January 28, 2025 • 31 mins
Unlock the secret to supercharging your workouts by mastering your heart rate. Ever wondered how balancing your heart rate can transform your exercise routine into a powerhouse of cardiovascular benefits? We've got all the insights you need. This episode promises to guide you through the art of calculating your target heart rate and how sticking to the American Heart Association's guidelines can minimize health risks while maximizing gains.
We cover everything from calculating your target heart rate and using fitness watches to monitor your progress to crafting an ideal weekly fitness routine. Cardio isn't dead and in today's episode, we talk about why it is essential and how to stay intentional about how you move your body to exercise smarter, not harder.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
So if you're going to put the money into a fitness
watch, here's a very practicalimplication is actually watch
your heart rate while you'reexercising.
If you are dropping out of themoderate intensity zone then,
ladies, you're not exercising.
That's non-exercise activitythermogenesis.
Welcome to today's livetraining and Q&A.
(00:23):
Hope you guys are having anamazing Tuesday.
We had off today, the kids hadoff, my husband took off, so we
walked to a local coffee shopand got breakfast sandwiches.
It felt good to get the freshair, sunshine.
We keep telling our kidswalking is good.
Some of them are okay with it,others not as much.
(00:44):
I don't know about your family,but sometimes walking can be a
challenge.
And then I remind my childrenthat there are kids around the
world biking 30 minutes toschool or walking 30 minutes to
school just to get there.
So the fact that we're walkingto get breakfast sandwiches is
no big deal, but it can be tough.
(01:05):
So get out there, get your walkin, get some exercise.
I'm trying to do better aboutthat for my family, or else.
It's amazing Even how much weprioritize fitness, how
sedentary we can be, my familyincluded.
Today we are chatting all abouttarget heart rate, specifically
(01:26):
answering the question.
It is a frequently askedquestion in the health and
fitness space.
When we talk about target heartrate how high should a heart
rate be during exercise?
What we're going tospecifically target is how to
unlock the full benefit of yourworkout by determining how high
(01:46):
a heart rate should be duringexercise and consequently, then
how to target your heart ratezone.
Maintaining an optimal heartrate during exercise can be
crucial for maximizing thatcardioprotective benefit and
minimizing risk factors fordisease.
The American Heart Associationrecommends targeting a heart
(02:10):
rate between 50 and 85% of yourmaximum heart rate during
moderate to vigorous aerobicexercise.
That being said, this targetrange can vary based on
individual factors such as age,fitness level and underlying
health conditions medicine thatyou take.
We're going to address some ofthese, but first let's just talk
(02:34):
about how we even calculatetarget heart rate.
We're going to get into why wecare, so don't worry if you're
already thinking like why shouldI care about this?
We are going to talk about that, but first let's just get in
our minds what your target heartrate is.
The first thing that you want todo before you get that range
the target heart rate range isyou want to calculate your
(02:55):
maximum heart rate.
What does maximum heart ratemeans?
It means that the heart is amuscle and there is really only
so high and hard that the heartcan and should go.
This also varies with, like Isaid, age, risk factors,
medicines that you take, etc.
But it is important tounderstand that the heart is a
(03:18):
muscle.
It is quite literally a largemuscle that pumps.
So that's important tounderstand.
But then, consequently, justlike your muscle right now, in
your legs, in your arms,anywhere, is only capable of
withstanding so much due to howstrong it is, the same is true
(03:39):
of your heart.
So the American HeartAssociation suggests using the
formula 220 minus your age isyour estimated maximum heart
rate.
So do that math right now 220minus your age, whatever your
age is.
If you need a calculatorthere's no here that's your
(04:03):
estimated maximum heart rate.
So, for example, if you were 40, your estimated maximum heart
rate would be 180 beats perminute.
So once you have done that,then you can calculate your
target heart rate range bymultiplying it by the desired
(04:25):
intensity level.
So what we're going to do forthese purposes is we're going to
talk about vigorous intensity.
So this is a higher heart rate.
This is what we're targetingduring aerobic exercise, hiit
workouts.
Hiit's a really, really popularone right now because we've
kind of gotten away from thelike, oh, just going for a jog
or running on the treadmill.
(04:45):
We see the benefits of HIIT,especially when we add weights,
because now we're doing musclebuilding, cardio.
But what we are wanting totarget is that we are stressing
that cardiac muscle, becausewe're going to talk about all
the benefits of that withvigorous exercise.
So, by definition, in order tooptimize your health, per the
(05:08):
American Heart Association, allthe research that we have you
want five days, 30 minutes a dayof moderate to high intensity
exercise.
So that would be like moderate.
What we're specifically talkingabout right now is that high
intensity, vigorous, the higherrange, because of the benefits
(05:31):
that you are going to see from acardiac standpoint.
And why we want to talk aboutthis is that because we have
shifted away a little bit fromaerobics, and rightly, rightly
so.
Strength training should takean important role.
But I am going to argue that youcannot eliminate aerobic, high
(05:55):
intensity exercise because ofthe very unique cardio
protective benefits that itoffers.
The difference is it doesn'tneed to be all five days.
In fact, it shouldn't be allfive days of your exercise.
So vigorous intensity is 70 to85% of your maximum heart rate.
(06:19):
The American Heart Associationhas a graph that breaks all of
this down If you just want theeasy button to determine what
your range is.
So for those of us that arehere, many of us are going to
span this range.
So 30 years is going to be 95to 162, is going to be that
(06:43):
moderate to vigorous.
30, 40 is like 90 to 153.
Now, again, this is themoderate to vigorous.
So if 180 is my max, we can goup to 180.
(07:04):
So I'm 38.
So I'm just rounding up to 40.
45 years 88 to 149, 179, 175average maximum heart rate.
There's going to be a blog postcoming out if you just want this
graph.
