karlkras

So I'm going over my training numbers over the past few weeks and noted that my maximum heart rate (MHR) is generally in the 180-185 bpm range. During some harder training intervals I can hit 190 without too much trouble.
According to the "normal" training guidelines, MHR is calculated by the simple 220-age, well, not to give my age away, but applying this my max should be more like 166 bpm, when in fact, that's closer to my average (153).
Is this freakish or is it common for those who do endurance training on a continuous schedule to be this far off of the "normal" range?
My RHR is 56 bpm so that would seem in the correct range.

gregf83 

The 220-age formula is not a guideline for training. It is simply an estimate of the mean maximum HR of a population. That doesn't mean everyone of a particular age will have a maximum predicted by the formula, some will be higher and some lower.

The important number is really your cardiac output which is a function of stroke volume (SV) and heart rate (HR). If you have a lower stroke volume (i.e. smaller heart) you will have a higher HR for a given cardiac output. With training, it's not uncommon for the heart to grow slightly and your maximum HR can actually go down.

Bottom line is your maxHR is personal and your performance is seldom limited by your heart. The maximum HR is reached when the rest of you system reaches it's limit. You're much more likely to be limited by oxygen transport to your muscles than your heart not being capable of pumping enough blood.

NealH

Your max HR is when it reaches the limit, and its not uncommon for it to be 10% or so more than the formula predicts. The formulas were not based on healthy athletes but, instead a conservative guideline for the general public. It often takes a competitive situation to see your true max rate. Alone you are not likely to achieve it outside a lab environment.

OldTryGuy

Other threads regarding heart rate are present and have lots of helpful information. Just as a quick reference, https://www.best-running-tips.com/max...eart-rate.html, for some information.

DnvrFox

those max HR formulas are not very research oriented. I heard once that they were devised by two docs traveling in an airplane who got to talking. I doubt that is true, but it makes the point.

Chaco

Here's a site that has a whole bunch of formulas: https://www.brianmac.co.uk/maxhr.htm. At the bottom of the first part, you can plug in your age, activity, and level, and get the results according to all the formulas.
Even then, it's just an estimate. I plugged in my variables - 65, cycling, average - and the highest was the UK Researchers at 166. My max is actually 169.

TomD77

I've read that 208 minus 70% of age more closely predicts the mean because the 220 minus age formula overstates age falloff. (the mean figure is that which half of the data points are larger and half smaller). Maybe it's out there but I would like to see the standard deviation. You would expect to find 2/3rds of all data points to fall within one standard deviation plus or minus from the mean figure, it tells you the variability of the sample.

John E

Warning: Your Heart Rate May Vary, and may this may be perfectly OK for you.

Don in Austin

That formula is thoroughly discredited and meaningless.

billydonn

Not really.

Mobile 155

When I first started cycling again I asked my doctor about the HR formulas. I was told it was simply a base line for the average sedentary person. I marked my Max on my HR monitor at 165 and quickly learned that 165 was not my max. After 5 years back on the bike I learned that in a sprint I could go 183 before feeling like I was going to toss my cookies. I told my new doctor what I thought my max HR was and she made me bring my monitor in on my next check up. Because I was about to start a new weight loss program recommended by the doctor she wanted to know what my max really was so I could start zone training and stay out of Anaerobic zone 4 and 5. So to get your max heart rate you have to push yourself flat out till you can't push any more a few times and then record that number or have your doctor send you for a test. However it seems as if very few people even in the same age group have the same max heart rate.

ModeratedUser150120149

One of the Great Mysteries is why folks like those who post here have such an unhealthy preoccupation with heart rate in its' various metrics. It gives a new meaning to the phrase "The Worried Well".

When I was undergoing the cardiac portion of my EMS training we were taught a baseline rule: "Don't believe the machine. Believe the patient". In other words it really doesn't matter, in isolation of other signs and symptoms, what the heart rate is, how fast it changes, etc. What matters is whether it circulates enough blood to nourish the body. It is really a Don't Worry, Be Happy situation.

Me? I listen to and watch my body, more as a habit than anything else. I use heart rate as a crude measure of how hard I'm working. If I feel like I'm going to keel over any second but my heart rate is 120 I know I'm being mentally lazy and I need to kick it up, for example. If it takes some extra time to recover to normal, for me, I know I'm tired that day, or I didn't drink enough, or something. But, unless I'm also having other dreadful signs or symptoms I don't worry.

If a person can't leave it alone I suggest you may be kin to those people I've seen over the past few weeks who, almost quite literally, aren't as smart as a paint stripe.

Reynolds 

That's almost exactly my case. At 62, my MHR is 189, and I can do 20 min intervals @ 170-175. RHR is about 52-54. My cardiologist says it's an individual variation, not better or worse than others. He recommended a max effort test though, it was OK.

karlkras

If this is what you consider one of the "Great Mysteries" in this world, we're in really good shape. Thanks for your humble opinion.

Artmo

This must be right, 'cos it works for me: 210-1/2my age-5% bodyweight in pounds+(4 for males +2 for females). Mine is 167.
What bothers me more is he abuse of the apostrophe in this thread: its, it's and even its'!!
"its" = belonging to it; "it's" = it is and "its'" is meaningless. Sorry, it's (it is) my obsessive disorder showing.

OldTryGuy

Some years ago I occasionally hit 180+ when going full out. Currently at 63, I'm finding it hard to pass 170 while not even going full out yet going faster and longer than before. I think it is helpful paying attention to my HR while riding and speed walking/jogging. I really don't feel that I have an unhealthy preoccupation with heart rate.

ModeratedUser150120149

You should have used your sarcasm smiley. I should have backed off a wee bit in my language.

And, Yes, we mostly are in great shape for the shape we're in.

billydonn

IMO there is a widespread and unhealthy preoccupation with declaring things unhealthy. It's a great mystery.

karlkras

Yea, for sure, peace! There is this preoccupation with trying to "dial stuff in" where there is a wide range of conditions that make it impractical. I was just trying to get a consensus of how wide the range might be (asking my Doctor wasn't helpful, he pointed at this very calculation).

karlkras

Wow, I hear there's (there is) medication for that!

Reynolds 

My Dr. says MHR isn't relevant, but looks at recovery after 1 min.

Yankeetowner

This isn't meant to be sarcastic, but what does it matter what your heart rate is, whether resting or maximum? How is that information used? I've seen some adds for heart rate monitors, but I don't know what I would do with that information if I had it.

lenA

I agree....as a former (middle of the pack) distance runner, it was always about recovery...still is for me as a geezer on a bike.

Artmo

My RHR is about 40, so my cardiologist asks we if my HR increases with exercise. If it didn't I might be a candidate for a pacemaker.But I'm probably older than you

abrianb

I have always been interested in heart rate, but you have to compare you to you. I get less cardio in winter, so come spring my resting rate is higher and I get into cardio range easier. Now late in summer my resting is 48 and I really have to crank it out to make my heart pound hard. Thats the important thing, if you are working out at a rate that lets you talk normally then speed up. If you can't get enough air, your heart feels like it will come out of your chest and there is the taste of blood in your mouth then slow down a notch. Heartrate formulas have to be concidered a rough guide.