How can I tell?

Sincerely,Pushing Phil

Dear PP,Don’t worry, you’re not alone.

A recent study showed thatmost of us are pretty terribleat gauging our exercise intensity.

Since exercise intensity varies from person-to-person, it’s hard to set down hard and fast rules.

Thankfully, it’s pretty easy to find your target intensity.

Here’s how to do it.

To figure out this rate, it’s crucial that you figure out your maximum heart rate.

You cando so with this formula:211 minus 64% of your age.

This gives you an estimate you strive for.

76% of that is 146.

If you’re new to exercise, it’ll probably be closer to the lower end of the spectrum.

As you exercise more and more, you might increase your intensity.

It’s a good idea to periodically check your heart rate when you’re working out.

Take your pulse for 15 seconds.

Multiply this number by 4 to calculate your beats per minute.

you’re free to also use a gadget to track your heart rate for you.

Which is to say, you’re going to be a little uncomfortable during and after working out.

This is because when you exercise,you cause microscopic damage to your muscles.

The muscle damage causes inflammation and pain, but the muscle then adapts and grows stronger.

All this is just to say that you should feel minor to moderate pain or soreness after a workout.

If you don’t, you’re probably not working out hard enough.

The more you exercise, the more your body adapts, and the more work you have to do.

If you train for a sport, you already know this, whether you realize it or not.

verify the long run gets a little bit longer each time.

Before you know it, you’ll be able to run 26.2 miles.

This is known as the progressive overload principle.

You’ll need to keep an eye on this because your body adapts.

That said, if you’re ever in pain after a workout, you’ve gone too far.

Take acouple days off to recoverand give it another shot.

Periodically Reassess Your Workout

As you body gets used to exercise,you hit plateaus.

To correct for this, you’ll want to change things up a bit as you go.

How you do this depends on the punch in of exercise you’re doing.

If it’s cardio, you’ve got the option to go further or increase your pace.

Otherwise,mix up what you’re doingto keep it interesting.

Photos byDaniel White,RAStudio,Tony Alter,Tier 1 Leadership