In most exercise programs, there are two distinct "training zones" based on heart rate---the moderate intensity zone and the vigorous intensity zone. Each zone is calculated as a percentage of your maximum heart rate, or MHR. Your MHR can be estimated by subtracting your age from 220. Your training zones are 50 to 70 percent of your MHR for moderate exercise and anything over 70 percent for vigorous exercise. Many experts recommend you exercise in both training zones for maximum health and fitness benefits.
Measuring your MHR
Greg Crowther, a research scientist at the University of Washington, recommends calculating your own MHR by doing your own stress test on a 400-meter running track using an accurate heart rate monitor. You start by running two laps at a comfortable pace and then accelerating your pace by four seconds a lap until you are too tired to continue. You will notice during your run that your heart rate increases as your pace increases, until at one point it levels off and you are running at rate that is making your muscles sting. The point where your heart rate levels off is your MHR.
The best rate for burning fat
Although your MHR is affected by your age---it declines about one beat per minute every year after the age of 15---even people of the same age, sex and fitness level can have vastly different MHR. That's why the target training zones found on exercise machines and fitness clubs walls are not as useful as they might at first seem. As Crowther notes, many of these charts suggest that if you train in the easiest portion of the training zone you will be in the "fat-burning zone." But this is not the case; the best way to burn fat is to exercise at the high end of the training zone.
Your ideal heart rate
Your ideal heart rate will vary according to the exercise you are doing, your training regimen and your fitness goals. Elite athletes, for instance, spend a lot of their training time exercising close to their MHR because they want to go as fast as they can for as long as they can. For most people, though, the University of Maryland recommends a target heart rate of between 50 and 75 percent of your MHR. After six months of regular exercise, you may be able to push it to 85 percent.
What is moderate exercise?
If your goal is to improve your health, then it is recommended by the American Heart Association that you do at least 30 minutes of moderate exercise, such as walking, at least five days a week. The heart association considers moderate exercise to be about 50 percent of your maximum heart rate while the National Institutes of Health considers it to be 60 to 70 percent of your MHR. Other fitness advocacy groups recommend people simply exercise hard enough to break a sweat but still be able to carry on a conversation.
Vigorous exercise is taxing but more beneficial
Vigorous exercise, according to the NIH, is anything over 70 percent of your MHR. The American College of Sports Medicine puts it at anything over 60 percent of maximum effort. In either case, The ACSM says if you are exercising at a vigorous level, you only need to work out three days a week for 20 minutes a day.
Mixing it up
Crowther and others, however, recommend that people alternate their exercise intensity, training at a moderate level one day and a vigorous level the next. The moderate days give your body a chance to recover from your vigorous workouts, and your vigorous bouts allow you to systematically stress your cardiovascular system in order to gain fitness and greater health benefits.
References
- National Institutes of Health: Physical activity
- Greg Crowther: Training and racing with a heart rate monitor
- American College of Sports Medicine: Physical Activity and Public Health Guidelines
- University of Maryland Medical Center: Recommended Exercise Methods
- American Heart Association: Physical Activity in Your Daily Life
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