I usually boost about how I know everything regarding diet and exercise, well I was just proven wrong by myself. I always thought an aerobic workout your heart rate you needs to be above 150. That is considered a high intensity calorie burn. I remember reading somewhere in weight watchers that if you could have a conversation during your exercise it was NOT high intensity. This is what I always based my goal on when I would do cardio. I just never researched or looked anything up past it. I really have no idea why.

So I’m doing a chair cardio workout the other day with this totally fit, spunky woman Caroline Jordan. She is on YouTube and has tons of free workouts. In this video I was doing, she was using her Apple Watch and giving us her heart rate throughout the workout. Firstly, she talked the entire video through easily and secondly her heart rate only maxed at 144. My heart rate was only 120. It was the first time I ever question heart rate. Here was this completely fit, tiny, spunky woman nonstop moving for 30 minutes and 144 was an excellent heart rate for her.

So I googled heart rate. Well I’m sure the logical people out there can imagine that 150 for someone that is 48 years old is not an ideal heart rate.

Since I am usually doing Cardio to be in a fat burning zone, I am supposed to be in a range closer too the 102-119 category. A range that I usually hit even when I’m working out in a chair. I was still aiming for a much higher goal, thinking it wasn’t enough. I was always shooting for a goal of over 130 hoping to actually hit a 140. Where those numbers are great for my heart, that is too high for what I’m trying to actually achieve. I was just in the mindset that higher intensity burns more calories. Therefore higher heart rate means a better work out. I was very happy that I happen to be doing that video that day. It was a great lesson to learn or relearn. This isn’t new material, I just think I haven’t looked at it since I was probably in my 20s. As you can see from the chart it goes by age. Also each person is going to be different. Two people could be doing the same exact video the same exact way and one person could have a heart rate of 120 and the other person could have a heart rate of 140. I also learned that. However now I know based on my own Apple Watch what my own goal needs to be.  If you want to tough chair cardio workout go check Caroline Jordan out on YouTube, she won’t disappoint you. That’s where I’m on my way to now.