by Catherine Woods

Created on: May 09, 2011   Last Updated: May 10, 2011

During exercise, one of the best ways to know how hard your body is working is to check your heart rate. Sure, you could purchase one of those expensive heart rate monitors, but who has the money for that? Luckily, with some simple math, you can calculate your own target heart rate for fat burning and cardiovascular workouts and check to make sure you are working out within the appropriate range. Just make sure you have a timer or a watch with a second hand close by.

Calculating your Maximum Heart Rate

Before you can calculate your workout heart rate for mid-level or cardiovascular, you must first calculate your maximum heart rate. Luckily, this is very easy. According to the MayoClinic.com, your maximum heart rate is simply, 220 minus your age. So if you are 30, your maximum heart rate is 190 beats per minute.

Mid-level

To find the target heart rate for a mid-level workout, also known as your fat burning zone according to WebMD.com, you might want to get out a calculator. Your fat burn zone is 60%-75% of your maximum heart rate. To find out the beats per minute, take your maximum heart rate beats per minute and multiply it by .60 and then again by .75. This will give you the BPM range your heart rate needs to stay in. For example, if your maximum heart rate is 190 as shown above, your fat burn zone would be between 114 and 142. Once you find your fat burn zone, write it down so you do not need to calculate it frequently.

Cardiovascular Training

Finding your heart rate range for cardiovascular work is done very similarly. However, instead of working in the 60%-75% range you will need to work in the 75%-85% range. So, multiply your maximum heart rate by .75 and .85 to get your target heart rate for cardiovascular work.

Find Your Heart Rate

To find your heart rate, rest your pointer and middle finger, skin side down, onto the inner portion of your wrist at the joint directly below the pointer finger. This is one of the easiest places to feel your own pulse. Press down slightly until you feel your heart beat and count how many beats you feel in 15 seconds. Multiply this number by four (using a calculator if necessary), and you have the beats per minute for your heart rate. Are you in the fat burning or cardiovascular target heart rate zone that you calculated before? If so, great! If not, adjust your workout down if your heart rate is too high or step it up a notch if it is too slow for where you want to work. Check your heart rate frequently throughout your workout to make sure you are staying in the ideal workout heart rate for you.

However, it is important no matter what your heart rate is to listen to how your body feels. If you start feeling light headed, dizzy, or experience chest pain, it is always best to stop your workout and start cooling down to prevent harm to your body. As always, check with your doctor before starting any fitness routine; weight, heart conditions and other physical limitations can have an impact on what type of physical activity you should engage in.

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