Your heart rate increases during activity to provide extra blood flow to working muscles. Therefore, active heart rate is intensity-specific and related to your current fitness level. For example, casual walking will elicit a lower active heart rate than sprinting or swimming. You can use your heart rate to set fitness goals and monitor progress throughout a fitness program. Knowing how to calculate and utilize target heart rate is beneficial for exercise.
Function
According to "Human Physiology" by Stuart Ira Fox, your heart beats to pump oxygenated blood through the body while bringing deoxygenated blood back to the lungs for more oxygen. Heart rate can vary widely and is measured in beats per minute. An average 25-year-old has a resting heart rate of 70 beats per minute and a max heart rate between 180 and 195 beats per minute.
Target Heart Rate
The American Council on Exercise defines target heart rate as the rate, in beats per minute, your heart should maintain during an exercise bout. Target heart rate is an estimate usually prescribed as a percentage of your maximal heart rate. For example, a person with a max heart rate of 200 beats per minute has a 50 percent max heart rate of 100 beats per minute. You can view target heart rate as a motivating goal during your exercise bout.
Calculation
Max heart rate is estimated by subtracted your age from 220. Therefore, a 20-year-old would subtract 20 from 220 and estimate their max heart rate at 200 beats per minute. Once you know your estimated maximal heart rate, you can follow exercise guidelines specific to your own max rate. According to the American College of Sports Medicine, cardiovascular fitness is maintained by exercising 20 to 60 minutes per day, three to five days per week, at 50 to 80 percent of your max heart rate.
Tips for Beginners
Exercise beginners have a lower target heart rate than conditioned individuals. For example, beginners may have a target heart rate of 55 percent max while advanced target heart rates can reach 80 to 95 percent. The inverse relationship between exercise duration and intensity dictates that a lower target heart rate can be maintained longer than a higher target rate.
Ways to Improve
Your heart is a muscle that can increase strength and endurance. Your ability to work at a specific target heart rate will improve as your heart grows stronger. The American College of Sports Medicine suggests maintaining a heart rate of 60 to 75 percent of your max will build endurance. Performing two- to five-minute drills with target heart rates of 75 to 85 percent will improve your ability to reach and maintain higher max heart rate percentages.
Considerations
Heart conditions and medications can interfere with active heart rate levels. Always consult your doctor before starting an exercise routine. Also ask your doctor about heart-rate guidelines that would be best for you.
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