Your heart rate is the number of times your heart beats per minute. It changes throughout the day depending on rested state or activity level. During physical activity, your heart has to beat faster to pump the proper amount of blood to working muscles. Stroke volume is the amount of blood per beat your heart pumps. Cardiovascular training increases the strength of your heart, thus increasing stroke volume. The more blood it can pump, the fewer times is has to pump per minute to deliver the same amount of blood.
Ideal Ranges
To effectively train your heart to become more efficient, it should be trained in an ideal heart rate zone. These zones, which are a percentage of maximal heart rate, change with age because maximum heart rate decreases as you get older. According to the American Council on Exercise, cardiovascular training is ideal at 50 to 80 percent of maximal heart rate. If you are unaccustomed to exercise, start at 50 percent. If you exercise often, start higher--at 60 or 70 percent.
Formula
Maximum heart rate can be estimated with the formula 220 -- age. If you are 40, your estimated maximum heart rate is 180 beats per minute. To determine heart rate for cardiovascular training, multiply 180 by 50 percent for your low-end heart rate and by 80 percent for your high-end heart rate. For a 40-year-old, the target heart rate is between 90 and 144 beats per minute while doing cardiovascular exercise to effectively train the heart.
Exercise
The American Heart Association recommends doing cardiovascular activity in your target heart rate zone for at least 30 minutes on most days of the week. This can be broken into increments of 10 to 15 minutes per session, multiple times per day. Exercise modes can be anything that gets your heart rate in the proper zone. For some individuals, it can be gardening or other household chores. For those people who exercise regularly, more intense exercise such as running or cycling may be needed to achieve target heart rates.
Benefits
Cardiovascular exercise is crucial in preventing heart disease, high blood pressure, strokes, heart attacks, and diabetes. It lowers your artery clogging low-density lipoproteins, or LDL cholesterol, and raises high density lipoproteins or HDL cholesterol, which helps keep your arteries free of plaque. Cardiovascular exercise will improve your endurance as you age, making activities of daily living easier.
Warnings
Remember to consult a physician if you are new to exercise or have any other questions regarding proper heart rate zones. The heart rate formulas are just estimations, not exact numbers. Maximal heart rates may vary. In order to see gains in cardiovascular health, live a healthy lifestyle. Make sure to eat good foods and avoid smoking and excessive drinking.
Member Comments