How do you Determine your Target Heart Rate?

Knowing your target heart rate is an important component of exercising properly

Your target heart rate, or THR, is the desired range of heart rate that can be attained through aerobic exercise. Reaching your target heart rate enables your lungs and heart to obtain the most benefit from a given workout. The range varies based on age, previous training, and current physical conditioning.

Calculating your target heart rate

There are two basic methods for determining your heart rate – it can be done manually, using a formula, or automatically, through the use of a heart rate monitor. Both ways work but doing it manually requires a few calculations.

Manually

Determine your maximum heart rate - The best way is for this to be done in a fitness test with trainers present but, in the absence of that, a simple formula can be used: The number 220 minus your age equals your maximum heart rate.

Determining your target heart rate - There are a number of formulas that can be used but here's the simplest: After you determine your maximum heart rate multiply it by a percentage based on the intensity of the workout you are doing and the corresponding figure is your target heart rate. For example if you are doing a simple warm up (50 percent intensity) and your maximum heart rate is 180 the formula to determine your target heart rate would look like this: 180 x 50 = THR or, in this case, 90.

Determining your resting heart rate – Other methods of determining your target heart rate require you to know your resting heart rate. To determine your resting heart rate, take your pulse by placing your finger on your carotid artery which can be found on your neck between the middle of your collar bone and jaw line. Try to take your pulse over the course of a full 60 seconds for the most accurate reading – the resulting number is your resting heart rate

Automatic heart rate monitors

Wearing a heart rate monitor is an easy and accurate method of checking your heart rate and there are a bevy of monitors are available to help you determine your target heart rate. There are Polar heart rate monitors, Timex heart rate monitors, as well as heart rate monitor watches made by a variety of companies. Used in conjunction with heart rate monitor training, these devices can be one of the most effective ways to optimize and monitor your work out.

More information on heart rate monitors