This week we are going to discuss the importance of heart rate-based training. Recently, Tom and I have been focusing more specifically on heart rate fluctuations for our individual clients, as well as trying to get our group members to check in on their heart rates during a training bout.
First, let’s review the zones in which our heart rates will reside. Below is an example of zone guidelines for an individual with a MAX HR of 180 BPM:
Why is knowing these zones beneficial? Heart rate zones are a way to think about how your body is using energy, and how it responds to adaptation and stimulus. Zones are based on effort, not pace. The pace each zone produces will vary by individual. Knowing your zones and applying them properly can help your body burn more fat at higher outputs and stimulate mitochondrial development and efficiency.
Being intentional with different effort levels and when to use them can help you get more fit and faster. For example: If you have limited time and want to burn fat, you might aim to do everything in Z2 to get the most bang for your buck. On the other hand: If you’re trying to set a new 5K PR, you can gain speed and efficiency with workouts in Z3-5, but you also have to use Z1-2 to absorb and recover from those hard efforts.
The best way to determine your HR zones is by wearing a heart rate monitor for about 2 weeks. This will allow you to track trends and identify a consistent resting heart rate as well as a predicted maximum.
Below I have provided a few examples of training protocols we use and what zones you should be striving for during these sessions:
| TRAINING PROTOCOL | HR ZONES | EFFECT |
| Strength Training | Z1-2, Z4 | The bulk of strength training sessions should be spent in Z1. The effort of an actual set will peak into Z4/5, but we need to prioritize recovery between sets to maximize STRENGTH GAIN. |
| HIIT (15 on/off, 45/15 on off, tabata, etc.) | Z3-5 | HIIT is designed to increase your lactate threshold. We must push our HR to a point of discomfort to achieve a training benefit. You should feel exhausted after this type of session |
| Walking/Tempo Running | Z2 | These two activities are best operated in Z2 as they burn the most fat and are easily scalable to individual needs. |
| Power Training (training for athletes, 15/45 on/off intervals, A+A) | Z4-5 | Power training is where we want to reach our redline of top-end HR, then allow just enough rest to recover then repeat as many times as possible until we cannot recover under 3 minutes. |
I hope this helps to clarify what we want each of you to achieve in a particular training session. As always, if you have questions on where you are at, please let us know! We are here to help you achieve your best fitness levels and goals.
Yours in health,
Nick and Tom
