How Hard to Work When Exercising

Often, clients will ask me “How hard am I supposed to work when performing cardio?” Essentially this is referring to intensity of the workout. The harder you work the more calories you are going to burn. There are a few ways to determine how hard to work:

1. Follow the Borg RPE scale. This is a scale that runs from 0-10 based on how hard or easy you are working out. Zero equates to sitting in a chair, while ten is something that is very difficult and can only be sustained for a brief period of time such a few minutes. Generally you should fall somewhere between a 4 and a 6 to get maximum benefit out of your workout.

0 - Nothing at all
0.5 - Just noticeable
1 - Very light
2 - Light
3 - Moderate
4 - Somewhat heavy
5 - Heavy
6-7 - Very heavy
8-9-10 - Very, very heavy

2. Take your heart rate. Whether you count it yourself or use a monitor, your pulse can be a great measure of intensity. You want to keep you heart rate between 65-85% of your maximum heart rate which can be determined with the following formula: 220 - Your Age

Once you have that number multiply it by .65 and by .85 to get your target heart rate range. This number gives you the beats per minute you should expect to reach a fat, burning intensity. Keep in mind this is an estimate and some medications can affect your heart rate.

3. Try the talk test. You want to get to a point where talking is a bit difficult while you are exercising, yet it can still be done. If talking is a breeze, then pick up the pace or if you’re wheezing and couldn’t talk if you tried, then you need to slow down the pace until you can.