HEART RATE ZONES

Zone

What it does

% of Heart
Rate
Reserve

Long, slow runs,

easy or recovery
runs

Training in this zone improves the ability of

your heart to pump blood and improve the
muscles ability to utilize oxygen. The body
becomes more efficient at feeding the working
muscles, and learns to metabolize fat as a
source of fuel.
Healthy Heart Zone (Warm up)

50 -60%

Long,
Moderate
runs

This zone provides the same benefits as the

healthy heart zone, but is more intense and
burns more total calories.
Fitness Zone (Fat Burning)

60 -70%

Aerobic zone or
"target heart
rate zone"

Most effective for overall cardiovascular

fitness. Increases your cardio-respiratory
capacity: that is, your ability to transport
oxygenated blood to the muscle cells and
carbon dioxide away from the cells. Also
effective for increasing overall muscle
strength.
(Endurance Training)

70 - 80%

Anaerobic zone

The point at which the body cannot remove

lactic acid as quickly as it is produced is
called the lactate threshold or anaerobic
threshold. It generally occurs at about 8088% of the Heart Rate Reserve. Training in
this zone helps to increase the lactate
threshold, which improves performance.
Training in this zone is hard: your muscles
are tired, your breathing is heavy.
(Performance Training)

80 - 90%

VO2 max

You should only train in this zone if youre

very fit, and only for very short periods of
time. Lactic acid develops quickly as you are
operating in oxygen debt to the muscles The
value of training in this zone is you can
increase your fast twitch muscle fibers which
increase speed.
Red Line (Maximum Effort)

90 - 100%

Maximum Heart
Rate

220 - AGE=
220 - 19 =
220 - 18 =
220 - 17 =
220 - 16 =
220 - 15 =
220 - 14 =

MHR
201
202
203
204
205
206

Pulse Points

GLOSSARY
HR Heart Rate: this is the rate at which your heart beats to pump blood around your body. When the body requires
more blood the heart rate will increase. So obviously, when you are working out harder, your heart rate will rise. However,
when your body is doing other processes, for example trying to fight off sickness, your heart rate can also increase and
trying to work out at the same intensity will put extra strain on your heart. Therefore, it is better for your long-term health
not to workout at a set pace, but at a set heart rate. This will stop you from overworking your body when it is trying to
repair itself.

BPM Beats per Minute: Heart rate is always measured by how many times your heart beats in a single minute.
Therefore, if you dont have a heart rate monitor you can find out your own heart rate by feeling for a pulse point. The
clearest is in your neck, either side of your throat (please note, do not press too hard or you can reduce the blood flowing
to your brain and make yourself pass out. This is not good, in case you were wondering.) With your index and middle
fingers, feel for the pulse and against a watch count how many beats you can feel in 6 seconds, starting with zero as your
first count. Then multiple the number by 10 to get beats per minute. This is not completely accurate, but will give you a
good indication.

Resting Heart Rate: Your resting heart rate is a good indicator of how efficiently your body is working. It is the
measure of how much your heart needs to beat to maintain basic life systems when you aren't moving. It is best to take
this first thing in the morning while you are still lying in bed. Measure your resting heart rate using the method above.
Generally, the number will be higher if you are unfit or currently unhealthy. For a basic indication of the ranges: Below 60
= fit, 60-80 = average, 80-100 = high but still okay, and 101+ is not good and you should talk to your doctor.

Max HR - Maximum Heart Rate: This is the fastest your heart can beat as you push it as hard as you can. It is useful
to know this as a lot of programs ask you to workout at a set percentage of your max. The most common formula for
working out your max is 220 your age. So if you are 30, the formula suggests your Max HR is 190.

RHR Reserve Heart Rate (not to be confused with resting heart rate): this is the range between your max and your
resting that you can workout at. Some exercise programs do not look at percentage of max but percentage of reserve, as
this takes into account personal differences in resting heart rate. It is important when following a program to make sure
whether they are talking about % of max or % of reserve, as the numbers can be different.

Maximum Aerobic Heart Rate: This can also be referred to as your anaerobic threshold. It is the rate at which your
body starts using more anaerobic (without oxygen) methods of energy conversion and less aerobic (with oxygen). The
body uses anaerobic conversion when it requires energy fast, but more by-products such as lactic acid are produced and
the body cannot maintain this for a long time. In the past it was argued that working out below your maximum aerobic
heart rate burns more fat and therefore was better for weight loss.

Ambient Heart Rate: Ambient Heart Rate (AHR) is a measure of how fast your heart is beating when you are awake
and sitting. You can calculate your AHR while you are sitting and reading a book, watching TV, working on the computer,
etc. Just like Resting Heart Rate, as you become fit, your Ambient Heart Rate will decrease. Take your Ambient Heart
Rate for 3 days and average it. AHR for the general population is generally in the 70's. World class athletes AHRs are in
the 40's and 50's.

Recovery Heart Rate: Recovery Heart Rate is the change in your heart rate after you stop working out. You compare
your workout heart rate with your heart rate after you have recovered for 1 - 2 minutes. If you do not have much change in
your heart rates, you are not very fit (your heart still has to beat rapidly, even though you have stopped working out. ) To
calculate your Recovery HR, take your heart rate 1 or 2 minutes after completing a workout. When working out in an
aerobic zone, a common recovery heart rate is 20-30 beats per minute. A person who is fit will have a higher Recovery
Heart Rate than an unfit person.

Name: ______________________
Target Heart Rate: the rate the heart should beat in a minute of activity to
truly get any cardiovascular benefit out of your exercise. If you workout in
your target heart rate 3-5 times per week for 20-60 minutes, you will
perform better on the PACER test because your heart and lungs have
become stronger.

Karvonen Method:
a. Find your Maximum Heart Rate (MHR) by using this formula:
220-age= _____
b. Subtract your Resting Heart Rate (RHR) from your MHR to find your
Heart Rate Reserve (HRR)
MHR-RHR=_______ which is your HRR
c. Multiply your HRR by .7 and add your RHR to find the low end of your
Target Heart Rate
(HRRx.7) +RHR=______which is low end of your THR
d. Multiply your HRR by .9 and add your RHR to find the high end of your
Target Heart Rate
(HRRx.9)+ RHR=______which is the high end of your THR

Target Heart Rate Zone: ________ bpm to ________ bpm

Name: _____________________

Resting heart rate _______

Objective: Today you will find and record your heart rate after several different activities.
You will also determine which activities you think you could do for 10 continuous
minutes.

Heart rate after:

Activity

Heart

Rate
1. Walking at a moderate
speed for 5 minutes
2.Rest for 2 minutes
3.Speed walking for 2
minutes
4.Rest for 2 minutes
5.Hamstring stretch (30
seconds on each side)
6.Slow jogging for 2
minutes
7.Rest for 2 minutes
8.Ab (ins and outs) for 1
minute
9.Rest for 2 minutes
10.Jumping jacks for 1
minute
11.Rest for 3 minutes
12.Pushups ( any
variation) for 1 minute
13.Line jumps for 1 minute
14.Rest for 3 minutes
15.Partner tag for 1
minute
16.Rest for 3 minutes

Place a star next to the activities (other than rest periods) that you think you could do for
10 continuous minutes. Continuous means that you take no breaks.
1. What activity where you doing when your heart rate was the fastest?

2. During the recovery/rest time after an activity, what happened to your heart rate?

3. Could you tell when your heart rate was increasing or decreasing?
a. Describe how you felt physically.

4. Could you tell when your heart rate was within your target heart rate zone?
a. What activity were you doing?

5. Could you tell when your heart rate was at or close to your maximum heart rate?
a. What activity were you doing?