Heart Rate Zones for Rowing: How to Use Them Sensibly

Heart rate is a handy way to keep easy sessions easy. It is less useful for judging hard intervals, and it can mislead you if you rely on a badly estimated maximum.

What heart rate tells you

Your heart rate measures how hard your heart is working. During steady rowing it rises over the first few minutes and then levels off. If you keep going at the same pace in a long session, it often creeps up. That drift is normal, particularly when it is warm or you are tired.

Heart rate responds slowly. In a 500m interval, it may only reach its peak after you have finished. Use it for steady and long rows, and use pace and rate for short, hard work.

The 220 minus age problem

The most common formula for maximum heart rate is 220 minus your age. A 40-year-old gets 180.

This is a rough estimate, and the error is wide. Some people’s true maximum is well above the formula and some well below. If you set your zones from a wrong number, your “easy” zone might be hard, or your “hard” zone too soft.

So treat the result as a starting guess only. Better options:

• A field test, such as the highest heart rate you see at the end of a hard, well-paced effort (for example a 2k test or the last interval of a hard session).
• Effort-based zones using RPE and the talk test.

If you decide to test your maximum, be sensible. A maximal effort is hard, so check with your GP first if you have a heart condition, high blood pressure or are unsure. Stop if you get chest pain, dizziness or faintness.

Heart rate reserve (the Karvonen method)

Percentages of maximum treat everyone the same. Heart rate reserve (HRR) takes your resting heart rate into account, which is usually a better fit.

Formula: target heart rate = resting HR + (percentage x (max HR − resting HR))

Worked example: age 40, resting HR 60

1. Estimated max HR = 220 − 40 = 180.
2. HRR = 180 − 60 = 120.
3. 60% of HRR = 0.60 x 120 = 72, plus 60 resting = 132 bpm.
4. 70% = 0.70 x 120 = 84, plus 60 = 144 bpm.
5. 80% = 0.80 x 120 = 96, plus 60 = 156 bpm.
6. 90% = 0.90 x 120 = 108, plus 60 = 168 bpm.

Measure resting heart rate first thing in the morning before you get out of bed, over a few days, and take a typical figure.

Matching zones to our plans

The free 8-Week 2k Plan uses five zones based on pace, rate and RPE. Here is how they might line up with heart rate reserve. These percentages are a rule of thumb, approximate and individual.

Zone	Pace guide	Rate	RPE	Rough HRR range
UT2 easy steady	2k + 20 to 26	18 to 20	3 to 4	about 55 to 70%
UT1 firm steady	2k + 14 to 19	20 to 22	5	about 70 to 80%
AT threshold	2k + 8 to 13	22 to 24	6 to 7	about 80 to 90%
TR hard intervals	2k + 2 to 7	24 to 28	8	about 90%+, reached late
AN 2k effort	2k − 3 to + 1	28 to 34	9 to 10	near maximum

For a 40-year-old with the figures above, UT2 would be roughly 126 to 144 bpm and UT1 roughly 144 to 156 bpm. If your numbers do not fit this, your max or resting figure is probably off. Trust the effort.

Use a field check for easy days

You do not need a lab to confirm your easy zone. Use the talk test:

• You should be able to speak in full sentences while rowing.
• Your breathing is controlled, and you could keep going for much longer.
• Your RPE is 3 to 4 out of 10.

If your heart rate looks “right” but you are gasping, trust the gasping. If your heart rate is higher than expected at a pace that feels easy, check for heat, poor sleep, caffeine, stress or illness. Those all push heart rate up.

Why easy days should be easy

Most of your training volume is steady rowing. It builds your aerobic base, and it lets you recover for the harder sessions. When easy rows creep up into a grey zone where they are neither easy nor hard, you tire without getting the benefit. If you want a stricter ceiling on easy rows, our guide to using the Maffetone Method for rowing explains the idea.

A simple rule: if you cannot hold a conversation on a UT2 row, slow the pace. Look at your pace in seconds relative to your 2k pace. For a 2:00 2k pace, easy rowing is about 2:20 to 2:26. See how to do a 2k erg test to get that number. The rowing pace calculator then turns it into a pace for each training zone. Our article on whether it’s better to row fast or slow explains what each trains and how to mix them.

Heart rate during intervals

Heart rate lags, so it can read low at the start of an interval and highest at the end or in the rest afterwards. For 1000m and 500m repeats, go by pace and rate. Use heart rate afterwards to see how quickly you recover. If it comes down more slowly than usual, you may be tired.

Our stroke rate guide explains how to choose rate for each type of session, and 2k erg pacing strategy covers race-day effort.

Wearing a monitor

Concept2 describes chest belts as the most accurate way to track your heart rate while working out. A Concept2 PM5 can pick up a compatible heart rate strap, so you can see the number on the display. Check which strap types your monitor supports in its manual.

Things that move your heart rate

• Heat and dehydration push it up.
• Poor sleep or illness can raise it.
• Caffeine can raise it.
• Time of day affects it.
• Medication, such as beta blockers, can lower it. If you take medication, ask your GP whether heart rate zones are suitable for you.

Check the trend over several weeks rather than reading too much into a single session.

Safety

This is general advice, not medical advice. See your GP before starting if you have a heart condition, high blood pressure or other concerns. Stop straight away if you get chest pain, dizziness, faintness or unusual breathlessness. If chest pain does not settle, call 999.

Where next

If you want to put zones into practice, the training hub links to everything, and the 12-week beginner to fit plan builds gradually from easy rowing. For 5k and 10k work, see the endurance plans and 5k and 10k erg benchmarks. The free 8-Week 2k Plan uses the zones above and is available via the signup box at the end of this page.