So you're going to have accessto that.
Keep an eye on your email.
I think it's scheduled to postin two weeks, but you'll have
this information.
But if you want to actually dothe math, then what you are
going to do is you are going totake your maximum heart rate.
(07:26):
So if you're 40 years old,that's 180.
And you are going to multiplyit by 0.85.
And then you're going tomultiply it by 0.70.
And what that is going to giveyou is your range.
(07:54):
So why does determining yourtarget heart rate matter?
And again, this is specificallytalking about that higher
intensity.
Well, it makes the differencebecause we want to understand
how to apply it to the ways thatour body is fueling with energy
.
So it concerns the differinghealth benefits between
(08:17):
non-exercise activitythermogenesis and exercise
activity thermogenesis.
And then, to break it down evenfurther, under exercise
activity thermogenesis we'retalking about moderate intensity
exercise to high intensityexercise.
And in case you've neverrealized what the definition of
that is, it has everything to dowith your heart rate.
(08:38):
When someone says moderateintensity, that is directly
correlated to how high yourheart rate is during that
workout.
It doesn't mean how hard it is,it's how intense it is for your
heart versus high intensity orvigorous.
So a quick recap in case youhave not heard this before or
you missed this training thedifference between NEAT and EAT.
(09:01):
I cannot reiterate this enough.
They're the two main componentsof daily energy expenditure
related to physical activity.
Non-exercise activitythermogenesis or NEAT is
ultimately the steps that youtake in a day, daily steps
required for basic living.
This could include fidgeting ina chair, spontaneous exercises
(09:21):
like walking from your couch toyour fridge.
Right, those steps, those aredaily movements needed to live.
It accounts for a significantportion of your total daily
energy expenditure of your totaldaily energy expenditure but
exercise activity thermogenesisis the energy expended during
planned, structured exercise.
(09:42):
This could include running aclass at the gym.
It can include weight training,lifting so hitting your target
heart rate for our purposes.
Today, what we are talking aboutis I am specifically talking
about the aerobic, highintensity exercise of exercise
(10:03):
activity thermogenesis.
I am not talking about liftingweights.
You probably should not behitting your maximum heart rate
lifting weights because it mightmean that you're not giving
yourself enough rest in betweensets to properly maintain form
and function.
So I want to be really clear.
(10:26):
I am not downplaying liftingweights.
I am talking about thedifference between the two types
of exercising.
So that you understand.
We're talking high energyaerobic hit workouts.
There might be weights involved, but HIIT workouts.
So hitting your target heartrate in this higher 70 to 85% of
(10:47):
your maximum heart rate isspecifically going to provide
very unique benefits for yourheart that are different than
lifting, for example, orstrength training.
The aerobic exercise with thatvigorous target heart rate range
is the best workout to stressthe heart muscle and offers
(11:15):
numerous cardio protectivebenefits.
Again, think of the muscle as aheart.
Before I list these benefits,you need to picture.
The heart is literally a muscle.
I had the privilege of doing arotation with a cardiac surgeon
when I was at John HopkinsUniversity for my first master's
in nursing.
My first master's is in adultgeriatric critical care and I
(11:37):
got to work with the firstassist for this cardiac surgeon.
So for several months I stoodover open chests and got to see
the heart multiple times beatingand functioning in real time
while cardiac surgery washappening.
It's a phenomenal thing towatch, but it is literally a
(11:58):
muscle that just expands andcontracts constantly without you
having to do anything about it.
It's we're fearfully andwonderfully made.
It's pretty impressive.
But for the people who are lessfit meaning your heart has had
less stress via high intensityexercise it is not going to have
(12:22):
the same ability to functionfor the level of stress, meaning
somebody who is in greataerobic shape will possibly even
have a larger heart because themuscle is bigger and it
requires less effort for theheart to function.
(12:45):
Does that make sense?
Similarly to, if somebody hasreally good leg strength, it
might be a lot easier for themto pick something up that is
heavy.
It's less stress for them topick up the same 50 pound weight
as it might be for the personwho has not built up their leg
muscles.
And then what happens?
Well, they're going to end upstraining their back because
(13:05):
they don't have the support inthe legs.
Same thing with the heart.
If you have not properlystressed the heart and are
building that cardiac muscle,you are not going to have the
same ability to function aseasily as the person who has
built it up.
And here is the key you guys.
This is why you cannot get ridof aerobics, and I defy anyone
who says that you can.
(13:26):
I've watched this heart muscle.
When you understand what thefunction of the heart muscle
does, you realize the importanceof building it and
strengthening it in this way.
These cardioprotective benefitsinclude improved cardiovascular
function, enhancing the heart'sability to pump blood more
(13:49):
efficiently, reducing theworkload on the heart, lowering
resting heart rate and bloodpressure.
I could talk for hours aboutwhat that actually means and the
amount of chronic disease thatthat prevents.
If you can do that, that verything alone, it's going to
(14:11):
improve cholesterol levels.
So it's going to raise aerobicexercise, specifically having
these sustained periods ofexercise where you are hitting.
That higher heart rate willincrease minimally minimally,
mind you, it's small, but itdoes show some increase of your
(14:32):
HDL.
That is the good cholesterolthat helps protect your heart
and your vasculature whilelowering the bad cholesterol,
reducing the risk ofatherosclerosis, which
ultimately contributes to heartdisease and strokes.
It will increase insulinsensitivity, so higher target
(14:54):
heart rate exercise improves thebody's ability to use insulin
effectively, lowering the riskof type 2 diabetes, which is a
significant risk factor formultiple diseases, especially
cardiovascular disease.
Number four reducesinflammation.
Aerobic exercise hasanti-inflammatory effects, which
(15:16):
can help prevent thedevelopment and progression of,
again, atherosclerosis and othercardiovascular conditions.
