Introduction
The maximum heart rate calculator utilises your age and sex to compare the outcomes of the most widely used formulas for estimating maximum heart rates.
We provide the outcomes of five widely used formulas, all of which are based on the idea that as people age, their maximal heart rates will decline.
Because elderly hearts can’t beat as quickly due to a decline in maximal heart rate, less capacity is available. One of the numerous reasons why people tend to lose athletic ability as they age is due to this.
Challenges
Because it is assumed that everyone’s maximal heart rate will not only fall identically but also rise to the same starting position, none of the calculators are especially accurate.
In actuality, in addition to age and sex, each person’s maximal heart rate will differ based on a variety of factors, including genetics and training history.
The results are probably most helpful in demonstrating trends, such as the average maximum heart rate by age and gender, and in helping to indicate the kinds of results that might be expected so that false positive test results, such as an unexpected spike from a heart rate monitor or an incorrectly counted pulse rate, can be quickly identified. They may also be helpful in situations where a group is given basic instructions and it is not possible to properly do a max heart rate test on each member of the group. Proceed cautiously and make sure you are aware of the constraints if you are basing any training prescription on these figures.
It is not advised to base training intensities on the results produced by this calculator when a precise value is crucial due to its unreliability.
A test while wearing a heart rate monitor is the best approach to find out what your maximum heart rate is.
Utilizing our Heart Rate Zones Calculator, you can determine the proper training intensities once you are aware of your exact maximum heart rate.
For individuals who love technology, many heart rate monitors, like those provided by Polar and Garmin, let you enter your maximum heart rate. After that, you can use this as a training guide. Some try to use this to automatically determine your heart rate zones.
The maximum heart rate registered during training is frequently also recorded by these devices. However, be mindful of data spikes, which are typical. To be sure you’re not relying on an anomaly of a periodic reading, it could be preferable to look at an average heart rate during 30 seconds or so of vigorous exercise.
Formulas & Charts for Maximum Heart Rate
The following describes the five formulas. All provide estimates in beats per minute (bpm) of the maximum heart rate:
Age-Adjusted
The 220 – age formula is well-known to most individuals (which has an interesting history). The age-adjusted formula used here uses 226 – age for women because it tends to be slightly more accurate for males than for women.
Seals, Tanaka, and Monahan
According to Tanaka, Monahan, and Seals’ 2001 article in The Journal of the American College of Cardiology, 208 – (0.7 age) can be used to accurately forecast a person’s maximal heart rate. Their investigation suggested that neither sex nor exercise levels have an impact on the equation’s accuracy.
Moeschberger and Londeree
In 1982, Londeree and Moeschberger conducted research on top-tier athletes and came up with a number of regression equations to calculate maximum heart rates. Some of these consider elements like continent and level of fitness. Two of these just take into account age; the simplest is 206.3 – (0.711 age). They discovered that with training, the maximum heart rate decreased in both men and women.
Inbar
The best maximal heart rate formula, according to a 2002 study of the 30 most common heart rate formulas published in the Journal of Exercise Physiology, is offered by Inbar and is 205.8 – (0.685 age). There is no appropriate way to determine maximum heart rate, according to the same journal publication.
Whyte and co.
According to Whyte et al 2008 .’s study on training-induced changes in maximal heart rate, a different formula is preferable depending on whether we are taking into account male or female athletes. The formula in this instance is 202 – (0.55 age) for men and 216 – (1.09 age) for women. The maximal heart rate of athletes is considerably lower than that of inactive individuals of the same age, according to the authors.
It is to be summarised that a sub-maximal or maximal laboratory test is the most accurate way of determining your maximal heart rate and the above measures should work as a way as a guide/
Please download the calculator below to use for your training purposes and the PDF for zonal training.