Heart rate zones: more of them, all editable/customizable

[branning]

The heart rate zone feature is great, but the user-editable heart rate "zone" is not useful at all. The common heart-rate training protocols include up to 5 heart rate zones, and the beginning and end all need to be editable according to the individual's own maximum heart rate.

Ideally, these would also have editable names.

Zone	HR begin	HR end
Z1 light	100	130
Z2 easy	130	140
Z3 aero	140	150
Z4 anaerobic	150	160
Z5 VO2max	160	190

Moderator edit: added labels

[borchgrevink]

This fix is a MUST for me to even consider Fitbit. As of now, HR zones calculated from 220-age is completly rubbish and can in NO way be used as guideline for heart rate zone work outs. According to Fitbit my HR should be 220-40=180 but my max HR is more like 201. Therefore any zone is 100% useless. All other services have this implemented and should take minimal programming. Just leave the defaul to 220-age and everybody should be happy.

[Woostigger]

Please consider this.

My max heart rate seems unusual compared to the 220 minus your age.  Anything above a walk will bring me up over 150.  I've had my max rate over 200 during runs that involve hills.  I am 38.

 A custom feature to set heart rates, and multiple at that would be fantastic for me.  If we only get 3, fine I will settle with that.  Honestly I suppose I will make do if I have to with custom, just seems like a waste of a good system to go down to a custom 1 zone system.

Below is an example of what I am talking about.  I dont have my surge yet (coming next week), still waiting in the mail, but I can tell you my Garmin has been very accurate and my wife has taken my pulse to validate the accuracy as well.

[evadah]

 I am in the same situation as above as my maximum heart rate is well beyond what the current formula provides for.   I was very excited to get the Charge HR but its inability to provide customization to the HR zones diminishes the value of any HR data.   Implementing what branning suggested above would be great and is commonplace with numerous competitors in the market.   

[evily]

Agree, this is a major detriment to the new Fitbit products.  My max HR is nowhere near 220-age, and having only one customizable HR zone is useless. It should be an easy software fix to allow the user to enter a custom Max HR, and then calculate the three zones based on that.  

[branning]

 @evily @evadah You could probably enter a false age to trick the system into using your correct Max HR. You would still be stuck with three fixed HR zones, but it would probably be more useful overall. Set your age to 220 - Max HR. I don't believe the system uses your age for other calculations, and you can set your age to be private on your profile to prevent confusion.

220 - Age = Max HR

220 - Max HR = Age

[evily]

@branning You could enter a false age, yes. But presumably this would alter the calculated BMR (since younger people have higher BMRs).  So this is not a preferred solution.  

[branning]

Ah, yes, I just tried it and changing Age does change the BMR calculation.

[evadah]

Thanks, I appreciate the work around.  Really looking for Fitbit to make the changes as this really isn't something that we should have to fudge.   

[amybang]

At the very least, make the 3 zones that we do have configurable.  I don't want the "Fat Burn" zone to start until about 110 or so for me.  Having it start at 85 means that I can enter it just with a walk down the hallway at work.  That's not really "active minutes" in my book.

[sarah1234]

I also feel that the heart rate zones need to be editable.  Recently I had a metabolism test done which tells my my 5 heart rate zones.  When I purchased my fitbit chrage HR I thought that I would be able to edit my different heart rate zones, and I have since learned that I can't.  I don't see how just putting in my min and max heart rate does anything to customize my zones, especially when I know that actual numbers for the different zones.  I really wish that fitbit would do an update to change this feature so that we can customize the heart rate zones so that it is fit for me! I paid lots of money for this test that I can not put the information into the fitbit that I also paid lots of money for. To me seems like lots of wasted money!  

[THusvaeg]

Agree. I also had to change my age so that the standard zones would change correctly... Also note that this also affects calorie data, i was seeing 4500-5000 calories used per day with just sitting in the office and walking my dog! Accordingly (based on calorie input) i should have been loosing 200+ grams weight per day! Would have been great, but just not reality 🙂

[Elliee]

Those with higher than normal HR thresholds would like to see the 3 HR zones that are custom instead of just one. For example, my max HR is higher than the default one for my age. As people become more active, the levels will change and won't fit within the default values over. I'd like to have the same flexibility with these levels as others do.

thanks!