Now some people might be sayingor thinking well, won't other
forms of exercise do the samething?
Yes, they can, and they do itin different ways.
Everyone here knows I am a hugefan of strength training.
(15:36):
We need to be lifting weights.
However, they're, especially inthat cardiac function are
benefits to the aerobic exercisethat you are not going to
maximize with strength training.
They function differently andthey help the body differently.
So, yes, strength trainingother forms of exercise will
(16:01):
help offer benefits in thesesame ways, but not to the same
extent as this aerobic exercise,specifically when we talk about
cardiovascular function.
So what are a couple of factorsaffecting target heart rate,
because some of these mightapply to you.
The American HeartAssociation's target heart rate
range is a general guideline andthere are factors that can
(16:23):
influence your optimal heartrate during exercise.
Chronic conditions like heartdisease, diabetes, lung
disorders, may requireadjustments to this target heart
rate range.
You do want to consult withyour primary care provider if
this is something that youreally want to start watching,
(16:45):
because it's also going to helpyou maximize your exercise right
.
We want to move smarter, notharder.
Medications, for example, ifyou do have heart issues, um,
throwing out some words here, alot of people aren't going to
recognize, but those of you thatare on them will.
Beta blockers, calcium channelblockers For those of you that
might have um heart conditionsor high blood pressure those
(17:07):
might ring a bell that willchange your baseline heart rate
and so your target heart ratemight be slightly lower because
you are chemically inducing alower heart rate, and so your
target heart rate might beslightly lower because you are
chemically inducing a lowerheart rate at rest with these
medicines.
Fitness level this is reallyimportant to understand If you
(17:28):
are at a lower cardiovascularfitness level and listen.
I'm looking at some of youladies who have gotten hardcore
into strength training but haveeliminated cardio from your
workouts.
You might be strong muscularly.
You might be strong muscularly,but you might be very out of
(17:49):
shape cardiovascularly.
I have been here.
I'm speaking from experience.
This is why oftentimes when Istart running again when it gets
warm out because I'm notrunning in 30 degrees Not
happening.
I love running, not in 30degrees, so I tend to run very
little over the winter, but I'mstill strength training and
(18:09):
doing HIIT workouts et cetera,in my house.
But then when I go out and runwhen it gets warm, ladies, I'm
dying.
Even though I am physicallystrong and I'm actually in good
anaerobic shape, it is not thesame as being in good
cardiovascular shape or runningshape.
So for any of you who haveexperienced that, you have
(18:29):
actually experienced exactlywhat I'm talking about here.
That needs to be built back up.
Now to be clear.
You can still get thosecardioprotective benefits from a
HIIT workout.
You can within your home, butyou need to be intentional about
it.
It's really easy to let yourheart rate drop too low when
you're on, when you're on yourbreak and you're on your phone.
Right, you see it all the timeat the gym People sit there
(18:52):
forever on their phone inbetween sets so, like, your
heart rate just got so low.
Anyways, that's a different,different training.
Just put your phones away, guys, when you're working out.
Just put them away.
But the point is this if you'reat a lower fitness level, going
on a walk might actually get youto that target heart rate zone.
(19:13):
Does this make sense?
What I'm saying, like, if youare not in cardiovascular shape
and you know that, you might getaway with going for a walk and
hitting that target heart ratezone, and how do you know?
That's where the heart ratemonitor watches come in.
That's where the fitnesswatches come in.
People are paying crazy amountsof money for these fitness
watches that they don't even use.
They don't even know what allit does.
(19:36):
So if you're going to put themoney into a fitness watch,
here's a very practicalimplication is actually watch
your heart rate while you'reexercising.
If you are dropping out of themoderate intensity zone, then,
ladies, you're not exercising.
That's non-exercise activity,thermogenesis.
If you're not even in themoderate, which many are not,
(19:56):
you go on a bike ride and youdon't put it on a higher gear
and you're taking a leisurely 10mile bike ride.
You can go on a 10 mile bikeride and not be exercising.
If you don't hit that moderateintensity, you're not actually
exercising.
Now it's still activity.
You're outside I applaud that.
It's better than sitting andwatching Netflix but understand
how you're moving your body, howit's benefiting you.
(20:18):
So we're talking about a higherintensity.
If you're at a higher fitnesslevel, then you are already in
much better cardiovascular shape.
It might actually take moreexercise to hit that higher
heart rate zone.
Age is another big one.
As individuals age, thatmaximum heart rate decreases and
(20:38):
the American Heart Associationchart does reflect that.
You're going to want to adjustthat range accordingly,
especially if you're on.
So you know you're going towant to adjust that range
accordingly, especially ifyou're on beta blockers, calcium
channel blockers and certainmedicines.
If you do have heart disease,by the way, your you know your
(21:05):
cardiologist is going to be theperson to have these
conversations with, who aregoing to be able to speak to
target heart rates and what thatlooks like for your heart.
So you've done the math.
You've written down yourmaximum heart rate.
You've written down that 70 to85% target heart rate zone for
high intensity.
What do you do with thesenumbers and how often are you
trying to hit these?
And how often are you trying tohit these?
(21:28):
You want to exercise withinthis range approximately two
days a week.
If I could give you the mostideal exercise schedule, this is
what we do at Early MorningHabit.
Some of you might not havethought about that, but this is
what we do, and this is true fora lot of exercise programs.
They might not be able to saywhy they do it what we do, and
this is true for a lot ofexercise programs.
(21:48):
They might not be able to saywhy they do it, um, but this is
actually the ideal.
The ideal balance is two days aweek of cardio exercise, high
intensity or hit.
But the way to actually monitorif you are benefiting from this
is by wearing that watch whenyou are actively in your HIIT
(22:11):
set and your exercise.
