Max Heart Rate Calculator / Fitness and VO2max
VO2 Max Heart Rate Calculator
Estimate your VO2max, a measure of aerobic fitness, from your resting and maximum heart rate with the Uth formula.
Your result
Enter your numbers and press the button. Your result appears here.
How VO2max is estimated from heart rate
VO2max is the most oxygen your body can use during hard exercise. Uth and colleagues showed it can be roughly estimated from the ratio of maximum to resting heart rate.
VO2max ≈ 15.3 × HRmax ÷ HRrest (mL/kg/min)
For a maximum of 170 and a resting rate of 60, VO2max ≈ 15.3 × 2.83 ≈ 43 mL/kg/min. The estimate is less accurate in older adults and people on heart-rate-lowering medicines.
Maximum and target heart rate by age
| Age | Max (220 − age) | Moderate 50–70% | Vigorous 70–85% | Max (Tanaka) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20 | 200 | 100–140 | 140–170 | 194 |
| 25 | 195 | 98–136 | 136–166 | 190 |
| 30 | 190 | 95–133 | 133–162 | 187 |
| 35 | 185 | 92–130 | 130–157 | 184 |
| 40 | 180 | 90–126 | 126–153 | 180 |
| 45 | 175 | 88–122 | 122–149 | 176 |
| 50 | 170 | 85–119 | 119–144 | 173 |
| 55 | 165 | 82–115 | 115–140 | 170 |
| 60 | 160 | 80–112 | 112–136 | 166 |
| 65 | 155 | 78–108 | 108–132 | 162 |
| 70 | 150 | 75–105 | 105–128 | 159 |
| 75 | 145 | 72–102 | 102–123 | 156 |
| 80 | 140 | 70–98 | 98–119 | 152 |
Beats per minute. Moderate and vigorous ranges follow the American Heart Association.
Common questions
Is 220 minus age accurate?
It is a rough average. Real maximums vary by 10 to 12 bpm either way. Tanaka and Gulati formulas are closer for many adults.
What is a normal resting heart rate?
60 to 100 beats per minute for adults. Fit people often sit lower, in the 50s.
Do medicines change these numbers?
Yes. Beta blockers and some other heart medicines lower heart rate, so age-based targets do not apply. Ask your doctor for a target.
Sources
- American Heart Association. Target heart rates chart; All about heart rate.
- Tanaka H, Monahan KD, Seals DR. Age-predicted maximal heart rate revisited. J Am Coll Cardiol 2001;37:153–156.
- Gulati M et al. Heart rate response to exercise stress testing in asymptomatic women. Circulation 2010;122:130–137.
- Karvonen MJ et al. The effects of training on heart rate. Ann Med Exp Biol Fenn 1957;35:307–315.
- Cole CR et al. Heart-rate recovery immediately after exercise as a predictor of mortality. N Engl J Med 1999;341:1351–1357.
- Uth N et al. Estimation of VO2max from the ratio between HRmax and HRrest. Eur J Appl Physiol 2004;91:111–115.