Heart Rate Zone Training Guide
Understanding Your Body's Training Zones Year 10 Physical Education Sport Science Unit
What is Heart Rate Zone Training?
Training at specific heart rate intensities Based on your Anaerobic Threshold (AT) Each zone provides different fitness benefits More effective than guessing exercise intensity
Think About It...
Why might exercising at random intensities be less effective than following a structured heart rate plan? What happens to your body when you exercise at different intensities?
The 5 Training Zones Overview
Zone 1: Warm-up (60-70% AT) - Fat burning Zone 2: Aerobic Development (70-90% AT) - Base fitness Zone 3: Aerobic Endurance (90-100% AT) - Lactate tolerance Zone 4: Anaerobic Endurance (100-110% AT) - Power endurance Zone 5: Speed & Power (110% AT to max) - Maximum effort
Zones 1 & 2: Building Your Foundation
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Find Your Zones Activity
Step 1: Take resting heart rate Step 2: Do 2-minute moderate exercise Step 3: Check heart rate immediately Step 4: Identify which zone you're in Step 5: Adjust intensity up or down
Zones 3 & 4: Performance Training
Zone 3: At your threshold - breathing becomes noticeable Zone 4: Above threshold - heavy breathing, muscle burn 30-35% of total training time in these zones Builds lactate tolerance and endurance Requires recovery time between sessions
Zone 5: Maximum Effort
"Your body is burning the last remaining fuel and cannot sustain this maximum effort for more than a few seconds without succumbing to exhaustion."
Training Zone Distribution
Putting It All Together
Start with Zones 1-2 for 6 weeks if you're a beginner Gradually add Zone 3-4 training as fitness improves Use Zone 5 sparingly and with proper recovery Monitor how you feel - adjust intensity accordingly Track progress and celebrate improvements