You should be in that 70 to 85%range.
If you're not, then, girl, youneed to push it a little harder.
So HIIT, by definition, isinterval training, so that does
not mean that you necessarilyneed to maintain that for your
entire 20 to 30 minute workout,because you do want to take rest
(22:35):
periods in order to be able tojump back into that high
intensity.
Right, it can be hard tosustain that for 30 minutes, but
you want to be careful to notput too much time between your
intervals, which I see a lot ofpeople do, because they get
distracted, especially ifthey're not in a structured
workout program and doing it ontheir own.
It's easy to get distracted.
(22:56):
Or two, they're not actuallymaximizing the intensity when
they are doing the interval.
Does that make sense?
So this is the benefit tohaving that watch is you can
actually track when you areexercising.
Are you hitting that targetheart rate?
Are you working that cardiacmuscle hard enough to get the
(23:17):
benefit from it from a diseaserisk standpoint, promoting
optimal health andcardiovascular health?
So, 70 to 85%.
Hopefully you wrote that targetheart rate number down.
If you have a fitness watch,next time you do a HIIT workout
or a cardio workout, look atyour heart rate and see are you
(23:37):
hitting it?
If you're not, you need to bumpup the intensity.
The jumping jacks need to befaster.
The squat jumps need to befaster or more, or maybe you
need to actually get lower inyour squat jump.
Maybe you need to jump higher,right, like you got to boost it
up a little bit if you're not inthat hurry, and what you will
find then is, as you become morecardiovascularly fit, that you
(23:59):
will return to your baselineheart rate sooner.
That is a sign of bettercardiovascular function or heart
muscle health.
Consequently, your heart rateat rest will be lower.
Your heart rate at rest will belower.
(24:19):
There's also a ton of benefitsto this as well, because, again
at rest, we want the heart towhat Be at rest as well.
Because, again at rest, we wantthe heart to what Be at rest.
So for those of you that arepushing 80 to 90 at a resting
heart rate, I'm going to suggestthat maybe you need to take a
look at your exerciseprogramming.
(24:40):
Are you getting enough cardioin?
Because at rest the heart rateshould be between like 60 to 80.
Those who are in great shape,their resting heart rate can be
40.
Really, really active kids likemy son the summer he was
hospitalized for pneumonia andit was very scary, but then at
night he was in the ICU and onthe monitor and his heart rate
(25:02):
would dip to the low forties,high 30s.
And the first time it happenedthis whole team came in and they
were like looking at him,everything was totally fine.
And the physician made thepoint that I had already thought
myself is the inactive kid?
Yes, absolutely.
He does not.
Sit still.
So that's why his heart ratewhen he sleeps, drops so low and
(25:25):
his blood is still perfusing.
What that means is it is so lowand his blood is still
perfusing.
What that means is it ispumping accurately and well to
all the extremities.
So for some of us, mine doesnot go that low.
Mine does go pretty low.
Even at rest and sleeping, ourheart rate can drop pretty low,
and that's actually a good thing, assuming the blood is getting
(25:46):
to where it needs to go.
So tracking your heart rate is agreat way to maximize the
benefits of aerobic exercise,high intensity exercise for the
heart rate definition and ensureyou're training at the optimal
intensity based on yourindividual needs.
Like I said, you want to beaiming for these higher heart
(26:08):
rate zones twice a week throughexercise such as HIIT running,
speed walking, walking if you'reat a lower fitness level,
biking.
You can be adding weights tothese HIIT trainings.
I'm not saying there's noweights, but here is a tip they
should probably be lower.
They should probably be lowerbecause it is really hard to get
(26:30):
that heart rate really highwhen you're lifting heavy
because you should not be movingas fast.
Does this make sense?
When you are lifting heavyweights, you want it to be slow
and controlled.
Or you're going to pullsomething and you are going to
have suboptimal form low andcontrolled, or you're going to
pull something and you are goingto have suboptimal form.
So when you are doing a HIITworkout and your instructor says
(26:52):
, pick up the weights, be verymindful that the goal of that is
not to significantlyhypertrophy peripheral muscle
for a HIIT workout.
It is actually the cardiacmuscle that you are targeting
during HIIT workouts.
So when you pick up the weight,you actually want it to be a
little bit lighter.
(27:12):
Yes, you can add that extrastress for the peripheral
muscles, but it is with theintent to stress the cardiac
muscle.
Does that make sense?
What questions do you haveabout that?
I'm trying to think if I missedanything to make that any
(27:33):
clearer.
But any questions that come tomind, let me pray us out here
for our week.
Lord, I thank you so much forthese ladies and I thank you for
the opportunity to be able toget together over something like
Zoom and the technology that wehave to be with other women
(27:55):
around the world, even throughsomething like this platform.
Grateful for the women that arehere, I pray your hand over our
hearts, over our homes.
I do ask specifically forprotection for those of us here
who are at a lower fitness level, who are maybe stepping back
(28:17):
into it after a long time awayor who have never really been in
the fitness game.
And these women are here forthe first time, stepping out in
faith, trying to take control oftheir health, and I honor those
women.
I see those women and I prayprotection over them and healing
(28:37):
if there are any injuries, butalso protection from injury, and
I thank you for their boldnessand willingness to try new
things.
And for the many women here whoare trying new things, trying to
establish an early morningroutine and maybe it has been a
struggle.
It certainly was for me for along time I ask that you would
(28:59):
give them strength, endurance,that when their alarm clock goes
off in the morning and theywant to do anything other than
get out of bed, or they get outof bed and they're distracted by
the to-do list or the worriesfor the day, I just pray that
you would give them a stubborn,relentless determination to be
still Knowing that that activerest in stillness with you,
(29:23):
filling their truth, fillingtheir mind with your truth, from
your word, and starting theirday in stillness with you, is
quite literally the bestpossible thing that they could
do for their body and soul andwill ultimately improve their
productivity and the rest of theday will fall in line and in
place so much better.
