Heart Rate Zones

Morning ride with Jen to Poynton - 31 miles in total, few hills to tackle: here is my heart rate data:so most of the time in Zone 3&4 (60-80% of MHR - for more info see below). 

ZONE	%HRR	BPM	TIME	% ZONE
Z1	30% - 50%	98 - 120	00:23:35	13%
Z2	50% - 60%	120 - 131	00:31:12	18%
Z3	60% - 70%	131 - 142	00:45:57	26%
Z4	70% - 80%	142 - 153	00:51:18	29%
Z5	80% - 90%	153 - 164	00:23:12	13%
Z6	90% - 110%	164 - 186	00:01:04	1%

Heart Rate Zones: What Do They All Mean?

 Billy Pratt, CPT, CPFT, PAS, GIPS  Feb 1, 2011

The higher your HR, the harder you are working and here is where we come to the definition of cardiovascular exercise intensity, which is the percentage of your Maximum Heart Rate (an estimation of the maximum number of times your heart can beat in one minute).  Someone exercising at 85% of their MHR is working harder and placing more of a demand than somebody working at 65% MHR.

The mistake often made when trainees look at these percentage charts is in looking just at the individual zones and not at the complete picture.  Yes, training at the 50-60% range does burn fat however all of these effects are cumulative as you move up the cardiovascular intensity spectrum.  If you move into the “cardiovascular zone” (60-85%), you may not be using existing fat stores as the primary fuel source but you will be burning more calories.  Caloric expenditure is of prime importance for those looking to lose bodyfat.  It therefore makes much more sense to train at the higher intensity level if fat loss is your goal, given that you will be burning more calories and achieving greater cardiovascular conditioning at the same time (increasing the fitness level of your heart & lungs). 

Fat loss is definitely part of the aim of my training!! So need to keep this sort of effort up. 69% of the ride was in the right zones to achieve this - at MHR 60-90%. Now you know why the data is so important!!!!