Maximum heart rate generally declines with age from about 220 beats per minute in childhood to about 160 beats per minute at age 60. This fall in heart rate is fairly linear decreasing by approximately 1 beat per minute per year. There is no strong evidence to suggest that training influences the decline in max heart rate. It should be remembered that individuals of the same age might have quite different max heart rates-therefore it is more accurate to calculate this value by undergoing a stress-test than by using an age-related formula, resting heart rate is greatly influenced by endurance training.

What determines this max rate?

It is mostly hereditary. You seem to be able to affect your lower rate with training somewhat but the max seems to be fixed until you get older. So you can see how important it is to know our own individual max rate. I can't stress too much the importance of training with a monitor. Training without one is like trying to have sex with all your clothes on. You will eventually get the job done if persistent but it will take longer, be less enjoyable and you'll wind up with a mess in the end. The variable when doing this test will be your fitness level. What I've found is that it is almost better to be out of shape than super fit. Your max is your max, whether or not you're fit. If you're out of shape you will hit it very early on the treadmill and will be spared some of the torture. If you're fit it will take minutes more and more time suffering but you will eventually get there. Now that you have your own personal max number, you can begin to use some of the training formulas out there.

Best to use monitor

Now when you are climbing a long grade in a pack with your training buddies, you won't ask that what is your heart rate but what percentage of your max are you working at. It's the old apples and oranges comparison–you have to focus on the relevant numbers. What we found is that it doesn't matter if you have a high or low max. Don't worry what your number comes out to be. There are world-class athletes at both ends of the spectrum and in between.