What Your Heart Rate Should Be When You Walk Vs. Run, According To Experts

Monitoring your heart rate during workouts like runs and walks is important because it ensures you’re not giving 100 percent of your effort so your body can recover in between sessions, says Coviello.

It’s also helpful so you can pace yourself during longer endurance sessions, like runs. But this metric also helps you be more aware of your potential risk of cardiovascular health issues down the line, Yu says.

Meet the experts: Winnie Yu, DPT, CSCS, is a sports and orthopedic physical therapist at Bespoke Physical Therapy in New York City. Erica Coviello, CPT, a level 2 certified RRCA running coach and owner of Run Fit Stoked. Ankit Shah, MD, is a sports cardiologist and the founder and president of Sports & Performance Cardiology LLC in Chevy Chase, Maryland, an associate professor of medicine at the Georgetown University School of Medicine, and the team cardiologist for USA Swimming.

So what should your heart rate actually be during running and walking workouts? Ahead, experts answer all of your heart rate Qs, including how to understand the zones and how to lower your heart rate during runs.

How To Calculate Your Heart Rate Zones

To find your zones, you first need to learn your heart rate maximum. Know that this is a genetically predetermined number that also generally decreases with age, says sports cardiologist Ankit Shah, MD. The best way to learn it is by getting a VO2 max test, but if you can’t get one, try to find it on your own through vigorous exercise, like during sprints.

When you’re putting in 100 percent of your effort, take note of your heart rate on your tracker—that will be your max. (The talk test is also a good way to determine your effort—during an easy effort, you should be able to sing, with moderate exercise, you can have a conversation, and with vigorous work, you can only say a few words before needing to take a breath, he adds.)

From there, these are the general heart rate zones, according to Coviello and Yu:

• Zone 1: 50 to 60 percent of your heart rate max
• Zone 2: 60 to 70 percent of your heart rate max
• Zone 3: 70 to 80 percent of your heart rate max
• Zone 4: 80 to 90 percent of your heart rate max
• Zone 5: 90 to 100 percent of your heart rate max

While many fitness pros will recommend finding your heart rate max by calculating 220 minus your age, it isn’t accurate for everyone, says Dr. Shah. Based on your genetics, “there’s sort of a range in what’s true for that number,” says Dr. Shah.

For example, a 20-year-old’s max heart rate would be 200 in theory, but for anyone that age, it could range in either direction by 24 beats, he says. Their max heart rate could be anywhere between 176 to 224, based on their genetics. So if they try to use 200 as their max, their zones could be very off. (It’s common for Dr. Shah to see patients training in what they think is zone 2, but it’s actually zone 1.)

Plus, not everyone reaches their ventilatory threshold—the point where moderate exercise becomes higher intensity—at the same percentage, says Dr. Shah. For the average healthy person, this threshold is between 50 to 70 percent of your peak VO2 maximum (the most oxygen your body can use during exercise), but it could go up to 90 or 95 percent.

So, it’s best to go by feel.

Pro tip: Your fitness tracker will likely come with preset heart rate zones that might not be accurate, even if it knows your age, says Coviello. Before training, check your settings to make sure your zones are accurate based your estimated heart rate max—the option to edit your zones is available on most trackers.

The Factors That Influence Heart Rate

• Cardiovascular fitness: If you’re just starting your cardiovascular training journey, your heart rate might be higher at first because your body is adapting, Yu says. But after a few months, your heart rate will decrease because your aerobic base, which is “your body’s ability to sustain activity for a longer period of time,” will be stronger, she adds.
• Terrain: Uneven terrain like sand, trails, or hills will increase your heart rate as opposed to walking on flat concrete because your effort is increased, Yu says.
• Weather: Heat and humidity can spike your heart rate because “your body’s working harder to regulate your body temperature to help you sweat and cool you off,” Yu says.
• Speed of exercise: “The faster you move, the higher your heart rate’s going to go,” Coviello says.
• Added resistance: Any extra stimulus that causes your body to work harder will increase your heart rate, says Yu. For instance, if you’re walking home with 10 pounds of groceries, your heart rate will be higher than if you were just walking down the street carrying nothing.
• Length of exercise: If you’re less experienced with cardio, your heart rate might increase the longer your workout lasts, especially if you have trouble keeping a consistent pace, says Coviello.
• Hydration: If you’ve only had coffee or tea (and not as much water) before working out, your heart rate will be higher because those are stimulants, Yu says.
• Medications: Some medications, like antidepressants or anti-anxiety meds, can potentially increase your heart rate at first because your body isn’t used to them yet, Coviello says.
• Stress: When you’re stressed out, your heart rate is higher due to your nervous system’s response, Coviello says.
• Age: As you get older, your heart rate max typically decreases. If you were an avid runner in your 20s and your heart was always at a specific rate, it might require a bit more effort to get your heart rate up to that same number at 50, Yu says.

