Question from a Visitor
Hi *******
Thanks for your question.
You wrote:
"I have just turned 62 and exercise regularly (biking, walking, running and weights). I have a Timex Ironman heart rate monitor with a data recorder. Several months ago I recorded a maximum of 194 and last evening my resting (sleeping) rate was an average of 54 with lows of 30. I used your formula to calculate my target heart rate zone (102.7 and 134.3). Like many men I am trying to lose my "love handles" and having a hard time doing it! The lower range (102.7) seems very low ( I would have a hard time keeping it there). Is this the rate I should be using to burn fat (and ultimately lose my love handles)? I am 6' and 210lbs (I was 193 when I ran the marathons). Your assistance is appreciated. Have a wonderful day and keep up the good work."
In order to lose the last few pounds around the difficult areas I usually train at the higher end of my target heart rate zone. This way I burn off more calories and slightly help improve the speed of my metabolism. However, training at the higher end of the zone requires a greater level of fitness. Generally speaking most overweight people tend to have a lower level of fitness, thus for safety reasons it is often best for these people to train at the lower end until they gain some fitness, then gradually work up to higher intensity levels. Our articles on burning fat is written for this reason. Remember successfully burning body fat requires numerous factors, one of the most important is the fitness level of the individual. With less fit people the Cardiovascular system is often not strong enough to deliver sufficient levels of oxygen to the working muscles in order to keep burning fat (fat requires oxygen to burn). This is why many overweight and/or unfit people should train at the lower end.
As for yourself, you seem to be a very fit individual, as indicated by running marathons and having a resting heart rate under 60 (a good sign of physical fitness), and as you suggested the lower end of the scale will probably be too low to gain any worthy results. If you have the fitness and can cope with higher impact training then I think it's worth sticking to the higher end of target heart rate. Just remember to make sure you're getting sufficient recovery between workouts. Hard training always takes longer to recover from, it also requires good, complete nutrition. I often alternate training routines, if I run at a high pace on Monday, then on Wednesday I'll go swimming or do rowing at an easy pace. This helps recovery of potential minor injuries in the knees or ankle areas as there is no weight bearing on these areas.
As always you should still consult with your doctor before attempting any new type of exercise or diet!
Also, have you read Tom's article on losing the last few pounds of body fat?
It's a very good read. Click on the next link to view it...
http://www.weightlossforall.com/abdominal%20fat.htm
Hope this helps
All the best
Regards
Wayne
http://www.weightlossforall.com/
Thanks for your question.
You wrote:
"I have just turned 62 and exercise regularly (biking, walking, running and weights). I have a Timex Ironman heart rate monitor with a data recorder. Several months ago I recorded a maximum of 194 and last evening my resting (sleeping) rate was an average of 54 with lows of 30. I used your formula to calculate my target heart rate zone (102.7 and 134.3). Like many men I am trying to lose my "love handles" and having a hard time doing it! The lower range (102.7) seems very low ( I would have a hard time keeping it there). Is this the rate I should be using to burn fat (and ultimately lose my love handles)? I am 6' and 210lbs (I was 193 when I ran the marathons). Your assistance is appreciated. Have a wonderful day and keep up the good work."
In order to lose the last few pounds around the difficult areas I usually train at the higher end of my target heart rate zone. This way I burn off more calories and slightly help improve the speed of my metabolism. However, training at the higher end of the zone requires a greater level of fitness. Generally speaking most overweight people tend to have a lower level of fitness, thus for safety reasons it is often best for these people to train at the lower end until they gain some fitness, then gradually work up to higher intensity levels. Our articles on burning fat is written for this reason. Remember successfully burning body fat requires numerous factors, one of the most important is the fitness level of the individual. With less fit people the Cardiovascular system is often not strong enough to deliver sufficient levels of oxygen to the working muscles in order to keep burning fat (fat requires oxygen to burn). This is why many overweight and/or unfit people should train at the lower end.
As for yourself, you seem to be a very fit individual, as indicated by running marathons and having a resting heart rate under 60 (a good sign of physical fitness), and as you suggested the lower end of the scale will probably be too low to gain any worthy results. If you have the fitness and can cope with higher impact training then I think it's worth sticking to the higher end of target heart rate. Just remember to make sure you're getting sufficient recovery between workouts. Hard training always takes longer to recover from, it also requires good, complete nutrition. I often alternate training routines, if I run at a high pace on Monday, then on Wednesday I'll go swimming or do rowing at an easy pace. This helps recovery of potential minor injuries in the knees or ankle areas as there is no weight bearing on these areas.
As always you should still consult with your doctor before attempting any new type of exercise or diet!
Also, have you read Tom's article on losing the last few pounds of body fat?
It's a very good read. Click on the next link to view it...
http://www.weightlossforall.com/abdominal%20fat.htm
Hope this helps
All the best
Regards
Wayne
http://www.weightlossforall.com/
posted by Weight Loss helper @ 6:05 PM
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