Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
Calculatation
Monitoring Heart Rate
Exercises
Other Considerations
Theheart rate levelto burn fat will depend on your age, diet, and fitness, typically falling between 64% to 76% of your maximum heart rate.For example, a 40-year-old swimmer should try to keep their heart rate between about 115 beats per minute (bpm) and 137 bpm throughout their session.
When you exercise, your heart rate quickens as your heart pumps more oxygen-rich blood to your muscles.In order to sustain this elevated heart rate for your target range, your body can burn fat to make energy during a low-intensity cardio exercise like walking.
This article provides charts and equations on heart rates to burn fat. It will help you to find your maximum heart rate and fat-burning zone, along with exercise ideas for getting the best results.
Jose Luis Pelaez Inc. / Getty Images
Calculating Your Fat-Burning Zone
You need to use two equations to figure out your fat-burning zone. The first will give you the lower end of your fat-burning zone. The second will give you the higher end of that range.
What Does Cardiorespiratory Endurance Mean? 5 Exercises That Can Help
Determining Your Maximum Heart Rate
Maximum heart rate is the fastest your heart can beat per minute, typically during exercise or periods of high stress. As you can see in the above equations, you will need this number to determine your fat-burning zone.
There is some debate among experts regarding how best to calculate maximum heart rate. One way is the Fox formula. While useful, it doesn’t account for many individual differences that can influence your maximum heart rate, particularly your sex and fitness level.
Still, it is the recommended method of the American Heart Association. The Fox formula is as follows:
Monitoring Heart Rate During Workouts
Many treadmills, elliptical machines, and other cardio equipment have special sensors that you can use to see your heart rate.
Other wearable devices, like heart rate monitors and smartwatches, can provide information on heart rate and track your readings over time.
Exercises for Fat-Burning
Energy sources for exercise vary based on the intensity of the activity. At lower levels of activity, the proportion of energy derived from fat is higher.
Some examples of lower-intensity exercise include:
If you’re not sure whether an activity qualifies as low-intensity, you can do the talk test, also calledperceived rate of exertion. Most people can talk and sing during low-intensity activity. If you can talk but you can’t sing, then the activity can be considered moderate intensity.
During high-intensity activity, most people aren’t able to get through a whole sentence without stopping to take a breath.
If your goal is fat-burning, try to find a low-intensity exercise that you find enjoyable and can do consistently most days of the week.
Recommended ExerciseThe AHA recommends getting at least 150 minutes of exercise a week, but adding any amount of physical activity to a sedentary lifestyle is beneficial to your overall health.
Recommended Exercise
The AHA recommends getting at least 150 minutes of exercise a week, but adding any amount of physical activity to a sedentary lifestyle is beneficial to your overall health.
Other Considerations When Trying to Lose Weight
While reaching your fat-burning heart rate sounds liketheway to lose weight, it’s not the only consideration. These elements are also important:
Summary
While higher-intensity exercises burn more calories, lower-intensity exercises burn more fat.
Your fat-burning heart rate is calculated based on your age and maximum heart rate.
