of the time when running, if my app is to be believed.

    Then your maximum heart rate is probably set too low for your body. The zones are based on your listed max heart rate. The default is usually a formula that maybe works for averages but is often high or low for individuals. I have the opposite problem and after some tweaking of my max heart rate setting my zones became more correct for me. There are tests in labs that will estimate this pretty accurately, and there are tests you can self administer at home that will estimate this (probably not as accurate as a lab, but cheaper). I started by looking at the highest heart rate achieved during very vigorous workouts (I used stair laps 5 floors up and down) and added 10 bpm to that max. That still seemed a little high, but better than the formula estimated. If you can comfortably sustain a heart rate for a period of time it isn't anaerobic for you. I suppose it is possible if your running is short sprints, of course.

    If I use your max-number-plus-10bpm idea, I'm probably in the high 190's I guess. Which seems closer. If we assume that I shouldn't be able to sustain anaerobic threshold for more than 3 minutes or so, then I would guess that equates to a 180bpm heart rate based on my experience running intervals, and so that's pretty close.
  • bethanimal4
    bethanimal4 Posts: 41 Member
    bump to read later
  • AnAbsoluteDiva
    AnAbsoluteDiva Posts: 166 Member
    Glycogen in the liver is not easily accessible. In the first twenty minutes, you burn the glycogen in the blood stream. Beyond that, your body is using fat for fuel. If the scientific community has come up with a new study, I am not aware of it.

    There have been many studies on glycogen depletion. If we burned only fat for fuel after 20 minutes, there would not be the infamous "wall" in the marathon. I am an ultramarathoner who has been running for over 35 years, and I have seen a lot of change; but research results on glycogen depletion have been pretty consistent. The focus of research now is how to get your body to burn fat sooner.

    I'm not an ultra marathoner. I only run the little 26.2 marathons. Only have 24 under my belt.

    Deplete the body of carbs and fat will be the source of fuel. It takes time and training to get to this point. Replace sports drinks with water and Nuun or salt tablets, and you'll be fine. Run slow and avoid the lactate threshold and you'll never see the Wall.

    I'll never win a marathon as long as I win.

    But I'll never come in last.

    *wink*
  • juliewatkin
    juliewatkin Posts: 764 Member
    Do other people find that their heart rate is higher when they first wake up than doing regular stuff during the day? My typical heart rate during the day is mid to high 50s but is much higher when I first wake up. I guess I don't find waking up restful. My body has a fight or flight reaction.
  • tycho_mx
    tycho_mx Posts: 426 Member
    Glycogen in the liver is not easily accessible. In the first twenty minutes, you burn the glycogen in the blood stream. Beyond that, your body is using fat for fuel. If the scientific community has come up with a new study, I am not aware of it.

    There have been many studies on glycogen depletion. If we burned only fat for fuel after 20 minutes, there would not be the infamous "wall" in the marathon. I am an ultramarathoner who has been running for over 35 years, and I have seen a lot of change; but research results on glycogen depletion have been pretty consistent. The focus of research now is how to get your body to burn fat sooner.

    I'm not an ultra marathoner. I only run the little 26.2 marathons. Only have 24 under my belt.

    Deplete the body of carbs and fat will be the source of fuel. It takes time and training to get to this point. Replace sports drinks with water and Nuun or salt tablets, and you'll be fine. Run slow and avoid the lactate threshold and you'll never see the Wall.

    I'll never win a marathon as long as I win.

    But I'll never come in last.

    *wink*

    Not quite right. Fuel source depends on intensity at a large amount. And sure, you can exercise at a slow rate and use mostly fat as your fuel. As exercise intensity increases, mobilization of free fatty acids in plasma decreases but total fat acid oxidation increases simply because you're working out harder :)

    http://www.gssiweb.org/Article/sse-59-fat-metabolism-during-exercise-new-concepts

    That doesn't mean you burn more fat overall, because exercising at higher intensities is more time-efficient. In other words, you can burn 2000 calories in 5 hours or in 2.5.

    If you're eating at a reasonable deficit, you will still get overall less body fat. But you only get faster by doing some high intensity workouts as well.

    I'm not a runner - cyclists tend to compete at a large range of durations and intensities (from 20 minute time trials to 6 hour road races) so we tend to specialize less than runners.

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