Zone 2 heart-rate calculator

Find your Zone 2, honestly.

Four methods side by side, with the overlap marked. No single unexplained number.

Your numbers

Age Required. Used to estimate your max heart rate.

– yrs

Exact value

Enter a whole number of years from 18 to 100.

Resting HR Optional. Your lowest bpm, measured first thing in the morning. Used for Karvonen: 60–70% of heart-rate reserve, a different bpm from 60–70% of max.

MAF adjustment Phil Maffetone’s 180 formula: subtract age from 180, then one adjustment. The result is a ceiling. The usual range is the 10 bpm below it, up to the ceiling. If two categories fit, he says to choose the lower heart rate.

−10 −5 0 +5

No change. Training consistently, at least four times a week, for up to two years, without the problems in the −10 or −5 categories.

Advanced: measured max HR

Optional, bpm. From a lab or hard field test — replaces the Tanaka estimate for % of max and Karvonen. MAF does not use it.

Measured max HR should be between 120 and 230 bpm.

New here?

Your weekly dose

The World Health Organization and the American Heart Association recommend at least 150 minutes a week of moderate-intensity aerobic activity — not Zone 2 by name. Steady Zone 2 is one way to do that moderate work. Pick a pattern that fits your life.

3 sessions

150 min / week

3 × 50 minutes. Fewer, longer sessions — good if you have full free mornings.

5 sessions

150 min / week

5 × 30 minutes. Easiest to stick to — a lunch-break incline walk, most days.

4 sessions · popularised by Peter Attia

180 min / week

4 × 45 minutes — 30 minutes over the 150-minute moderate-activity guideline. A popular longevity template.

How to actually do it

Zone 2 is an effort level, not a specific sport. Start with whichever you enjoy — all starting references below, adjust to stay in your range.

Treadmill

Incline walk

Start around 3 mph (5 km/h) at 10–12% incline — most people reach Zone 2 without running.

Bike

Easy cycling

Easy gear, 80–90 rpm on a flat route. Keep it conversational — back off a gear if breathing turns ragged.

Walk + pack

Rucking

Brisk walk with a light pack, around 10% of bodyweight to start. Hills raise heart rate without pounding joints.

What Zone 2 is

Low intensity, fat-fuelled

Around 60–70% of max heart rate — fat is your main fuel and lactate stays low.

Builds your aerobic base

More and better mitochondria: the foundation every harder workout stands on.

Why it's everywhere now

Popularised by longevity physician Peter Attia.

Four methods, in one line each

Method 1

% of max HR (Tanaka)

One formula for everyone: 208 − 0.7 × age, then 60–70% of that max. Your true max can be 10–12 bpm off.

Method 2

Karvonen reserve

Resting HR + 60–70% of (max − resting). The bpm usually sit higher than 60–70% of max. The percentages are a convention, and it needs a real resting measurement.

Method 3

MAF 180

Phil Maffetone: 180 − age, then −10, −5, 0, or +5. That number is a ceiling. The usual range is the 10 beats below it, up to the ceiling.

Method 4

Talk test

No math at all: full sentences but no singing. The free field check for any formula's number.

Just browsing?

See the estimated Zone 2 range for every age from 20 to 80 — no inputs needed.

View the age chart

Questions

How do I calculate my Zone 2 heart rate?

Estimate your max heart rate with the Tanaka formula — 208 minus 0.7 times your age — then take 60 to 70 percent of it. A 40-year-old gets an estimated max of 180 bpm, so that window is 108 to 126 bpm. Karvonen uses the same 60 to 70 percent on heart-rate reserve: resting plus that percent of (max minus resting). At age 40 with resting 60, that is 132 to 144 bpm, which falls in Zone 3 of the % of max scale. Resting heart rate changes the bpm; it does not turn the percentage into a lab test. Maffetone’s MAF 180 formula is separate: 180 minus age, then one adjustment (−10, −5, 0, or +5). The result is a ceiling, and the usual range is the 10 beats below it.

Which method is most accurate?

No formula on this page is a lab test, and this site does not claim one method is the most accurate. A measured max heart rate is more reliable than an age estimate. Tanaka’s formula is a population average — an individual’s true max can be 10 to 12 bpm off in either direction. Karvonen uses a resting heart rate with 60 to 70 percent of heart-rate reserve, so the bpm are often higher than 60 to 70 percent of max. The percentage is still a convention, not a lab threshold. The talk test is a free check on any number a formula gives you: full sentences, but no singing. Maffetone’s MAF 180 formula is a separate ceiling, 180 minus age with one adjustment, and does not use max heart rate.

What if I don't know my resting heart rate?

Use the % of max HR method — it needs only your age. To get your resting heart rate, wear your watch to bed or check your pulse for a full minute right after waking, before getting up. Do it for a few mornings and take the average.

Can I just walk for Zone 2?

For many people, flat walking is too easy to reach Zone 2 — that's why incline walking and rucking are so popular: they raise your heart rate without running. If flat walking already puts you in range, that's perfectly fine Zone 2.

How many minutes per week?

The World Health Organization and the American Heart Association recommend at least 150 minutes a week of moderate-intensity aerobic activity, or 75 minutes vigorous. That guidance is not a Zone 2 quota. Steady Zone 2 is one way to meet the moderate-intensity part. A practical split is 3 to 5 sessions — for example 3 × 50 minutes, 5 × 30 minutes, or 4 × 45 minutes (180 minutes). Consistency beats any single perfect session.

Do I need a chest strap?

Not to start. A wrist-based optical sensor is fine for steady Zone 2 work. A chest strap (like the Polar H10) is more accurate and responds faster to changes — worth it once Zone 2 becomes a weekly habit.