Other variables that can affect your heart rate on any given workout is your menstrual cycle and even what you ate the day before, Coviello adds.

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Your Heart Rate While Walking On Flat Ground

Flat walking HR: generally less than 50 percent of your max HR

If you’re walking leisurely or running errands, your heart rate should generally be pretty low because you’re not putting much effort in—it might be around less than 50 percent of your max heart rate, Coviello says. You should feel like you can sing while you’re walking, Dr. Shah adds. But say you’re walking briskly or up a hill or incline—your heart rate would probably be closer to zone 2 or 3, Yu says. You should be able to carry a conversation, but you might not be able to sing, Dr. Shah says.

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The goal is to walk with a lower heart rate, which shows that your body “can adapt to low responses of stress as well as potentially high responsive stress,” Yu says. But if your heart rate is higher and you feel like you’re working hard or you’re breathless, even at a slow pace, your immune system might be down or your heart health might not be strong, she adds.

If you consistently experience those symptoms and/or heart palpitations or chest pressure during low-effort activities, or your heart rate is significantly spiking above its normal number for a while, you might want to check in with a cardiologist, Yu and Dr. Shah say. It may also be a sign that your body is deconditioned and you should add more cardio work into your day to day life for your heart health, Dr. Shah adds.

Your Heart Rate While Running

Steady-state running HR: 60 to 70 percent of your max HR

This number will depend on the purpose of your running—most of your long, slow runs should fall into zone 2, or 60 to 70 percent of your heart rate max, Yu says. Slower runs will help build your aerobic base and “improve your heart’s ability to tolerate long levels of low stress,” Yu says. This will better your cardiovascular and pulmonary fitness and metabolism. “Zone two is really the only place where your heart can improve its aerobic capacity,” Coviello adds.

When your heart rate is lower during a run, it feels easier and you’ll be able to run for longer while breathing properly in through the nose and out through the mouth, Yu says. Plus, if the bulk of your training is in a zone higher than 2, you’ll likely “hit a plateau where you can’t go faster” or go for longer runs, she notes.

If you’re reading this and thinking about how your heart is usually higher than zone 2 every time you run, even if you’re running pretty slowly, don’t freak out—it’s common for less experienced runners because you have less training under your belt, Yu says. Plus, your fitness tracker might say you’re always running in zone 4 or 5, but you may feel great, like you can sustain it for a while. In this case, you might not actually be in your true zone 4 or 5 due to the error of the heart rate max equation, Dr. Shah says.

But if your heart rate spikes up to zone 5 very easily, no matter how much you work out, even if you’re not feeling like you’re giving your maximum effort, it could also be a yellow flag in terms of your health, Yu says. Check in with a cardiologist, as you may have a heart murmur or valve defect, high cholesterol, or just have low iron, so your heart could be working harder to pump blood. If you have questions about how much vigorous exercise you can do, connect with your primary care doc or a sports cardiologist to make sure it’s safe, Dr. Shah says.

But really, unless you have any underlying risks with your genetics or high blood pressure or cholesterol that could make doing a lot of intense exercise risky, Dr. Shah says he doesn’t apply general maximum heart rate cutoffs to everyone.

Your Heart Rate During Sprints, Intervals, And Hills

Sprint, interval, And hill Running HR: 70 to 85 percent of your max HR

However, if you’re doing a speed run, playing with intervals, or running on hills, you might dip into 70 to 85 percent, or zones 3 and 4, because it’s more vigorous, Yu says. With sprints, your heart rate can pass the 70 to 85 percent zone because it’s not meant to be sustained for a long time, she explains. In these zones, you won’t really be able to have a conversation, adds Dr. Shah.