So I just help us, lord.
Help us to fight for thatstillness, for our earthly joy
(29:46):
and for your eternal glory.
We love you, amen.
So if you're going to put the money into a fitness
watch, here's a very practicalimplication is actually watch
your heart rate while you'reexercising.
If you are dropping out of themoderate intensity zone then,
ladies, you're not exercising.
That's non-exercise activitythermogenesis.
Welcome to today's livetraining and Q&A.
(00:23):
Hope you guys are having anamazing Tuesday.
We had off today, the kids hadoff, my husband took off, so we
walked to a local coffee shopand got breakfast sandwiches.
It felt good to get the freshair, sunshine.
We keep telling our kidswalking is good.
Some of them are okay with it,others not as much.
(00:44):
I don't know about your family,but sometimes walking can be a
challenge.
And then I remind my childrenthat there are kids around the
world biking 30 minutes toschool or walking 30 minutes to
school just to get there.
So the fact that we're walkingto get breakfast sandwiches is
no big deal, but it can be tough.
(01:05):
So get out there, get your walkin, get some exercise.
I'm trying to do better aboutthat for my family, or else.
It's amazing Even how much weprioritize fitness, how
sedentary we can be, my familyincluded.
Today we are chatting all abouttarget heart rate, specifically
(01:26):
answering the question.
It is a frequently askedquestion in the health and
fitness space.
When we talk about target heartrate how high should a heart
rate be during exercise?
What we're going tospecifically target is how to
unlock the full benefit of yourworkout by determining how high
(01:46):
a heart rate should be duringexercise and consequently, then
how to target your heart ratezone.
Maintaining an optimal heartrate during exercise can be
crucial for maximizing thatcardioprotective benefit and
minimizing risk factors fordisease.
The American Heart Associationrecommends targeting a heart
(02:10):
rate between 50 and 85% of yourmaximum heart rate during
moderate to vigorous aerobicexercise.
That being said, this targetrange can vary based on
individual factors such as age,fitness level and underlying
health conditions medicine thatyou take.
We're going to address some ofthese, but first let's just talk
(02:34):
about how we even calculatetarget heart rate.
We're going to get into why wecare, so don't worry if you're
already thinking like why shouldI care about this?
We are going to talk about that, but first let's just get in
our minds what your target heartrate is.
The first thing that you want todo before you get that range
the target heart rate range isyou want to calculate your
(02:55):
maximum heart rate.
What does maximum heart ratemeans?
It means that the heart is amuscle and there is really only
so high and hard that the heartcan and should go.
This also varies with, like Isaid, age, risk factors,
medicines that you take, etc.
But it is important tounderstand that the heart is a
(03:18):
muscle.
It is quite literally a largemuscle that pumps.
So that's important tounderstand.
But then, consequently, justlike your muscle right now, in
your legs, in your arms,anywhere, is only capable of
withstanding so much due to howstrong it is, the same is true
(03:39):
of your heart.
So the American HeartAssociation suggests using the
formula 220 minus your age isyour estimated maximum heart
rate.
So do that math right now 220minus your age, whatever your
age is.
If you need a calculatorthere's no here that's your
(04:03):
estimated maximum heart rate.
So, for example, if you were 40, your estimated maximum heart
rate would be 180 beats perminute.
So once you have done that,then you can calculate your
target heart rate range bymultiplying it by the desired
(04:25):
intensity level.
So what we're going to do forthese purposes is we're going to
talk about vigorous intensity.
So this is a higher heart rate.
This is what we're targetingduring aerobic exercise, hiit
workouts.
Hiit's a really, really popularone right now because we've
kind of gotten away from thelike, oh, just going for a jog
or running on the treadmill.
(04:45):
We see the benefits of HIIT,especially when we add weights,
because now we're doing musclebuilding, cardio.
But what we are wanting totarget is that we are stressing
that cardiac muscle, becausewe're going to talk about all
the benefits of that withvigorous exercise.
So, by definition, in order tooptimize your health, per the
(05:08):
American Heart Association, allthe research that we have you
want five days, 30 minutes a dayof moderate to high intensity
exercise.
So that would be like moderate.
What we're specifically talkingabout right now is that high
intensity, vigorous, the higherrange, because of the benefits
(05:31):
that you are going to see from acardiac standpoint.
And why we want to talk aboutthis is that because we have
shifted away a little bit fromaerobics, and rightly, rightly
so.
Strength training should takean important role.
But I am going to argue that youcannot eliminate aerobic, high
(05:55):
intensity exercise because ofthe very unique cardio
protective benefits that itoffers.
The difference is it doesn'tneed to be all five days.
In fact, it shouldn't be allfive days of your exercise.
So vigorous intensity is 70 to85% of your maximum heart rate.
(06:19):
The American Heart Associationhas a graph that breaks all of
this down If you just want theeasy button to determine what
your range is.
So for those of us that arehere, many of us are going to
span this range.
So 30 years is going to be 95to 162, is going to be that
(06:43):
moderate to vigorous.
30, 40 is like 90 to 153.
Now, again, this is themoderate to vigorous.
So if 180 is my max, we can goup to 180.
(07:04):
So I'm 38.
So I'm just rounding up to 40.
45 years 88 to 149, 179, 175average maximum heart rate.
There's going to be a blog postcoming out if you just want this
graph.
So you're going to have accessto that.
Keep an eye on your email.
I think it's scheduled to postin two weeks, but you'll have
this information.
But if you want to actually dothe math, then what you are
going to do is you are going totake your maximum heart rate.
(07:26):
So if you're 40 years old,that's 180.
