Best heart rate zone for weight loss

[Cardinal]

I'd like to lose about five pounds, and every time this happens I keep coming back around to a subject that's clear as mud: the optimal target heart rate zone for weight loss.

I've been maintaining roughly 81.5% of my maximum heart rate for an hour at the gym, and the result of this is that my shirt looks like I just jumped into a lake, which on its face seems to me like I just had a good ol' fat burning workout. Or did I?

Apparently, each heart rate zone burns a different kind of your weight: one will burn more carbs, another protein, another fat. Yes, yes, I know, calories are calories are calories, a point that only adds to my confusion.

So...to the google machine!

"best heart rate zone for weight loss," and the first search result is this:

Best Heart Rate Zone For Weight Loss

The best heart rate zone for weight loss is 60% to 75% of your maximum heart rate (MHR). Your maximum heart rate has a lot to do with your genetics, and can be

thesuperhealthyfood.com

And the "Clear As Mud Award" goes to this sentence: "Although the body burns a higher percentage of its calories from fat when you work out at a lower intensity, higher-intensity workouts burn more overall calories, leading to the most weight loss."

Anyone want to clear this up for me? Should I be doing lower intensity exercises for better fat burn, or are my current higher intensity routines the best for my weight loss goal?

 

[Fishking]

I'd like to lose about five pounds, and every time this happens I keep coming back around to a subject that's clear as mud: the optimal target heart rate zone for weight loss.

I've been maintaining roughly 81.5% of my maximum heart rate for an hour at the gym, and the result of this is that my shirt looks like I just jumped into a lake, which on its face seems to me like I just had a good ol' fat burning workout. Or did I?

Apparently, each heart rate zone burns a different kind of your weight: one will burn more carbs, another protein, another fat. Yes, yes, I know, calories are calories are calories, a point that only adds to my confusion.

So...to the google machine!

Not the answer you want, I don't think, but the best way to lose weight isn't really relate to heart rate. That type of mentality focuses on a cardio-centric method of losing weight and the problem with that is it's very limited. Cardio burns calories while doing it, and for some time after, but then stops.

I would suggest two things:

1. Cut carb intake.

2. Lift weights.

You don't have to get all bulky and stuff from weight lifting. You can do moderate weights with higher reps. Lifting weights burns calories while doing, then longer to rebuild muscle, and then at all times (including resting) increasing your metabolism to sustain the muscles.

 

[Cardinal]

Not the answer you want, I don't think, but the best way to lose weight isn't really relate to heart rate. That type of mentality focuses on a cardio-centric method of losing weight and the problem with that is it's very limited. Cardio burns calories while doing it, and for some time after, but then stops.

I would suggest two things:

1. Cut carb intake.

2. Lift weights.

You don't have to get all bulky and stuff from weight lifting. You can do moderate weights with higher reps. Lifting weights burns calories while doing, then longer to rebuild muscle, and then at all times (including resting) increasing your metabolism to sustain the muscles.

No, that's not what what I was asking for, but it's good info just the same.

 

[dmpi]

I'd like to lose about five pounds, and every time this happens I keep coming back around to a subject that's clear as mud: the optimal target heart rate zone for weight loss.

I've been maintaining roughly 81.5% of my maximum heart rate for an hour at the gym, and the result of this is that my shirt looks like I just jumped into a lake, which on its face seems to me like I just had a good ol' fat burning workout. Or did I?

Apparently, each heart rate zone burns a different kind of your weight: one will burn more carbs, another protein, another fat. Yes, yes, I know, calories are calories are calories, a point that only adds to my confusion.

So...to the google machine!

"best heart rate zone for weight loss," and the first search result is this:

Best Heart Rate Zone For Weight Loss

The best heart rate zone for weight loss is 60% to 75% of your maximum heart rate (MHR). Your maximum heart rate has a lot to do with your genetics, and can be

thesuperhealthyfood.com

And the "Clear As Mud Award" goes to this sentence: "Although the body burns a higher percentage of its calories from fat when you work out at a lower intensity, higher-intensity workouts burn more overall calories, leading to the most weight loss."

Anyone want to clear this up for me? Should I be doing lower intensity exercises for better fat burn, or are my current higher intensity routines the best for my weight loss goal?

It's going to be a tradeoff because the lower your workout intensity the longer you can do it. If you already know your heart rate you must use one of those sport watches. I myself use a garmin. You can assume HR (heart-rate) is related to level of effort. If you work out long enough you reach 90-95% of peak heart rate and then your HR will plateau, at that level of effort you can only last 5-10 minutes more and that's only if you have a lot of will-power. For max calorie burning what you're going for is the area under the curve. For you it'll probably make sense for less intensity and longer workout. But if the workout is too long then it's mind-numbing boring. In my earlier years I was a marathon runner so I would run for two hours during training sessions. That's kind of what you have to do. I ran outside so it wasn't so boring.

 

[slavablueberryjam]

It's going to be a tradeoff because the lower your workout intensity the longer you can do it. If you already know your heart rate you must use one of those sport watches. I myself use a garmin. You can assume HR (heart-rate) is related to level of effort. If you work out long enough you reach 90-95% of peak heart rate and then your HR will plateau, at that level of effort you can only last 5-10 minutes more and that's only if you have a lot of will-power. For max calorie burning what you're going for is the area under the curve. For you it'll probably make sense for less intensity and longer workout. But if the workout is too long then it's mind-numbing boring. In my earlier years I was a marathon runner so I would run for two hours during training sessions. That's kind of what you have to do. I ran outside so it wasn't so boring.

I run outside and I find it boring.