← The Atlas

03 · Heart

Know your engine.

Your age and resting heart rate give you your training zones and a rough read on VO2 max, one of the strongest markers of how long and how well you live.

Your numbers

Measure your resting heart rate sitting still, ideally first thing in the morning.

Sex (for the percentile)
No number? Measure it now
Two fingertips on the thumb side of the wrist, or beside the windpipe on the neck, to find the pulse

Find your pulse at your wrist or neck. Tap the button once for every beat for 30 seconds. We double it.

From a recent all-out effort or a lab test. Otherwise we use 208 minus 0.7 times your age.

Estimated VO2 max

--ml/kg/min

Enter your age and resting heart rate.

--METs
--Max HR
--Zone 2 bpm

Your five zones

Heart rate reserve method. Bar drawn to scale from resting to max.

restmax

    Your weekly target

    WHO guidelines: 150 to 300 minutes a week of moderate activity, or 75 to 150 minutes of vigorous activity. Zone 2 counts as moderate.

    Zone 2 feels easy on purpose. Conventions vary between labs and coaches. The simplest check is the talk test: you can still speak in full sentences.