YORK COUNTY, Pa. — Keeping an eye on your heart rate can really make a difference when elevating a workout.
Jen Winter, the York Jewish Community Center Fitness Director, says that there are different zones you can train in from steady-state to high intensity intervals and it just depends on what you enjoy doing.
Once you decide on the workout, you can take it to the next level by monitoring your heart rate by knowing each zone.
"It's great to know your baseline, and your resting heart rate, and while you are training it's good to know what 'zones' you are in," explained Winter.
Knowing what zone you are in will help you effectively burn calories while you exercise, and can also indicate whether you will achieve an afterburn of calories when the workout is over.
You can break it down with first finding the resting heart rate.
"A good place to be is between 50 to 70 [beats per minute]. Your resting heart rate is going to be determined [by] if you take medications or are just very active or inactive," said Winter.
Next up would be the warm-up zone, which can fluctuate depending on what you're doing and for how long.
"A good warm-up heart rate is going to be around 120 to 130 [beats per minute]. If you are just walking slowly it may be between 90 to 110 [beats per minute]. If you are getting a brisk walk-in and actually upper body movement with it, you may be around 120 to 130 [beats per minute]," said Winter.
After you're all warmed up, if you are looking to work out in the steady state zone, Jen says to try to keep your heart rate between 140 or 150 beats per minute or 70% of your maximum heart rate. You can do this through a long run outside or on the treadmill or through using cardio machines like an ergometer, elliptical or bike.
If you are doing max heart rate training, try it first with the help of a trainer, and be sure to know what your maximum heart rate is.
Max heart rate is calculated by computing "220 minus your age and you are going to want to hit that max heart rate at least three times within your workout so you are going to continue to burn calories throughout the day," said Winter.
This could be achieved through interval sprints, or through weight lifting like kettlebell swings.
Let us know how it goes, and you just got better!