Hi Everyone!  I often receive questions regarding target heart rate(s) for cardiovascular workouts and often give it less attention/detail than topics of resistance training.  This week I wanted to give you all a quick way to calculate your target heart rate if you are looking to improve your aerobic fitness.

 

Step 1 - Establish Age-Predicted Maximum Heart Rate (APMHR) using the formula:

 

220-Age = APMHR

 

Step 2 - Find Resting Heart Rate *Note-this is best taken upon rising, before getting out of bed.

 

Step 3 - Calculate Heart Rate Reserve (HRR) using the formula:

 

APMHR-Resting Heart Rate = Heart Rate Reserve

 

Now, in order to improve aerobic fitness you should aim for 70-85% of the Heart Rate Reserve number (it will be a range)  Exceptions would be for those new to exercise or with compromised health initially.