How to Determine Your Heart Rate Zones

As my education and experience have grown as an athlete in my 40s, I’ve come to understand the power of heart rate training zones. If I want to lose weight, I train in one zone. If I want to boost endurance or speed? Another zone entirely.

When you know what your heart is doing, you can tailor your workouts to meet very specific goals—whether it’s fat loss, speed, or stamina. Today, I’m breaking it down so you can start using heart rate zones with intention and confidence.

First, Find Your Max Heart Rate

Before you can calculate your heart rate zones, you need your Maximum Heart Rate (Max HR)—the highest number of beats your heart can safely handle during intense exercise.

The most widely used formula is:

220 – your age = Max Heart Rate

Example: 220 – 45 years old = 175 bpm

While this isn’t as accurate as a lab test, it’s a good starting point for most healthy individuals.

What Are Heart Rate Zones?

Your heart rate zones are simply percentage ranges of your Max HR. Each one taps into a different energy system and produces a different benefit.

Let’s break them down using a Max HR of 175 bpm:

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Zone 1: Very Light (Recovery)

• 50–60% of Max HR

• Heart Rate Range: 88–105 bpm

• Feels Like: Easy stroll, full conversation

• Why Use It: Active recovery, healing, and improving blood flow without stress

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Zone 2: Light (Fat Burn)

• 60–70% of Max HR

• Heart Rate Range: 105–123 bpm

• Feels Like: Comfortable pace, steady breath

• Why Use It: Burns fat efficiently, builds aerobic base

🔥 Ideal for women over 40 looking to reduce body fat without stressing the system

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Zone 3: Moderate (Endurance)

• 70–80% of Max HR

• Heart Rate Range: 123–140 bpm

• Feels Like: Steady effort, speaking in short sentences

• Why Use It: Improves cardiovascular fitness and stamina

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Zone 4: Hard (Threshold)

• 80–90% of Max HR

• Heart Rate Range: 140–158 bpm

• Feels Like: Hard effort, breathing heavy, speaking few words

• Why Use It: Builds speed, improves lactate threshold

Use 1–2x/week max—this is a performance zone.

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Zone 5: Very Hard (Max Effort)

• 90–100% of Max HR

• Heart Rate Range: 158–175 bpm

• Feels Like: All-out, breathless, unsustainable

• Why Use It: Trains anaerobic power, rarely needed unless you’re a competitive athlete

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How to Use Each Zone in Your Weekly Training

Once your zones are set, build your week with purpose. Here’s how:

• Zone 1 (Recovery): Use after hard sessions, long walks, or to de-stress on rest days

• Zone 2 (Fat Burn): 2–4x/week for walking, hiking, steady cardio

• Zone 3 (Endurance): Use 1–2x/week for building capacity—jogs, circuit training, etc.

• Zone 4 (Threshold): Add 1x/week if you’re ready to increase performance or speed

• Zone 5 (Max Effort): Save for sprints or short, high-power bursts (rare)

Can You Combine Heart Rate Zones?

Yes, and you should.
A well-rounded program uses multiple zones over the course of a week to promote fat loss, protect muscle, and improve heart health. This is especially important for women in perimenopause and beyond, where smart programming reduces cortisol while delivering results.

Example Weekly Mix:

• 2 Zone 2 sessions

• 1 Zone 3 effort

• 1 strength day with Zone 4 peaks

• Daily walks in Zone 1

No Heart Rate Monitor? Use the RPE Scale

If you don’t use a smartwatch or chest strap, you can still train effectively using the Rate of Perceived Exertion (RPE)—a scale from 1 to 10 that reflects how hard the workout feels.

RPE (Rate of Perceived Exertion) Scale

Final Thoughts

I want you to know this so you can use it to make your workouts smarter—not just harder. When we understand what each zone does, we stop guessing and start getting results.

And if you’re like me, you’ll soon find yourself helping others with this info, too.