Measure Your Workout

For maximum results, there needs a dose for workouts. One way to measure exercise intensity is the maximum heart rate (HRmax). HRmax for healthy people during exercise is 220 minus age.

HRmax can be checked by using a watch or stopwatch, either before, during, and after exercise. The trick is to feel the pulse points on the wrist or at the base of the neck using the index and middle fingers.

Calculating the pulse doesn't have to count it for one full minute. You can divide it in several counts so it's much easier. For example, count the pulse for fifteen seconds. The result is later multiplied by four to obtain the pulse for one minute.

HRmax can be an indicator whether fit or not a person is, as well as a basis for determining the dose of exercise or physical activity. Recommended dose or intensity of exercise is in the range of sixty to ninety percent of the HRmax. This range is commonly referred as the training zone or exercise area.

Let's suppose that you are forty years old.

HRmax: 220 - 40 = 180 beats per minute (bpm)
Training zone min: 60% x HRmax = 108 bpm
Training zone max: 90% x HRmax = 162 bpm

So, you have a HRmax of 180 bpm with a range of recommended exercise intensity between 108 to 162 bpm.

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