[Elliee]

this is a duplicate request to this one: https://community.fitbit.com/t5/Feature-Requests/Heart-rate-zones-more-of-them-all-editable/idi-p/60...

[BarryTheTrainer]

HRmax based on the 220 minus age formula is a generic one and is not person-specific. The better method is the heart rate reserve formula which factors a person's resting heart rate into the calculation.

[Woostigger]

The resting heart rate calculation seems to make sense.  That would explain why I was very frustrated with the heart rate default zones when I was less doing cardio and worse out of shape.  The more I have been doing cardio the less I found my heart rate showing in the fat burn zone every time I stood up.  That said, I think your thoughts on factoring resting heart rate as well makes sense.

[dbvickery]

I wish the app would allow you to set more than one custom heart rate zone. The default zones are archaic based upon age and max heart rate. If you do zone training, then there is a good chance that you've done metabolic testing and have much more accurate heart rate zones for fat burn, aerobic and anaerobic zones, performance, etc. If I had these custom heart rate zones, I would not feel the need to use a 3rd party app like DigiFit (which I've tried with the Surge, and I can't get DigiFit to recognize it as a heart rate monitor - as opposed to a strap).

FYI, my wife has a Vivofit, and they are allowed to set custom zones as opposed to just defining "one" custom zone like the current Fitbit app.

[TerryChow]

Got my surge yesterday, and the lack of editable HR zones is for me the one thing that would stop me from recommending it to friends. I do know my zones, and the standard calculation is pretty far off for me, so the actual end calculations are currently pretty meaningless for me. 

[Woostigger]

I had a run today where my heart rate was in the peak zone more than it was in cardio or fat burn zone put together.  I am sure it has something to do with my max heart rate about 20 points from the standard calculation and I was really working the hills.

 I can say that it showed more calories burned then I would have thought.  Until I prove whether or not I didnt actually burn that much, I cant say one way or the other.

I will have to watch for that one though.

[CarlosU]

I agree. I am very disappointed that they do not allow me to have more than one custom zone.

One zone is useless for a serious runner.

[CarlosU]

I have the same issue.

I don't fit the standard formula, So the standard heart rate zones are useless to me, it always shows me as maxed out, when I know I am not. So I am extremely disappointed that I can't customize these. One custom zone is useless for distance runners. For serious training it is absolutely required to be able to customize three or four zones. 

For long runs with my runmeter iphone app and a heart strap, I look at how many miles and how much time I am in each custom zone I have created, it is extremely useful to have that. With the surge I can't get that information.

This is a head scratcher for me..... 😕

[CarlosU]

I agree totally.

For serious runners one zone or the standard formula is a joke. It is totally useless and I was really disappointed when I went for my first long run and looked at the data for the first time.

If this isn't going to be considered I would think seriously about returning the surge I just bought. It is a head scratcher for sure 😕

[jcronk]

The failure to have this feature is hands down the biggest disappointment in getting the Charge HR.  220 - age as a max HR calculation is a completely useless value and every "zone" calculation based on it is just as useless.  If you're going to implement HR tracking at all, it's baffling to me that you'd deliberately make the data completely useless.

[Woostigger]

Does anyone know whether or not that if you are hydrated well, if the 220 minus your age becomes more accurate?

It seems that since I have been maintaining my hydration levels that my heart rate doesnt jump into the 190s near as much.  My day to day movement also doesn't spike up as much as I do the smaller things too.

[spurdin]

PLEASE update this feature!! 

It seems like such an easy thing to do. I have had my vo2 test and would like to use my results. If you were going to have one zone, why even make it editable? 

[quintank]

Add my vote to editable Heart Rate Zones.  I take a daily Beta Blocker that slows my heart rate by 20-30 beats per zone.  I need to be able to edit my max zones as hitting 180 BPM would mean I am sprawled on the track dying - LOL.