What Is a Fat-Burning Heart Rate? Chart

Your body uses glycogen or fats for energy, which fuels muscle cells. During energy metabolism, glycogen and fats are converted to glucose, carbon dioxide, and water. Oxygen is essential for the breakdown of glycogen into glucose.

Since your body needs more energy during exercise, the heart pumps faster and sends more oxygen to break down glycogen to fuel your muscles.

During high-intensity workouts, your body runs out of glycogen stores because it provides less energy than fat. Once the glycogen store is depleted, the body breaks down fat for more energy. Thus, with a high-intensity workout, your heart rate and fat loss increase simultaneously. Your body also continues to burn calories even after you have stopped exercising. This is called the afterburn effect.

Heart rates vary depending on several factors, including:

• Weather
• Emotions
• Body weight
• Medications
• Caffeine and nicotine
• Exercise

Different types of heart rates include:

• Resting heart rate: Measured when you are at rest and should be between 60-100 bpm.
• Target heart rate: Measured during exercise and is calculated as 50%-85% of your maximum heart rate. Different types of target heart rate zones include:
  • Lower-intensity zone: Working out at 50%-60% of your maximum heart rate.
  • Temperate zone: Working out at 60%-70% of your maximum heart rate.
  • Aerobic zone: Working out at 70%-80% of maximum heart rate.
• Maximum heart rate: Calculated as 220 − your age. For example, if your age is 20, your maximum heart rate should be 220 – 20 = 200 bpm.

You can achieve a fat-burning heart rate by working out at 70%-80% of the maximum heart rate with moderate to high-intensity exercises. 

Opt for moderate-intensity exercises that are tolerable and allow you to talk, which may include:

• Brisk walking (at least 2.5 miles per hour)
• Water aerobics
• Gardening
• Tennis (doubles)
• Cycling slower than 10 miles per hour
• Dancing (ballroom or social)
• Slow jogging

You can also opt for high-intensity workouts, which may include:

• Hiking uphill or with a heavy backpack
• Running
• Swimming laps
• Aerobic dancing
• Heavy yard work, such as continuous digging or hoeing
• Tennis (singles)
• Cycling at 10 miles per hour or faster
• Jumping rope

Other ways to achieve fat-burning weight loss include:

• Controlling your portion size
• Drinking plenty of water
• Consuming whole foods instead of processed and packaged foods
• Aiming for slow and steady weight loss