Training Zones
Calculate personalized heart rate and pace zones for optimal training intensity.
Your Stats
Your Zones
Enter your stats to generate your personalized training zones.
How training zones are calculated
This calculator supports two methods. The simpler approach estimates your max heart rate as 220 minus your age — a rough starting point that works well enough for most runners who haven't done a lab test. The Karvonen method goes a step further by factoring in your resting heart rate, which accounts for your current fitness level. A lower resting heart rate generally means a stronger aerobic base, and the Karvonen formula reflects that: Target HR = ((Max HR − Resting HR) × intensity%) + Resting HR. If you know your actual max heart rate from a graded exercise test or a hard race effort, use that instead of the age-predicted estimate.
What the five zones mean in practice
Zone 1 is conversational-pace running — the kind where you could hold a phone call without gasping. It's used for warm-ups, cool-downs, and recovery days between hard sessions. Zone 2 is where most of your weekly mileage should happen. It builds your aerobic engine without accumulating much fatigue, and you should be able to talk in full sentences. Zone 3 sits in an awkward middle ground: too hard for easy volume, too easy to sharpen speed. It's useful for tempo work and race-specific half marathon and marathon training, but spending too much time here without purpose is a common mistake. Zone 4 is your lactate threshold — roughly the pace you could hold for an hour race. Threshold intervals and tempo runs live here. Zone 5 is VO2max territory: short, hard efforts like 400m or 800m repeats. A little goes a long way.
Pace zones and your 5K time
If you enter a recent 5K time, the calculator estimates training paces using multipliers that coaches have relied on for decades. Your 5K pace sits around the boundary of Zones 4 and 5. Easy runs are typically 1.2–1.4 times slower than 5K pace, tempo runs about 1.05–1.15 times slower, and interval reps slightly faster than 5K pace. These aren't rigid targets — they're guides. On hot days or hilly routes, go by heart rate or effort instead of chasing a number on your watch.
Getting the most out of your zones
The biggest training mistake recreational runners make is running their easy days too fast and their hard days too easy. Zones give you guardrails. If your Zone 2 says 6:00–6:30/km, trust it — even if it feels slow at first. The other common pitfall is treating zone boundaries as hard walls. They're ranges derived from population averages, not from your exact physiology. If you notice that your "easy" pace leaves you winded, or your threshold pace feels comfortable, recalibrate. Run a time trial, get a lab test, or simply adjust based on how your body responds over a few weeks of consistent training.