And you are going to multiplyit by 0.85.
And then you're going tomultiply it by 0.70.
And what that is going to giveyou is your range.
(07:54):
So why does determining yourtarget heart rate matter?
And again, this is specificallytalking about that higher
intensity.
Well, it makes the differencebecause we want to understand
how to apply it to the ways thatour body is fueling with energy
.
So it concerns the differinghealth benefits between
(08:17):
non-exercise activitythermogenesis and exercise
activity thermogenesis.
And then, to break it down evenfurther, under exercise
activity thermogenesis we'retalking about moderate intensity
exercise to high intensityexercise.
And in case you've neverrealized what the definition of
that is, it has everything to dowith your heart rate.
(08:38):
When someone says moderateintensity, that is directly
correlated to how high yourheart rate is during that
workout.
It doesn't mean how hard it is,it's how intense it is for your
heart versus high intensity orvigorous.
So a quick recap in case youhave not heard this before or
you missed this training thedifference between NEAT and EAT.
(09:01):
I cannot reiterate this enough.
They're the two main componentsof daily energy expenditure
related to physical activity.
Non-exercise activitythermogenesis or NEAT is
ultimately the steps that youtake in a day, daily steps
required for basic living.
This could include fidgeting ina chair, spontaneous exercises
(09:21):
like walking from your couch toyour fridge.
Right, those steps, those aredaily movements needed to live.
It accounts for a significantportion of your total daily
energy expenditure of your totaldaily energy expenditure but
exercise activity thermogenesisis the energy expended during
planned, structured exercise.
(09:42):
This could include running aclass at the gym.
It can include weight training,lifting so hitting your target
heart rate for our purposes.
Today, what we are talking aboutis I am specifically talking
about the aerobic, highintensity exercise of exercise
(10:03):
activity thermogenesis.
I am not talking about liftingweights.
You probably should not behitting your maximum heart rate
lifting weights because it mightmean that you're not giving
yourself enough rest in betweensets to properly maintain form
and function.
So I want to be really clear.
(10:26):
I am not downplaying liftingweights.
I am talking about thedifference between the two types
of exercising.
So that you understand.
We're talking high energyaerobic hit workouts.
There might be weights involved, but HIIT workouts.
So hitting your target heartrate in this higher 70 to 85% of
(10:47):
your maximum heart rate isspecifically going to provide
very unique benefits for yourheart that are different than
lifting, for example, orstrength training.
The aerobic exercise with thatvigorous target heart rate range
is the best workout to stressthe heart muscle and offers
(11:15):
numerous cardio protectivebenefits.
Again, think of the muscle as aheart.
Before I list these benefits,you need to picture.
The heart is literally a muscle.
I had the privilege of doing arotation with a cardiac surgeon
when I was at John HopkinsUniversity for my first master's
in nursing.
My first master's is in adultgeriatric critical care and I
(11:37):
got to work with the firstassist for this cardiac surgeon.
So for several months I stoodover open chests and got to see
the heart multiple times beatingand functioning in real time
while cardiac surgery washappening.
It's a phenomenal thing towatch, but it is literally a
(11:58):
muscle that just expands andcontracts constantly without you
having to do anything about it.
It's we're fearfully andwonderfully made.
It's pretty impressive.
But for the people who are lessfit meaning your heart has had
less stress via high intensityexercise it is not going to have
(12:22):
the same ability to functionfor the level of stress, meaning
somebody who is in greataerobic shape will possibly even
have a larger heart because themuscle is bigger and it
requires less effort for theheart to function.
(12:45):
Does that make sense?
Similarly to, if somebody hasreally good leg strength, it
might be a lot easier for themto pick something up that is
heavy.
It's less stress for them topick up the same 50 pound weight
as it might be for the personwho has not built up their leg
muscles.
And then what happens?
Well, they're going to end upstraining their back because
(13:05):
they don't have the support inthe legs.
Same thing with the heart.
If you have not properlystressed the heart and are
building that cardiac muscle,you are not going to have the
same ability to function aseasily as the person who has
built it up.
And here is the key you guys.
This is why you cannot get ridof aerobics, and I defy anyone
who says that you can.
(13:26):
I've watched this heart muscle.
When you understand what thefunction of the heart muscle
does, you realize the importanceof building it and
strengthening it in this way.
These cardioprotective benefitsinclude improved cardiovascular
function, enhancing the heart'sability to pump blood more
(13:49):
efficiently, reducing theworkload on the heart, lowering
resting heart rate and bloodpressure.
I could talk for hours aboutwhat that actually means and the
amount of chronic disease thatthat prevents.
If you can do that, that verything alone, it's going to
(14:11):
improve cholesterol levels.
So it's going to raise aerobicexercise, specifically having
these sustained periods ofexercise where you are hitting.
That higher heart rate willincrease minimally minimally,
mind you, it's small, but itdoes show some increase of your
(14:32):
HDL.
That is the good cholesterolthat helps protect your heart
and your vasculature whilelowering the bad cholesterol,
reducing the risk ofatherosclerosis, which
ultimately contributes to heartdisease and strokes.
It will increase insulinsensitivity, so higher target
(14:54):
heart rate exercise improves thebody's ability to use insulin
effectively, lowering the riskof type 2 diabetes, which is a
significant risk factor formultiple diseases, especially
cardiovascular disease.
Number four reducesinflammation.
Aerobic exercise hasanti-inflammatory effects, which
(15:16):
can help prevent thedevelopment and progression of,
again, atherosclerosis and othercardiovascular conditions.
Now some people might be sayingor thinking well, won't other
forms of exercise do the samething?
Yes, they can, and they do itin different ways.
Everyone here knows I am a hugefan of strength training.
(15:36):
We need to be lifting weights.
