Myzone has Heart Rate Zones that indicate your exercise intensity: grey, blue, green, yellow, and red zones. Zones are based off estimated Max Heart Rate.
What are my Zones?
Myzone uses five color-coded Heart Rate Zones to establish the effort that users exert during exercise: grey, blue, green, yellow, and red. They are displayed on your Live Tile during your workout and represent your cardiovascular effort in terms of a percentage of your Max Heart Rate (MHR).
How are Zones calculated?
Since your Effort Zones are a percentage of your Max Heart Rate (MHR), first Myzone calculates your Max Heart Rate.
Max Heart Rate is the highest heart rate an individual can achieve through exercise stress. It is the upper limit for your cardiovascular system during physical activity, and the number you hit just before you have to stop and recover.
It is personal to you so important to remember the equation we use is an estimate only--many factors, including genetics and consistency with exercise throughout adulthood play a role in your number. It is normal for it to be higher or lower.
The zones are 10% increments of your max heart rate:
- Grey = 50% to 59% of Max HR
- Blue = 60% to 69% of Max HR
- Green = 70% to 79% of Max HR
- Yellow = 80% to 89% of Max HR
- Red = 90% to 100% of Max HR
How does Myzone calculate my Max Heart Rate?
Myzone uses the HUNT formula (2013). Research has found that this is the most accurate maximum Heart Rate calculation to establish an estimate for large populations:
Max HR = 211 – (0.64 x age)
If you are able to push your heart rate higher than the recorded MHR for 30 seconds, your Myzone profile will automatically adjust to reflect your capabilities. It will not increase your max heart rate by more than 10 beats in one adjustment, but it is possible to have more than one adjustment in a workout. For example, if you are doing an interval workout and the first repeat adjusts you from 180 to 189, the second repeat could bump you up again if you sustain a rate of 193 for 30 seconds or more.
You can also ask your coach or trainer to adjust the MHR on your profile if it does not seem accurate (How can I check if my estimated Max HR Is correct?).
Will my Max Heart Rate change over time?
Your Maximum Heart Rate does not change with improved fitness levels. Your MHR only decreases slightly if you become inactive as you age. If you become deconditioned, you may find your max heart rate in Myzone changes--this is an adjustment that brings you closer to your true MHR. Your ability to maintain work at a higher heart rate near or at your MHR will increase as you become more conditioned. You might also notice that you might need to increase your workload in order to elicit the same HR response as you become more conditioned.
How do I earn MEPs in different Zones?
Each minute spent in a Zone earns you a certain amount of Myzone Effort Points (MEPs) during your workout. Why earn MEPs? Check out How Myzone Status Works
Here are the five Zones and the number of MEPs earned for each:
- Grey = 1 MEP per minute
- Blue = 2 MEPs per minute
- Green = 3 MEPs per minute
- Yellow = 4 MEPs per minute
- Red = 4 MEPs per minute
The red zone does not exceed 4 MEPs per minute because Myzone does not want to encourage overtraining.
What affects my heart rate day-to-day?
Your Max HR does not typically change, but you may notice somedays the same activity results in a different graph. This is due to:
- Current state: The amount of sleep you've had, stress, nutrition, hydration, fatigue, adrenaline, competition, and mental focus.
- Altitude: Acute exposure to high altitudes may cause a temporary decrease in our MHR. We will also have a higher heart rate during submaximal exercise at a high altitude. With continued exposure to high altitude, our MHR should increase and our heart rate during submaximal exercise should decrease compared to when we were first exposed to high altitude.
- Mode of exercise: The MHR we can achieve during different exercise modalities does vary to some extent. For example, exercisers tend to achieve a higher MHR when running compared to cycling since more muscle groups are used to move and balance you. Swimming may also elicit a lower MHR due to the cooling effect of water and body position--your heart has to work harder to pump blood when you are vertical (running) than horizontal (swimming).
- Medications: Some medications will limit the MHR you can and should achieve during exercise. Beta-blockers, which decrease your MHR lower than the age-predicted maximum used by Myzone. Be sure to ask your doctor if any of your medications will impact your MHR.
- Breaks in activity: If you take time off from exercise for an extended period, this can decrease your max heart rate.
What is resting heart rate and will my resting heart rate change over time?
Resting heart rate is a terrific marker of your general fitness level. However, it does not impact your Effort Zone calculation. For more information, check out our quick guide on Resting Heart Rate.
Compare changes in Average and Resting Heart Rate.
By measuring your resting heart rate over a period of time or by repeating an identical exercise session and comparing your average heart rate in your Myzone Activity report. When your resting or average heart rate goes down, your heart is becoming more efficient and therefore you are increasing your level of fitness.
Why is it so important to monitor heart rate and effort?
Knowing what intensity you are working at is essential to ensure you get the most from your training and get the results you want. It helps you train safely and effectively when not under the guidance of a trainer or coach.