Is There A Perfect Heart Rate For Running?

I'm about to save you 9 minutes of your life. There is no perfect heart rate zone, but zone 2 is what you should be spending most of your training in.

Zone 3, 70-80% of HR max, is not "often termed as a tempo pace." Not ever, not for anybody. It's an easy aerobic pace (70-75%) and, once you're warmed up, 80% remains a fairly easy aerobic pace. You're not entering tempo pace territory until you get to about 83%, which could be considered the slowest long tempo pace HR. For years I've considered 85% of max to be a sustainable marathon pace. I easily sustain that pace for the second hour of a two-hour run. I've averaged 90% of max HR for a half-marathon (1:31). 90% or slightly below is what I'd call a true tempo pace: the anaerobic threshold. Learning how to find that pace and run just a hair slower than that is a key discovery. (And yes, I'm basing all these percentages off a true max HR, one obtained by indexing the HR's I'm able to achieve in the final minute or two of a hard 5K road race. My max was 200 for my late 40s and early 50s and has declined to 188 or so at age 62. The formulas are less than useless.)

I have a challenge for all three of you. Who can run the fastest 10K In Zone 2 . The more time you spend in Z1, Z3,Z4,Z5 will be added to your time at the end of the challenge.

I've been running 5K - 6K once a week for the past year and a half (never run before, prior to this!) - my average HR during my runs is 168. My Resting HR is 48 (before I started running, it was as high as 60!). I'm 49 years old!

For whatever reason, I have a really hard time running in Zone 2, but that's probably because I have a particular comfortable speed that I usually run at if I'm not making a conscious effort to speed up. Typically my runs keep me around Zone 3 and 4.

Most Runners in zone 2 is walking lol unless you run A LOT

the zones are a bit more detailed when using training peaks though. zone 1 - recovery zone 2 - aerobic zone 3 - tempo zone 4 - sub threshold zone 5 - super threshold zone 5b - aerobic capacity (VO2 max) zone 5c - anaerobic capacity (shows on strava as zone 6 - neuromuscular) One of my runs each week is 45 mins between zones 4 and 5 - with several 90 sec efforts at zone 5b. This is an absolutely exhausting run because so much effort is put in to it.

These zones seem somewhat off, perhaps taken from cycling? Most people can barely run below 70% unless they are well trained, and you can certainly race for an hour possibly longer in the 85-90% area.

Great vid as usual. It took me many years to finally properly head the advice to train mostly at z2. Every run I would finish spent and exhausted but I progressed a bit so didn’t question it. As a result, I’ve got work to do to run comfortably at a lower heat rate. Nice to not feel like dying after every run though!

I like watching GTN for Heather’s in-depth and clear explanations and for the fact that the videos shot in the UK make the weather here in Stockholm look positively tropical at times. Thank you for another great video and stay dry, Heather!

Currently at 59yrs old and running for 4yrs by heart rate and pace. I can tell you without a doubt to not use formulas for figuring max HR. That is an average derived from a large group and individual results can be 20 to 30 bpm off of that. When I was at 55 years old and just starting, I programmed my then formula derived max hr into my watch (165bpm). I started racing in 5ks and had my average hr higher than 165bpm. During hot southern summers in Louisiana, my heart rate would average 175-177 during a 5k and peak in the low 190s. I would start feeling sick at the end if my heart rate got to 193. So I set that as my max. So with that figure as my max, my hard 5ks usually are a third in zone 4 and two thirds zone 5 (5ks in the 24s for time). My race Halfs stay in zone 4 until the last mile (mid 1:50s for time). My zone 2 is below 135 and feel easy peesy. Don't know how accurate my max is, but I guarantee, at close to 30bpm higher than formula, it reflects my efforts a lot closer.

I started running couple years ago... jogging.. 170bpm was common... two years later... some MAF Training... I am able to run comfortably at my MAF Level, even 10BPM below MAF level for first half hour of 1 hour run... I love easy runs... 5:30min/km last two days of easy running!! love it

Seems like a lot of people need it reiterated that these max heart rate calculations and generalized zone percentages are just simplifications for the broad audience and not intended to necessarily be anywhere close to accurate for any individual. If you want real accuracy and knowledge of proper training zones it takes lab testing. If you don’t want that headache the zones might be close enough. If you don’t believe they’re accurate for you you’re almost certainly correct, so use your best judgement. Also, maybe don’t just assume that they’re completely wrong just because you have a (bad) habit of consistently running at 195 bpm though. 🤷🏼‍♂️

I laughed when you had to go inside to escape the English rain! No insult intended. I also live in a rainy part of the world

This was really helpful for me. I have always hated running but tried it again after losing over 100lbs to see if I could force myself to enjoy it. Turns out I had a lot of fun even though it was a short 20 minute run. Who knew that running would be so much easier without being obese? But since I hadn't run in years I wanted to make sure I wasn't pushing myself too hard, and as it turns out I was running in the 80-90% range. This is likely because I need to build up my cardiovascular health. I recently discovered your channel and I find myself starting to become a running bug. Thank you providing me with guidance as I take on this new lifestyle!

I don't relate to those arbitrary percentages with 10% steps at all. I mean as soon as I start running my HR is above 130 and it's only when I'm particularly fit that I reach these low numbers, after the lockdown my HR wouldn't even drop below 150 and I had to be patient before I increased my training volume. At the same time I have a hard time reaching my maximum HR it's usually hill reps that rev up the engine high. That means my range of heart rate is way more restricted on both ends of the spectrum. For this reason I rely on pace, rate of perceived exertion if I can't rely on power. I feel heart rate is a good indicator to see training adaptation but I wouldn't base my training on it.

Zone 4 is where I often find myself, rarely in zone 3. With bike it is easyer to stay under 3.

At 0:28 seconds my heart rate jumped up to 190 in less than 10 seconds

I have always questioned heart rate zones where each are 10 percentage points. I just feel that hr's do not affect the body in a linear fashion. I like to use the following zones -- Z1 (Recovery)= 55-72%MHR , Z2 (Easy)=72-80%MHR, Z3 (Tempo)=80-87%MHR, Z4 (Lactate Threshold)=87-93%MHR, Z5 (VO2max)=greater than 93%MHR.

If you love your Heart/body ...Your Heart will Love you back. If just for health and fitness.... just keep moving. Nice video... Diet and what you are running on.... Trails are the best for body and mind.