Work out your heart rate training zones
This heart rate zone calculator estimates your maximum heart rate from your age and turns it into five training zones in beats per minute. Choose from five published formulas (Fox, Tanaka, Gellish, Gulati for women, Nes) or type in a maximum you measured yourself. Add your resting heart rate and you can switch to the Karvonen method, which adjusts every zone to your personal fitness.
Zones turn “go easy” and “go hard” into numbers you can see on a watch or chest strap. Each zone in the table explains what it trains.
How to use the Heart Rate Zone Calculator
- Enter your age. Add your resting heart rate if you know it, and a measured maximum if you have done a proper max test.
- Pick a max heart rate formula: Fox, Tanaka, Gellish, Gulati (women) or Nes. A measured maximum always takes priority.
- Choose the zone method: a simple percentage of max HR, or Karvonen heart-rate reserve if you entered a resting rate.
- Read your estimated maximum, then the five zones in the colour bars and table.
- Use the zone 2 pulse count or the American Heart Association moderate and vigorous ranges to check your effort without a watch.
Heart Rate Zone Calculator features
Five max HR formulas
Fox, Tanaka, Gellish, Gulati (women) and Nes side by side with their papers, or override all with a tested maximum.
Karvonen method
Uses heart-rate reserve (max − resting) so zones reflect your fitness, not just your age.
Five-zone model
Recovery, endurance, aerobic, threshold and maximum zones, each with its bpm range and training purpose.
Visual zone bars
Colour bars show where each zone sits between your easiest and hardest effort.
Quick pulse check
A 10-second pulse count for zone 2 lets you check your effort with just a stopwatch.
Maximum heart rate formulas compared
The best-known estimate, 220 − age (Fox, Naughton and Haskell, 1971), was a rough line drawn through study averages rather than a formal study of individuals. In 2001, Tanaka, Monahan and Seals analysed 351 studies of more than 18,000 people and proposed 208 − 0.7 × age. Gellish and colleagues (2007) fitted 207 − 0.7 × age to longitudinal data. Gulati and colleagues (2010) studied 5,437 asymptomatic women and found 206 − 0.88 × age. Nes and colleagues (2013) used the Norwegian HUNT cohort of 3,320 healthy adults and reported 211 − 0.64 × age.
Every formula describes a population average. The typical scatter around the line is about ±10–12 bpm, so your own maximum can sit well above or below any figure here. For precision you need a measured maximum from a supervised exercise test; attempt a maximal effort only if you are healthy and used to hard exercise, and see a doctor first if you have symptoms, a heart condition or risk factors. Stop and seek help for chest pain, dizziness or faintness.
| Age | Fox | Tanaka | Gellish | Gulati (women) | Nes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20 | 200 | 194 | 193 | 188 | 198 |
| 30 | 190 | 187 | 186 | 180 | 192 |
| 40 | 180 | 180 | 179 | 171 | 185 |
| 50 | 170 | 173 | 172 | 162 | 179 |
| 60 | 160 | 166 | 165 | 153 | 173 |
| 70 | 150 | 159 | 158 | 144 | 166 |
Percentage of max HR vs the Karvonen method
The simple method multiplies your maximum by each zone’s percentage. The Karvonen formula works on your heart-rate reserve instead: target = resting HR + % × (max HR − resting HR). Because fitter people tend to have lower resting rates, Karvonen zones shift to match.
Worked example: a 40-year-old with a resting rate of 60 bpm has an estimated maximum of 180 bpm and a reserve of 120 bpm. At 70% intensity, the simple method gives 126 bpm, while Karvonen gives 60 + 0.7 × 120 = 144 bpm. Stick to one method rather than mixing them.
How to use your zones
- Build the base in zone 2. Studies of elite endurance athletes, notably by Stephen Seiler, found they spend roughly 80% of training time at low intensity. Easy sessions should feel genuinely easy.
- Keep hard days hard. Zone 4 and 5 intervals improve speed and VO₂ max but need recovery days afterwards.
- Allow for drift. Heat, dehydration, caffeine and poor sleep raise heart rate at the same pace, so judge effort by feel too.
- Check your resting rate. Count your pulse for 60 seconds after waking (use a stopwatch) on a few mornings and average it. Normal adult resting rate is 60–100 bpm.
Put your zones to work
Pair your zones with the pace calculator and the calories burned calculator. All results are estimates for healthy adults, not medical advice.
Heart Rate Zone Calculator FAQ
How do I calculate my maximum heart rate?
The quickest estimate is 220 minus your age; Tanaka (208 − 0.7 × age) is generally closer for adults over 40. A 35-year-old gets 185 bpm with the first and about 184 bpm with the second. Women can compare Gulati (206 − 0.88 × age). A supervised maximal test gives your true figure.
Which max heart rate formula is most accurate?
None is accurate for every person: each is an average with roughly ±10–12 bpm of individual scatter. Tanaka, Gellish and Nes were built on healthy adults of both sexes, Gulati on women only. Pick one and use it consistently, or measure.
What heart rate is zone 2?
Zone 2 is 60–70% of maximum heart rate, or 60–70% of heart-rate reserve with the Karvonen method. For a 35-year-old using 220 − age, that is about 111–130 bpm. It should feel easy enough to hold a full conversation.
Is there a fat-burning heart rate zone?
At lower intensities (zones 1–2) a larger share of energy comes from fat, but harder exercise burns more total calories per minute, and weight loss depends on overall energy balance.
Which is better, % of max HR or Karvonen?
Karvonen is more personalised because it accounts for your resting heart rate, so it suits people who know that number. The percentage method is simpler and matches most fitness watches. Either works if you use it consistently.
Why does my watch show different zones?
Watches use their own formula or zone model, or estimate your maximum from workouts. Enter the same maximum and resting rate in both places and zones should line up closely.
Do medicines affect my heart rate zones?
Yes. Beta blockers and some other medicines lower your heart rate at every effort level, so age-based zones will be too high. Ask your doctor or a cardiac rehabilitation team for targets, and use perceived exertion instead.