Heart Rate Zones Calculator
Find your 5 training zones — from recovery to maximum effort. Enter your age and resting heart rate to get personalised zones using the Karvonen method.
How heart rate zones work
Heart rate training zones divide your effort into five intensity levels based on your maximum heart rate. Training in the right zone helps you achieve specific fitness goals — from building endurance to improving speed and anaerobic capacity.
Karvonen method: Target HR = ((Max HR − Resting HR) × Intensity %) + Resting HR
Heart Rate Reserve: Max HR − Resting HR
50–60% of HRR. Very light effort. Used for warm-ups, cool-downs, and recovery days. Improves overall cardiovascular health without fatigue.
60–70% of HRR. Light effort, can hold a conversation. Builds aerobic endurance, burns fat, and forms the foundation for all higher-intensity work.
70–80% of HRR. Moderate effort, harder to talk. Improves aerobic capacity and efficiency. The "sweet spot" for many endurance athletes.
80–90% of HRR. Hard effort, breathing is heavy. Increases lactate threshold. Used for interval training and race-pace workouts.
90–100% of HRR. All-out effort, cannot sustain for long. Builds power, speed, and anaerobic capacity. Use sparingly for short sprints.
The Karvonen method accounts for your resting heart rate, making it more personalised and accurate than the simple 220-age formula, especially for fit individuals with low resting HR.