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Zone 2 Heart Rate Calculator

Calculate your zone 2 cardio target heart rate using Karvonen, Maffetone (180 - age), or %max-HR methods. The longevity-research-backed cardio range.

Updated May 2026
Zone 2 target heart rate
138 – 150 bpm
Max HR estimate: 189 bpm

How to use it

  • Stay in this range for 30–90 min, 2–4×/week.
  • Should feel easy: nasal breathing only, can hold a full conversation.
  • Use heart-rate strap for accuracy (wrist optical undercounts during steady-state).
  • Pace by HR, not by perceived effort — you’ll go too fast.
Zone 2 builds mitochondrial density and aerobic base. The 3 methods give slightly different ranges; Karvonen (which uses your resting HR) is most personalized; 180-minus-age is the conservative MAF method; %max is the classic textbook version. Pick one and stick with it.
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What it does

Calculate your Zone 2 cardio heart rate range with three methods: Karvonen (uses your resting HR for personalization), Maffetone (180 - age, conservative), or %max-HR (the textbook simple version). Zone 2 builds mitochondrial density and is the strongest correlate (with VO2 max) for all-cause mortality reduction. 30-90 min, 2-4×/week.

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Paste this snippet into any page. Loads on-demand (lazy), no tracking scripts, and sized to most dashboards. Replace the height to fit your layout.

<iframe src="https://freetoolarena.com/embed/zone-2-heart-rate-calculator" width="100%" height="720" frameborder="0" loading="lazy" title="Zone 2 Heart Rate Calculator" style="border:1px solid #e2e8f0;border-radius:12px;max-width:720px;"></iframe>
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How to use it

  1. Enter age + resting HR.
  2. Pick method.
  3. Stay in the range for 30-90 min, 2-4&times;/week.

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