Understanding Heart Rate Training Zones
Why do one should be concerned with heart rate training zone?
Well in short, to exercise more effectively and avoid overexertion. Training can be divided into several heart rate training zones and each one of them delivers different result or help you achieve different training goals – burning fat or training endurance.
| Training Zone | Percent | Info |
|---|---|---|
| Energy Efficient / Recovery | 60% to 70% | Developing basic endurance & aerobic capacity. Great for fat burning and allows muscles to be re-energised with glycogen that has been expended during faster paced workouts. |
| Aerobic | 70% to 80% | Great for cardiovascular system. Muscles become stronger and more efficient and hones the body's ability to transport oxygen to (and carbon dioxide away from) muscles. Great for fat burning and improving aerobic capacity. |
| Anaerobic | 80% to 90% | Develops your lactic acid system. During hard workouts, your body cannot keep up with the production of fuel and oxygen and it can no longer make use of fats efficiently as an energy source, instead it uses the glycogen stored in the muscles. |
| Red Line | 90% to 100% | Trains fast twitch muscles and develops speed. Generally only superhumans or interval trainers workout in this zone. |
Disclaimer: I am not a sports athlete nor a medical trained personnel. Before embarking on any strenuous trainings, please seek medical / sports advice from a trained personnel.
Interesting! How do I calculate my target Heart Rate Zone?
You will need to measure your resting heart rate, HR(rest), and maximum heart rate, HR(max). Heart rate is expressed as beats per minute or bpm for short.
To determine your HR(rest), find a nice quiet and cosy place to lie down and relax. After 20 minutes of resting, measure your heart rate (either with a heart rate monitor or by measuring your pulse with finger for a minute).
To determine your HR(max), the simple formulae is subtracting your age from 220. If you are 30 years old, then your HR(max) is 190 bpm. Different articles have different means of calculating HR(max).
Now lets determine the gap, HR(gap), between HR(rest) and HR(max). Assuming that your HR(rest) is 54 bpm and HR(max) is 190 bpm, your HR (gap) will be simply subtracting 54 from 190, that is, 136 bpm.
To achieve the 70% zone, the calculation will be:
HR(70% zone) = HR(rest) + 70% x HR(gap) = 54 + 70% x 136 = 54 + 95 = 149 bpm
To achieve the 80% zone, the calculation will be:
HR(80% zone) = HR(rest) + 80% x HR(gap) = 54 + 80% x 136 = 54 + 108 = 162 bpm
So to train (running) in the aerobic zone, I will aim to keep my heart rate between 149 to 162 bpm.