by aggieteacher

Created on: October 19, 2008   Last Updated: October 30, 2008

Heart rate is critically important when you exercise for several reasons. First of all, the heart rate you achieve during exercise determines the overall safety of your workout. Secondly, it determines the benefits of your workout. Once you learn how to calculate your target heart rate and how to measure your heart rate, it becomes second nature to do so at the gym or on your daily walk or jog.

So, how do you determine what your heart rate is at any given time? The first thing you need to determine is your resting heart rate. The typical person who is in okay physical condition has a resting heart rate of about 70 beats per minute (bpm). In order to figure out your resting heart rate, use a watch with a second hand. Place your index and middle finger on your neck about halfway between your collar bone and your jaw. Once you find your heartbeat, count how many beats occur in 6 seconds. Add a zero to this number and you have your resting heart rate. This same method can be used when exercising in order to determine when you have reached your target heart rate. If you are utilizing a treadmill, eliptical machine, stair machine, or stationary bike, it may have a heart rate monitor on it that will measure and display your heart rate for you. If this is the case, all you need to be aware of is what your target heart rate is.

You may be asking, what in the world is a target heart rate. This is the range in which you want your heart working in order to maximize your workout. For warm up or for a beginner your target heart rate shoud be 50-60%. This will decrease body fat, blood pressure, and cholesterol. To burn fat, aim for 60-70%. This will do the same as above, but at a faster rate. Aerobic level is considered 70-80%. It accomplishes the save as above, plus improves cardio and respiratory function and increases heart strength. Anything higher than this should only be done for very short periods by serious atheletes who have consulted their doctors about the safety of doing so.

In order to determine when you are in the above categories, there is an easy formula to use. First, find your maximum heart rate by subtracting your age from 226 if you are female or 220 if you are male. Then, determine your resting heart rate using the method described above. Subtract your resting heart rate from your maximum heart rate and multiply your answer by the % of intensity you want to achieve. For example, a 40 year old woman with a resting heart rate of 75 who wants to burn fat would do the following calculation:

(Maximum heart rate - Resting heart rate) x .60 = Target heart rate

(226-40) x .60 = 112

When you are first starting to exercise, you will want to aim for the lower part of the range, then gradually move up in the range until you achieve your goal. You should periodically reassess your resting heart rate in order to reevaluate your target heart rate! As you get in better shape, adjustments will need to be made.

An easy way to know if you are in a safe zone to work out is to try to exercise and talk at the same time. If you can do this easily you are in a good range. If you can sing and exercise, you are not working hard enough. If you feel out of breath, you could be working too hard and should check your heart rate.

Heart rate is an important thing to monitor during exercise in order to prevent problems and maximize the benefits of your fitness routine!

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