The heart is at the center of the human cardiovascular system and plays a critical role in the body's performance during exercise. Monitoring your heart's performance as you exert yourself is a good way to maximize your training while preventing health dangers. Monitoring your heart rate is a good fitness practice to follow whether you lift weights, run or participate in sports.
Increase during Exercise
As you perform any type of work with your body, your heart rate increases proportionally until you reach your body's maximum capacity. According to Montana State University, your maximum heart capacity remains constant on a daily basis and only degrades slightly for every year that you age. This decrease is around one beat per year for every year after you reach around 10- to 15-years-old.
Target Heart Rate
When exercising to burn calories, it is best to workout at your target heart rate. The American Heart Association states that your target heart rate is somewhere between 50 and 85 percent of your maximum heart rate. As a rule, your maximum heart rate can be found by subtracting your age from 220. The simplest way to keep your heart rate within your target heart range during exercise is to use an electronic heart rate monitor, but you can manually check your pulse periodically as well.
The Talk Test
If you do not have a heart monitor and do not want to stop exercising to check your pulse, you can still ensure you are keeping your heart within its target range. According to MayoClinic.com, you can self-monitor your workout intensity by performing the talk test. Begin speaking while you are exercising. If you can say brief sentences but cannot sing, you are working out at the proper intensity level.
VO2 Max
As your heart rate increases, the volume of oxygen you intake increases as well. Much like your maximum heart rate, your body eventually reaches a point where its oxygen consumption peaks. This is called your VO2 Max, and it is generally considered one of the most accurate ways to assess a person's fitness level. Certified sports trainer Phil Davies states on his Sport Fitness Advisor website that by keeping the heart rate elevated through extended periods of aerobic exercise, previously sedentary people have been able to increase their VO2 Max by an average of 15 to 20 percent after six months.
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