If you have started doing workout recently, or going to start it , then you must have to know about the maximum target heart rate.

What is heart rate?

Usually we know that heart rate is the number of heart beats per minute or per unit of time. This heart rate can vary as change of oxygen level of body. Like: during exercise you need more oxygen and during sleep you need less oxygen. This measurement of heart rate is required for doctors for diagnosis your health and athletes for maximum efficiency. It is also called resting heart rate and normal range is 60 to 80 beats per minute.

Heart rate is normally measured by counting the pulse of the body.

What is maximum heart rate?

The maximum number of times an exerciser’s heart rate or heart bit per minute.

Maximum heart rate for a person is fixed and it cannot be changed. It doesn’t reflect a person’s fitness level, rather it reflects whether a person will go ahead or not during exercise.

The unit for maximum target heart is beats per minute.

When should I know the target heart rate?

You must know it because you can determine your goal or your correct training zone and monitor your progress; for example: how intensely you can carry on your exercise.

It’s depends on age. To measure it, you can consult with your doctor or personal trainer. Once figure it out you can keep an eye on your progress of cardio workout and if you are not within this level then you must consult with fitness professionals. Before starting exercise, you should know this and know how to do workout.

How to figure out my maximum target heart rate?

Typical range of your target heart rate should stay within 50 to 80 percent of your maximum heart rate.

One easy way to figure it out by American Heart Association is to talk and move during cardio workout and if you find that you are out of breath, it will be too much of a workout and you should stop workout.

Another way is using Fox and Haskell formula which is widely used. This formula is based on your age.

The formula is  HR_max = 220 – age

For example, a 30 year old person will find his/her target heart rate is 220-30=190

And his/her target heart rate range is 190*.5 to 190*.8= 95 to 152.

Here you can click to know your target heart rate range.

To check your heart rate during exercise:

1. Stop momentarily.

2. Take your pulse for 10 seconds.

3. Multiply this number by 6 to calculate your beats per minute.

If you’re just starting out on an exercise program, keep your heart rate at the lower end of your target heart rate zone and gradually work up to a higher intensity level.

You can also use heart rate monitor which is found built in any tread mill or you can find a specific device, which is for this purpose only.

So, be careful about your maximum heart rate during cardio workout and keep watching that you are not doing too hard work. Stop doing workout if  you reach near to maximum heart rate.

Image by: Bob.Fornal