Zone 2 heart rate calculator
Enter your age (and resting heart rate if you know it) to get your Zone 2 heart rate range, plus all five zones.
How this calculator works
If you add your resting heart rate, it uses the Karvonen method: Zone 2 = resting HR + 60–70% of your heart rate reserve (max HR minus resting HR). This fits fitter runners better, because a low resting heart rate shifts every zone.
Without a resting heart rate, it uses 60–70% of max heart rate, with max estimated as 220 minus your age. That estimate can be off by 10–15 beats either way, so treat it as a starting point.
How to use your Zone 2 range
- Run about 80% of your weekly miles in Zone 2. That's how most elite endurance athletes train.
- Expect to slow down a lot at first, often 1–2 minutes per mile slower than your usual pace. It speeds up over a few weeks.
- Watch for heart rate drift. Heat, hills and bad sleep push your heart rate up at the same pace, so slow down to stay in range.
- No watch? Use the talk test. Full sentences means you're in Zone 2.
Get coached in Zone 2 on every run
RunZone calculates your zones, then tells you in your ear when you drift out of Zone 2 while the app is open. It uses Apple Watch heart rate through Apple Health, or coaches by pace with just your phone.
Download RunZoneFAQ
What heart rate is Zone 2?
For most people, Zone 2 is roughly 60–70% of heart rate reserve (the Karvonen method) or about 60–70% of max heart rate if you don't know your resting heart rate. For a 30-year-old with a resting heart rate of 60, that's about 138–151 bpm.
Is 220 minus age accurate?
It's a rough estimate. Real max heart rate can be 10–15 bpm higher or lower. Adding your resting heart rate (Karvonen) makes the zones fit you better, and a lab test or a recent all-out effort is the most accurate.
How do I know I'm in Zone 2 without a heart rate monitor?
Use the talk test: you should be able to speak in full sentences, breathing only slightly harder than walking. If you can only get a few words out, slow down.