Essentially, you want to train both low and high effort runs for good cardiovascular fitness, Yu says. “The more versatile that our body can train in slow and fast and short and long types of activity, the better,” she adds. If you can train in this entire spectrum, your VO2 max will improve.

Still, it’s possible for all levels of runners to get their heart rate into zone 2, even beginners, Yu and Coviello say. (Keep reading to find out how!)

How To Lower Your Heart Rate When You Run

• If you’re just getting into cardio, don’t try running yet. Instead, go for a brisk walk or incline treadmill walk to get your body used to the movement, Yu adds. Then, when it’s accustomed…
• Stick with flat running. “The less additional variables and challenges there are with the workout or the activity, the better that you’ll be able to keep your heart rate low,” Yu says.
• Incorporate more zone 2 training into your routine—even if you can’t run at zone 2 just yet. This could be walking at a brisk pace, cycling, elliptical, running, or run-walking, Yu and Coviello say. Aim for 150 minutes per week of this moderate intensity exercise for heart health, per the American Heart Association (AHA). Alternately, 80 percent of your cardio training should be done in zone 2, Coviello says.
• Run slower than you think you should, especially on long runs. If you’re running a 12- to 15-minute mile, that’s completely okay, Yu says. “You don’t have to push yourself so that you’re feeling like you’re dying at the end of every run,” Yu says. Run or chat with a friend as a way to test your zone 2 conversational pace, she adds.
• Breathe in through the nose and out through your mouth. Breathing in and out through the mouth the whole time will “stimulate that sympathetic nervous system and get the heart rate up,” Yu says.
• Choose earlier or later times in the day to run. That way, it won’t be as hot outside, Yu notes.
• Hydrate before, during, and after. If you’re planning on running for longer than 30 minutes, bring a water bottle with you, Yu says. Aim to consume 11.5 cups of water per day, per the Mayo Clinic.
• Skip the pre-workout caffeine. Your heart rate might be higher if you drink coffee or tea right before, so maybe save it for afterwards instead, Yu says.
• Be mindful of what you consume the day before a run. If you drank alcohol, “your heart rate might be higher just because it’s essentially still flushing out all those waste products,” Yu explains. And if you ate a meal high in salt and/or oil, that can also raise the number, Coviello adds.
• Get enough sleep. If you didn’t rest well enough, your heart rate might also be higher, Yu says.
• Monitor your stress levels. Take up meditation or yoga if you feel particularly stressed and like it’s affecting your heart rate, Coviello says.

Lastly, stay consistent with your training, Dr. Shah says. It may take a while for your heart rate to lower, especially if you have less experience with cardio, but you may feel like after six to eight weeks, you’re exerting yourself less while exercising, Yu adds.

How Much To Walk And Run Each Week For Heart Health

Coviello recommends making sure 80 percent of your cardio training is in zone 2, and not as much in the other zones. “That’s typically safe for heart health because you’re below your threshold and you can exercise through that and still develop pretty good fitness,” Dr. Shah adds.

But a general good rule of thumb to follow is aiming to get 150 minutes of moderate intensity (zone 2) activity per week, or 75 minutes of vigorous intensity (above zone 2) activity per week, Yu says, since that’s the AHA’s recommendation for heart health. As long as you hit the proper zones, you can run, walk, or do any other kind of workout.

Of course, it’s easy to become attached to your fitness tracker’s heart rate measurements, so when in doubt, just slow down on your runs and see how you feel, Coviello says. After all, running in zone 2 is just more fun and easier because you’re not pushing yourself to go all-out the entire time. “Just trust the process,” she adds.

Addison Aloian is the associate health & fitness editor at Women’s Health, where she writes and edits across the health, weight loss, and fitness verticals. She’s also a certified personal trainer through the National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM). In her free time, you can find her lifting weights at the gym, running on the West Side Highway in New York City—she recently completed her first half-marathon—and watching (and critiquing!) the latest movies that have garnered Oscars buzz. In addition to Women’s Health, her work has also appeared in Allure, StyleCaster, L’Officiel USA, V Magazine, VMAN, and more.