Heart Rate Training Zones Calculator
Enter your max heart rate for a 5-zone breakdown by %HRmax. Add your resting heart rate too for the more personal Karvonen (heart rate reserve) version.
This estimate uses a generic formula. Connect your Strava/Whoop/Garmin data for a version personalised to your actual training.
Get early accessWhat heart rate zones are for
Heart rate zones split your effort range, from resting to max, into five bands that each train something different: recovery, aerobic base, tempo, threshold, and top-end anaerobic effort. Training with zones keeps easy days honestly easy and hard days honestly hard, instead of the common failure mode of running every day at the same medium-hard effort that is too easy to build fitness and too hard to recover from.
How the zones are calculated
With a resting heart rate, this calculator uses the Karvonen heart rate reserve (HRR) method: each zone is resting HR + a percentage of reserve (max HR minus resting HR), at 50-60-70-80-90-100% for zones 1 through 5. This is the more personal method, since it accounts for your resting heart rate as well as your max.
Without a resting heart rate, it falls back to a straight percentage of max HR. A given %HRR zone is not the same bpm band as the same percentage of max HR taken directly: per the %HRR-to-%HRmax relative-intensity table in ACSM's Guidelines for Exercise Testing and Prescription, a %HRR zone sits roughly 10 percentage points higher expressed as %HRmax, an offset that narrows near the top since neither method can exceed max HR. Zone 2 here uses exactly the same 70-80% max HR band as our Easy Pace & Zone 2 Calculator, so the two agree on what Zone 2 means for the same inputs.
If you don't know your max heart rate, this calculator estimates it from your age with the Tanaka formula: max HR = 208 minus 0.7 × age, the same estimate the Easy Pace calculator uses. It is a population average and can be off by 10 bpm or more for an individual; a max heart rate measured in a hard race or a max effort test is always better.
Which zone should I train in?
Most training volume for distance runners should sit in Zone 1-2, building the aerobic engine without accumulating much fatigue. Zone 3 is the easiest zone to overuse: it feels productive but is too hard to recover from quickly and too easy to drive real threshold or top-end adaptations, the classic grey zone. Zones 4 and 5 are for deliberately hard sessions, used sparingly.
Sources and limitations: see our methodology.
Worked example
Take a runner with a max HR of 190 bpm and a resting HR of 55 bpm.
| Zone | Karvonen | % max HR only |
|---|---|---|
| Zone 1 · Recovery | 123-136 | 114-133 |
| Zone 2 · Easy / Aerobic | 136-150 | 133-152 |
| Zone 3 · Moderate / Tempo | 150-163 | 152-165 |
| Zone 4 · Threshold | 163-177 | 165-177 |
| Zone 5 · VO2 Max / Anaerobic | 177-190 | 177-190 |
Both methods land on the same 136-150 bpm for Zone 2, the band this runner would spend most easy miles in. Adding a resting heart rate personalises the other four zones too rather than changing just the one.
FAQ
What are the 5 heart rate training zones?
Zone 1 (Recovery), Zone 2 (Easy / Aerobic), Zone 3 (Moderate / Tempo), Zone 4 (Threshold), and Zone 5 (VO2 Max / Anaerobic), each a band of increasing effort from resting heart rate up to max heart rate. This calculator shows the bpm range for each from your own max and resting heart rate.
What is the Karvonen method?
The Karvonen, or heart rate reserve (HRR), method sets each zone as a percentage of the gap between your resting and max heart rate, rather than a percentage of max HR alone: target = resting HR + percentage × (max HR minus resting HR). It is considered more personal than a straight %HRmax method because it also accounts for your resting heart rate.
Is 60-70% of max heart rate really Zone 2?
Not quite. 60-70% of max HR is a popular shorthand, but it actually describes an easier zone than Zone 2's 60-70% of heart rate reserve. Per ACSM's relative-intensity table, 60-70% of heart rate reserve corresponds to roughly 70-80% of max HR for most people. This calculator uses 70-80% of max HR for Zone 2 without a resting HR, matching the Easy Pace & Zone 2 Calculator exactly.
Do I need my resting heart rate for this calculator?
No. Max heart rate alone gives you a %HRmax breakdown of all five zones. Adding resting heart rate switches the calculation to the Karvonen method, which is more personal because it also accounts for how low your heart rate sits at rest.
Is 220 minus age accurate for max heart rate?
Not very. This calculator uses the Tanaka formula, 208 minus 0.7 × age, which fits research data better than 220 minus age, but any age formula is a population average and can be off by 10 bpm or more for an individual. A max heart rate measured in a hard race or a max effort test is more reliable.
Which zone should most of my training be in?
For most distance runners, the bulk of weekly volume sits in Zone 1-2, the aerobic base-building zones that add fitness without much fatigue. Zones 3 through 5 are for specific, deliberately hard sessions, not everyday running.