Heart Rate Targeting*

Knowing your heart rate (measured in beats per minute or BPM) can help in cardio/aerobic training - especially early on.* Heart rate really is a measure of stress and as thus can tell you a lot about how hard you're really working. This in turn can tell you about things like your current level of fitness and the current level of intensity you are training at or maybe should be training at.

For example, by knowing your Maximum Heart Rate (MHR) you can then find a proper pace to train at in your cardio routine by using a Target Heart Rate. A Target Heart Rate (THR) is a rate (or range) of heart beats per minute which you adjust by working harder or easier - depending on what your particular fitness goals are at the time.

For general fitness goals you don't need to visit a pro medical training facility and get hooked up to machines and blood analyzers in order to get the numbers you can make use of. You can if you want to of coarse, but personally, unless I was competing on an elite level I would not bother (nor could I afford it). Instead, you can use some commonly known formulas and a heart rate monitor to get a "good'nuf" approximation.

Some numbers you should get to know are for instance, your Maximum Heart Rate (MHR). Your Lactate Threshold (LT) which is nearly the same as your Anaerobic Threshold (AT) and are often used interchangeably. This (AT or LT) is the exercise heart rate where you begin to feel "the burn" in your muscles and you begin to get "out of breath". Your Target Heart Rate or "range" (THR) which is a particular heart rate/range at which you need to train at in order to achieve your particular goals. Your Resting Heart Rate (RHR) which can indicate a certain level of fitness among other things.

Other numbers you probably should know (not directly related to heart rate) are for instance your BMR or Basal Metabolic Rate which is basically the number of calories you burn if you were at rest all day (interchangeable with RMR or Resting Metabolic Rate). Knowing your RMR is good if you're into counting calories because it helps you determine your TMR or True Metabolic Rate ie your total caloric needs per day. It helps also to know your BFP or Body Fat Percentage - again, an indicator of fitness or more accurately of health.

MAXIMUM HEART RATE (MHR)

To find your Maximum Heart Rate (MHR) the formula that I use is this called the "Seals" formula developed by an exercise physiologist at the University of Colorado:

208 - (your age X 0.7) = MHR

This gives you a workable approximation to the real time stress tests that you can do on yourself if you wish (do a search). You can always go to a lab of coarse as any formula is liable to be off by some amount.

Example, in my case:
I take my age 46 and multiply that by .7 to get 32.2. I then subtract 32.2 from 208, to get 175 bpm (I drop the final decimal points as a minor adjustment toward a more accurate "real life" number).

175 bpm (beats per minute) is my Maximum Heart Rate (MHR). At least thats the figure that I choose to put my faith in - ie, it's close enough.


TARGET HEART RATE (THR)

The next step is to find a Target Heart Rate/range (THR) to train at to match your fitness goals and importantly as well, your level of fitness. In this method, Your THR will be a percentage of your MHR.

For moderate level aerobic endurance training ("zone 3" the most common level of aerobic training) what has worked for me is to target my heart rate (THR) for a range of between 75 and 85 percent of my MHR. In my case that's my general cardio/aerobic training zone of 131-149bpm. This is the "THR" zone where I spend most of my cardio training time.

THR zones vary some according to opinion but are generally close to what I have listed. Here are the cardio target heart rate zones that I use in my own training:

zone 1) warm up/cool down zone 60-70% of MHR
zone 2) basic fitness zone 70-75% of MHR
zone 3) aerobic endurance zone 75-85% of MHR
zone 4) anaerobic lactate AT-LT zone 85-90% of MHR
zone 5) anaerobic speed zone 90+% of MHR

The idea is to make use of each and all these heart rate zones (via targeting your heart rate by stepping the intensity level either up or down) at some point during a training cycle in order to get the most out of your efforts. More about how to use "zones" later...

*(Always keep in mind though that heart rates vary greatly according to age and fitness level among other things. See a doctor if you are out of shape, on meds, greatly over weight or middle age and beyond before starting an exercise program.)

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