Target heart rate for max weight loss

[TOBDude]

Hopefully there is a simple answer to this question, but...

I see 3 different heart rate zones (Fat Burn, Cardio, and Peak).  My main focus is to loose weight.  Should I try and maintain my heart rate in the Fat Burn zone?  or is Peak or Cardio better to maximize weight loss?

Thanks in advance

[Heybales]

Not actually as simple an answer as you might think.

Weight loss is obtained by creating a deficit between what you eat and what you actually burn for the day.

You should have a weight loss goal rate that the body will see as reasonable and not backfire by getting stressed out and adding water weight and adapting and making you binge eat.

The best workout to maximize weight loss therefore is the one that allows you to adhere to and sustain a reasonable deficit.

If eating a certain level of calories is what you find is required to keep a deficit to constantly lose weight - then some workouts could help, or hinder, that goal.

Perhaps you have 15-30 lbs to lose to healthy weight, so a 500 cal deficit is reasonable for now.

Would you rather have to eat 1500 and be sedentary and burn 2000 daily? Could be done.

Or would you be more successful eating 2000 and needing to burn 2500 daily?

In that scenario - how much time do you have to burn that extra 500 calories?

If little time - you could go as hard and as intense as you could, at a level that still allowed recovery in order for doing it again tomorrow.

But some people discover that intensity also makes them very hungry - so they could eat right into that 500 cal deficit easily. So really wasn't a good workout being in the Peak zone.

If plenty of time - might find staying in the Fat burn zone but for 3 x as long doesn't make you hungry. So you can hold to the 2000 eating goal.

So what level of HR intensity do you need to do your cardio workouts?

Whatever level allows you to burn the calories to eat at the level you need, but won't make you so hungry to blow right past it.

After consideration of just the calorie burn from exercise to help your eating level - comes the idea that perhaps the exercise can improve your heart health and body image.

Sometimes a fit body can look 5-10 lbs lighter by just the way a person carries themselves.

[TOBDude]

Thanks for that detailed response.  I've reduced my calories and drinking more water etc since last Nov.  This question is focused specifically on my 30 min (and growing) morning workout.  I'm comfortable with higher intensity workouts (sometimes as high as 30% to 40% in 'peak' zone); but was wondering if throttling it down to 'fat burn' would be more effective at burning fat (as the name implies)... OR if staying higher with cardio & peak (which tends to burn more calories during the workout) would burn same or more fat then 'fat burn' zone does.  I can do either... higher intensity workouts are more engaging for me tho.

As a side note - my calorie intake isn't bad (1500 to 1800 p/day for grown male) and I make decent food choices.  All that to say, I don't think my intake is bad.  I'm just looking to maximize fat burn during my AM workout.

Thanks again.

[Heybales · Accepted solution]

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@TOBDude wrote:

Thanks for that detailed response.  I've reduced my calories and drinking more water etc since last Nov.  This question is focused specifically on my 30 min (and growing) morning workout.  I'm comfortable with higher intensity workouts (sometimes as high as 30% to 40% in 'peak' zone); but was wondering if throttling it down to 'fat burn' would be more effective at burning fat (as the name implies)... OR if staying higher with cardio & peak (which tends to burn more calories during the workout) would burn same or more fat then 'fat burn' zone does.  I can do either... higher intensity workouts are more engaging for me tho.

As a side note - my calorie intake isn't bad (1500 to 1800 p/day for grown male) and I make decent food choices.  All that to say, I don't think my intake is bad.  I'm just looking to maximize fat burn during my AM workout.

Thanks again.

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You have to look at the day as a whole, not a 30 min session.

In the end it doesn't matter - you are burning the same amount of fat for the day.

Again - it's your overall deficit that will determine if you are losing fat. If you are using the program correctly, you'd just be eating less with the easier workout that burns less - same deficit. Same fat loss.

The only place a problem occurs is if you have too big a deficit for amount to lose - and body not getting enough protein/carbs to build back up the muscle that is torn down daily, tad more with intense workouts - but has to use the eaten food for more important needs. Then muscle is lost gradually.

So when more intense burning more - you eat more, same deficit, simple.

The Fat burning zone used to be called the Active Recovery zone for good reason - it was gentle enough to not cause more stress, but rather aid in recovery from hard workout prior day.

But then the fad picked up.

Oh, I can burn 70% fat in this zone! And totally miss the fact you burn say 300 calories overall. so 210 fat calories.

Or burn 40% fat in higher zone, but burn 650 overall, so 260 overall. And you burned 350 extra calories!

Now for after the workout, after you eat next time.

Insulin is going to shuttle the carbs you eat off to the glucose stores used during that workout - guess which burned more glucose, and has more to fill.

The faster the glucose is sent off, the faster blood sugar drops, and insulin is done.

When insulin is released - your fat stores can't release fat for the normal daily energy use, you burn what you ate until blood sugar goes down.

Well, with big glucose stores to refill, insulin drops sooner, and your body is back to normal daily about 85% fat usage.

(that mechanism is why a deficit causes fat loss in the first place - less time with insulin, more time in normal fat burn mode).

The extra benefit of that method too - during exercise the fat used by the muscles first starts becoming what is closest, intra-muscular fat, not the fat pulled from your belly - takes too long.

The daily fat burn though is from fat already in the blood released from fat anywhere in body it feels like using it.

Most people know where they lose fat first.

So again - it really doesn't matter to the math which for the day balances out.

Whatever makes it more interesting for you, whatever helps you reach the goals you want.

Shoot, at some point the workouts may start to have nothing to do with burning calories - but what has the best response on changing the body for the available time in the manner you want.

Great reference site with a few articles on research to the points above.

https://www.lookgreatnaked.com/blog/maximizing-fat-loss-from-cardio/