Heart Rate Zones

Maximum heart rate from age and the five training zones, with the reserve method

AgeyrMax HR formula

Zone 2 is where most of your time belongs
Easy runs, long runs and most of the weekly volume sit in Z2. It trains fat oxidation and capillary density at an effort easy enough to hold a conversation.

Heart rate zones

Z1 Recovery50–60%

Warm-up, cool-down, flushing

94–112

Z2 Aerobic60–70%

Builds the aerobic base, conversational effort

112–131

Z3 Tempo70–80%

Tempo running, deeper breathing but still controlled

131–150

Z4 Threshold80–90%

Lactate threshold, short sentences only

150–168

Z5 Max90–100%

Sprints and intervals, minutes at most

168–187

Formula comparison

220 − age 190Tanaka 187Gulati 180

220 minus age is a rough estimate with a standard deviation of 10–12 bpm; Tanaka (208 − 0.7 × age) holds up better in adults, and Gulati comes from a female cohort. If you can, test your real maximum instead of estimating. With heart disease or on medication that affects heart rate, ask a doctor before training by zones.