8 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Cleveland Clinic.Heart rate reserve.Purdom T, Kravitz L, Dokladny K, Mermier C.Understanding the factors that effect maximal fat oxidation.J Int Sports Nutr. 2018;15(1):3. doi:10.1186/s12970-018-0207-1Lach J, Wiecha S, Śliż D.HR max prediction based on age, body composition, fitness level, testing modality, and sex in physically active population.Front Physiol. 2021;12(1):1-9. doi:10.3389/fphys.2021.695950American Heart Association.Target heart rates chart.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Measuring physical activity intensity.American Heart Association.Recommendations for physical activity in adults and kids.Diener C, Qin S, Zhou Y, et al.Baseline gut metagenomic functional gene signature associated with variable weight loss responses following a healthy lifestyle intervention in humans.mSystems. 2021;6(5):e0096421. doi:10.1128/mSystems.00964-21Swift DL, Johannsen NM, Lavie CJ, Earnest CP, Church TS.The role of exercise and physical activity in weight loss and maintenance.Prog Cardiovasc Dis. 2014;56(4):441-447. doi:10.1016/j.pcad.2013.09.012
8 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Cleveland Clinic.Heart rate reserve.Purdom T, Kravitz L, Dokladny K, Mermier C.Understanding the factors that effect maximal fat oxidation.J Int Sports Nutr. 2018;15(1):3. doi:10.1186/s12970-018-0207-1Lach J, Wiecha S, Śliż D.HR max prediction based on age, body composition, fitness level, testing modality, and sex in physically active population.Front Physiol. 2021;12(1):1-9. doi:10.3389/fphys.2021.695950American Heart Association.Target heart rates chart.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Measuring physical activity intensity.American Heart Association.Recommendations for physical activity in adults and kids.Diener C, Qin S, Zhou Y, et al.Baseline gut metagenomic functional gene signature associated with variable weight loss responses following a healthy lifestyle intervention in humans.mSystems. 2021;6(5):e0096421. doi:10.1128/mSystems.00964-21Swift DL, Johannsen NM, Lavie CJ, Earnest CP, Church TS.The role of exercise and physical activity in weight loss and maintenance.Prog Cardiovasc Dis. 2014;56(4):441-447. doi:10.1016/j.pcad.2013.09.012
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Cleveland Clinic.Heart rate reserve.Purdom T, Kravitz L, Dokladny K, Mermier C.Understanding the factors that effect maximal fat oxidation.J Int Sports Nutr. 2018;15(1):3. doi:10.1186/s12970-018-0207-1Lach J, Wiecha S, Śliż D.HR max prediction based on age, body composition, fitness level, testing modality, and sex in physically active population.Front Physiol. 2021;12(1):1-9. doi:10.3389/fphys.2021.695950American Heart Association.Target heart rates chart.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Measuring physical activity intensity.American Heart Association.Recommendations for physical activity in adults and kids.Diener C, Qin S, Zhou Y, et al.Baseline gut metagenomic functional gene signature associated with variable weight loss responses following a healthy lifestyle intervention in humans.mSystems. 2021;6(5):e0096421. doi:10.1128/mSystems.00964-21Swift DL, Johannsen NM, Lavie CJ, Earnest CP, Church TS.The role of exercise and physical activity in weight loss and maintenance.Prog Cardiovasc Dis. 2014;56(4):441-447. doi:10.1016/j.pcad.2013.09.012
Cleveland Clinic.Heart rate reserve.
Purdom T, Kravitz L, Dokladny K, Mermier C.Understanding the factors that effect maximal fat oxidation.J Int Sports Nutr. 2018;15(1):3. doi:10.1186/s12970-018-0207-1
Lach J, Wiecha S, Śliż D.HR max prediction based on age, body composition, fitness level, testing modality, and sex in physically active population.Front Physiol. 2021;12(1):1-9. doi:10.3389/fphys.2021.695950
American Heart Association.Target heart rates chart.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Measuring physical activity intensity.
American Heart Association.Recommendations for physical activity in adults and kids.
Diener C, Qin S, Zhou Y, et al.Baseline gut metagenomic functional gene signature associated with variable weight loss responses following a healthy lifestyle intervention in humans.mSystems. 2021;6(5):e0096421. doi:10.1128/mSystems.00964-21
Swift DL, Johannsen NM, Lavie CJ, Earnest CP, Church TS.The role of exercise and physical activity in weight loss and maintenance.Prog Cardiovasc Dis. 2014;56(4):441-447. doi:10.1016/j.pcad.2013.09.012
Meet Our Medical Expert Board
Share Feedback
Was this page helpful?Thanks for your feedback!What is your feedback?OtherHelpfulReport an ErrorSubmit
Was this page helpful?
Thanks for your feedback!
What is your feedback?OtherHelpfulReport an ErrorSubmit
What is your feedback?
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts.Cookies SettingsAccept All Cookies
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts.
Cookies SettingsAccept All Cookies
