Build, Drive, Sprint!
Understanding the JP Fitness heart-rate monitoring system and what these terms mean for YOU and your results!
At JP Fitness, we pride ourselves on being a tech-savvy fitness facility. When you step into one of our signature group training classes, you’ll see TV screens with different colored circles on them. Those circles represent the individual heart rates of each member in the class.
You’ll hear the personal trainer leading the workout saying something like, “Alright team, it’s time for a 2-minute drive in 3-2-1…drive! Push yourself into that yellow zone!”
This post is going to help you better understand heart rate-based interval training and how to use it to get the results you’re looking for!
First, let’s look at what the terms “Build” “Drive” “Sprint” and all those colors on the screen mean to YOU!
The Gray Zone (50-60% of your maximum heart rate) - This is usually where you’re at when you first put your heart rate monitor on and walk into the group training room. It represents comfortable, very light activity.
The Dark Blue Zone (61-70% of your max heart rate) – This is the color you’ll see when you start warming up and are preparing your body for exercise, or when you’re cooling down after a workout.
The Bright Blue Zone (71-82% of your max heart rate) – This is the “Build” zone where we start each interval training workout. You’re starting to work harder but it’s at a level that you could maintain for at least 20 minutes, challenging but doable. At this percentage of your heart rate, your body is burning fat and carbs equally.
The Yellow Zone (83-91% of your max heart rate) – This is the “Drive” zone and it is when your body achieves EPOC (Excess Post-Exercise Oxygen Consumption) aka the “Afterburn” that you’ve probably heard our trainers refer to. The more time you spend in this zone, the more calories you will burn at rest for the next 24 hours. Trainer Tip: Aim to spend about 8-10 minutes of the 45-minute class in this zone for best results!
The Red Zone (92-100% of your max heart rate) – This is the “Sprint” zone where your coach asks you to give ALL OUT effort for anywhere from 20 to 90 seconds. You don’t need to spend much time in this zone to get the benefits of it. Aim to see your circle turn red 8 times during a 45-minute class, even if it only stays red for a short time.
Now that you know what the colors and terms mean, here are some important things to keep in mind when you first start using our heart rate monitoring system:
1. When it comes to the Red Zone, our goal is not to live here but rather to reach it during short periods of all-out effort, followed by a recovery period in the blue zone. Try not to think of time spent in this zone as a “high score” where more is better.
2. If you are in a deconditioned state, you will notice that it doesn’t take much to hit that red zone! As your cardiovascular fitness improves, you will be able to do more for longer at a lower percentage of your max heart rate. You will also notice that the more fit you become, the more quickly your heart rate recovers after a bout in the red zone. Start wherever you’re at and use our heart rate system as a tool to track your progress!
As you’ve learned in this post, what happens in a JP Group class doesn’t stay in a JP Group class! Our heart-rate based interval training trains your body to be a calorie and fat burning machine and keeps you accountable to your level of effort, no matter your fitness level.
See you in class!
