“My heart rate is usually high when working out?”
When I work out, running, weight lifting, HITT, my heart rate is usually up, from 180-197 BPM. For example, I was doing my HITT workout today and I reached 200 and I immediately stopped and calmed it down a bit. I'm 20 years old and want to know if this is bad or if it's normal. Thanks.
Female | 20 years old
3 Answers
An easy way to calculate your max heart rate for work out purposes is 220 - age. So, for you that would be 200 for 100% of your max. A good range to aim for sustained workout average is about 70 to 90% of your max, which would be 140-180. This will help build the cardiovascular endurance your heart wants to function more efficiently. Over time, it'll be harder to reach that max and you'll find yourself having to push a lot harder to hit these numbers. It's perfectly healthy to hit numbers above that up to your max, I would just try to limit duration at that heart rate so your heart doesn't overwork itself. Progressing workouts as tolerated to help improve your tolerance of rigorous exercise is typically the way to go. HIIT type workouts are good at that: hit high ranges and rest to bring it down then back up. Just not the only way to go to build stamina. Also depends on what your training goals are. Regardless, it's very individualized and good to talk to a trainer to help you plan accordingly.
Age Target HR Zone 50%-85% Average Maximum Heart Rate, 100%
20 years 100-170 beats per minute (bpm) 200 bpm
Mark Burt, M.D.
20 years 100-170 beats per minute (bpm) 200 bpm
Mark Burt, M.D.
Roughly 220-your age is acceptable