However, they're, especially inthat cardiac function are
benefits to the aerobic exercisethat you are not going to
maximize with strength training.
They function differently andthey help the body differently.
So, yes, strength trainingother forms of exercise will
(16:01):
help offer benefits in thesesame ways, but not to the same
extent as this aerobic exercise,specifically when we talk about
cardiovascular function.
So what are a couple of factorsaffecting target heart rate,
because some of these mightapply to you.
The American HeartAssociation's target heart rate
range is a general guideline andthere are factors that can
(16:23):
influence your optimal heartrate during exercise.
Chronic conditions like heartdisease, diabetes, lung
disorders, may requireadjustments to this target heart
rate range.
You do want to consult withyour primary care provider if
this is something that youreally want to start watching,
(16:45):
because it's also going to helpyou maximize your exercise right
.
We want to move smarter, notharder.
Medications, for example, ifyou do have heart issues, um,
throwing out some words here, alot of people aren't going to
recognize, but those of you thatare on them will.
Beta blockers, calcium channelblockers For those of you that
might have um heart conditionsor high blood pressure those
(17:07):
might ring a bell that willchange your baseline heart rate
and so your target heart ratemight be slightly lower because
you are chemically inducing alower heart rate, and so your
target heart rate might beslightly lower because you are
chemically inducing a lowerheart rate at rest with these
medicines.
Fitness level this is reallyimportant to understand If you
(17:28):
are at a lower cardiovascularfitness level and listen.
I'm looking at some of youladies who have gotten hardcore
into strength training but haveeliminated cardio from your
workouts.
You might be strong muscularly.
You might be strong muscularly,but you might be very out of
(17:49):
shape cardiovascularly.
I have been here.
I'm speaking from experience.
This is why oftentimes when Istart running again when it gets
warm out because I'm notrunning in 30 degrees Not
happening.
I love running, not in 30degrees, so I tend to run very
little over the winter, but I'mstill strength training and
(18:09):
doing HIIT workouts et cetera,in my house.
But then when I go out and runwhen it gets warm, ladies, I'm
dying.
Even though I am physicallystrong and I'm actually in good
anaerobic shape, it is not thesame as being in good
cardiovascular shape or runningshape.
So for any of you who haveexperienced that, you have
(18:29):
actually experienced exactlywhat I'm talking about here.
That needs to be built back up.
Now to be clear.
You can still get thosecardioprotective benefits from a
HIIT workout.
You can within your home, butyou need to be intentional about
it.
It's really easy to let yourheart rate drop too low when
you're on, when you're on yourbreak and you're on your phone.
Right, you see it all the timeat the gym People sit there
(18:52):
forever on their phone inbetween sets so, like, your
heart rate just got so low.
Anyways, that's a different,different training.
Just put your phones away, guys, when you're working out.
Just put them away.
But the point is this if you'reat a lower fitness level, going
on a walk might actually get youto that target heart rate zone.
(19:13):
Does this make sense?
What I'm saying, like, if youare not in cardiovascular shape
and you know that, you might getaway with going for a walk and
hitting that target heart ratezone, and how do you know?
That's where the heart ratemonitor watches come in.
That's where the fitnesswatches come in.
People are paying crazy amountsof money for these fitness
watches that they don't even use.
They don't even know what allit does.
(19:36):
So if you're going to put themoney into a fitness watch,
here's a very practicalimplication is actually watch
your heart rate while you'reexercising.
If you are dropping out of themoderate intensity zone, then,
ladies, you're not exercising.
That's non-exercise activity,thermogenesis.
If you're not even in themoderate, which many are not,
(19:56):
you go on a bike ride and youdon't put it on a higher gear
and you're taking a leisurely 10mile bike ride.
You can go on a 10 mile bikeride and not be exercising.
If you don't hit that moderateintensity, you're not actually
exercising.
Now it's still activity.
You're outside I applaud that.
It's better than sitting andwatching Netflix but understand
how you're moving your body, howit's benefiting you.
(20:18):
So we're talking about a higherintensity.
If you're at a higher fitnesslevel, then you are already in
much better cardiovascular shape.
It might actually take moreexercise to hit that higher
heart rate zone.
Age is another big one.
As individuals age, thatmaximum heart rate decreases and
(20:38):
the American Heart Associationchart does reflect that.
You're going to want to adjustthat range accordingly,
especially if you're on.
So you know you're going towant to adjust that range
accordingly, especially ifyou're on beta blockers, calcium
channel blockers and certainmedicines.
If you do have heart disease,by the way, your you know your
(21:05):
cardiologist is going to be theperson to have these
conversations with, who aregoing to be able to speak to
target heart rates and what thatlooks like for your heart.
So you've done the math.
You've written down yourmaximum heart rate.
You've written down that 70 to85% target heart rate zone for
high intensity.
What do you do with thesenumbers and how often are you
trying to hit these?
And how often are you trying tohit these?
(21:28):
You want to exercise withinthis range approximately two
days a week.
If I could give you the mostideal exercise schedule, this is
what we do at Early MorningHabit.
Some of you might not havethought about that, but this is
what we do, and this is true fora lot of exercise programs.
They might not be able to saywhy they do it what we do, and
this is true for a lot ofexercise programs.
(21:48):
They might not be able to saywhy they do it, um, but this is
actually the ideal.
The ideal balance is two days aweek of cardio exercise, high
intensity or hit.
But the way to actually monitorif you are benefiting from this
is by wearing that watch whenyou are actively in your HIIT
(22:11):
set and your exercise.
You should be in that 70 to 85%range.
If you're not, then, girl, youneed to push it a little harder.
So HIIT, by definition, isinterval training, so that does
not mean that you necessarilyneed to maintain that for your
entire 20 to 30 minute workout,because you do want to take rest
(22:35):
periods in order to be able tojump back into that high
intensity.
Right, it can be hard tosustain that for 30 minutes, but
you want to be careful to notput too much time between your
intervals, which I see a lot ofpeople do, because they get
distracted, especially ifthey're not in a structured
workout program and doing it ontheir own.
It's easy to get distracted.
(22:56):
Or two, they're not actuallymaximizing the intensity when
they are doing the interval.
Does that make sense?
So this is the benefit tohaving that watch is you can
actually track when you areexercising.
Are you hitting that targetheart rate?
Are you working that cardiacmuscle hard enough to get the
(23:17):
benefit from it from a diseaserisk standpoint, promoting
optimal health andcardiovascular health?
So, 70 to 85%.
Hopefully you wrote that targetheart rate number down.
If you have a fitness watch,next time you do a HIIT workout
or a cardio workout, look atyour heart rate and see are you
(23:37):
hitting it?
If you're not, you need to bumpup the intensity.
The jumping jacks need to befaster.
The squat jumps need to befaster or more, or maybe you
need to actually get lower inyour squat jump.
Maybe you need to jump higher,right, like you got to boost it
up a little bit if you're not inthat hurry, and what you will
find then is, as you become morecardiovascularly fit, that you
(23:59):
will return to your baselineheart rate sooner.
That is a sign of bettercardiovascular function or heart
muscle health.
Consequently, your heart rateat rest will be lower.
Your heart rate at rest will belower.
(24:19):
There's also a ton of benefitsto this as well, because, again
at rest, we want the heart towhat Be at rest as well.
Because, again at rest, we wantthe heart to what Be at rest.
So for those of you that arepushing 80 to 90 at a resting
heart rate, I'm going to suggestthat maybe you need to take a
look at your exerciseprogramming.
(24:40):
Are you getting enough cardioin?
Because at rest the heart rateshould be between like 60 to 80.
Those who are in great shape,their resting heart rate can be
40.
Really, really active kids likemy son the summer he was
hospitalized for pneumonia andit was very scary, but then at
night he was in the ICU and onthe monitor and his heart rate
(25:02):
would dip to the low forties,high 30s.
And the first time it happenedthis whole team came in and they
were like looking at him,everything was totally fine.
And the physician made thepoint that I had already thought
myself is the inactive kid?
Yes, absolutely.
He does not.
Sit still.
So that's why his heart ratewhen he sleeps, drops so low and
(25:25):
his blood is still perfusing.
What that means is it is so lowand his blood is still
perfusing.
What that means is it ispumping accurately and well to
all the extremities.
So for some of us, mine doesnot go that low.
Mine does go pretty low.
Even at rest and sleeping, ourheart rate can drop pretty low,
and that's actually a good thing, assuming the blood is getting
(25:46):
to where it needs to go.
So tracking your heart rate is agreat way to maximize the
benefits of aerobic exercise,high intensity exercise for the
heart rate definition and ensureyou're training at the optimal
intensity based on yourindividual needs.
Like I said, you want to beaiming for these higher heart
(26:08):
rate zones twice a week throughexercise such as HIIT running,
speed walking, walking if you'reat a lower fitness level,
biking.
You can be adding weights tothese HIIT trainings.
I'm not saying there's noweights, but here is a tip they
should probably be lower.
They should probably be lowerbecause it is really hard to get
(26:30):
that heart rate really highwhen you're lifting heavy
because you should not be movingas fast.
Does this make sense?
When you are lifting heavyweights, you want it to be slow
and controlled.
Or you're going to pullsomething and you are going to
have suboptimal form low andcontrolled, or you're going to
pull something and you are goingto have suboptimal form.
So when you are doing a HIITworkout and your instructor says
(26:52):
, pick up the weights, be verymindful that the goal of that is
not to significantlyhypertrophy peripheral muscle
for a HIIT workout.
It is actually the cardiacmuscle that you are targeting
during HIIT workouts.
So when you pick up the weight,you actually want it to be a
little bit lighter.
(27:12):
Yes, you can add that extrastress for the peripheral
muscles, but it is with theintent to stress the cardiac
muscle.
Does that make sense?
What questions do you haveabout that?
I'm trying to think if I missedanything to make that any
(27:33):
clearer.
But any questions that come tomind, let me pray us out here
for our week.
Lord, I thank you so much forthese ladies and I thank you for
the opportunity to be able toget together over something like
Zoom and the technology that wehave to be with other women
(27:55):
around the world, even throughsomething like this platform.
Grateful for the women that arehere, I pray your hand over our
hearts, over our homes.
I do ask specifically forprotection for those of us here
who are at a lower fitness level, who are maybe stepping back
(28:17):
into it after a long time awayor who have never really been in
the fitness game.
And these women are here forthe first time, stepping out in
faith, trying to take control oftheir health, and I honor those
women.
I see those women and I prayprotection over them and healing
(28:37):
if there are any injuries, butalso protection from injury, and
I thank you for their boldnessand willingness to try new
things.
And for the many women here whoare trying new things, trying to
establish an early morningroutine and maybe it has been a
struggle.
It certainly was for me for along time I ask that you would
(28:59):
give them strength, endurance,that when their alarm clock goes
off in the morning and theywant to do anything other than
get out of bed, or they get outof bed and they're distracted by
the to-do list or the worriesfor the day, I just pray that
you would give them a stubborn,relentless determination to be
still Knowing that that activerest in stillness with you,
(29:23):
filling their truth, fillingtheir mind with your truth, from
your word, and starting theirday in stillness with you, is
quite literally the bestpossible thing that they could
do for their body and soul andwill ultimately improve their
productivity and the rest of theday will fall in line and in
place so much better.
So I just help us, lord.
Help us to fight for thatstillness, for our earthly joy
(29:46):
and for your eternal glory.
We love you, amen.
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