Gauge-Workout-Intensity-MagMile-CrossFitWhen it comes to accomplishing your personal fitness goals, what’s the workout intensity that will help you achieve success?

A lot of coaches and personal trainers may lead you to believe that the only way to get fit is through high-intensity workouts. And while it’s true that high-intensity workouts have a place in a well-designed program, going hard all the time is not the only route to long-term, sustainable health.

Working at max effort during every single workout can actually lead to a decrease in your fitness and performance. On the other hand, if you work out and never push yourself, you’ll also experience a fitness plateau and stop seeing results.

Once you’ve established your fitness goals, you need to figure out the workout intensity that will enable you to achieve your goals. And, you need to dose that workout intensity so that you don’t end up either over or undertrained. Working with a knowledgeable coach or personal trainer can help you with the programming piece of the equation.

Here are three different ways to gauge your workout intensity:

1. The Talk Test

The talk test is the simplest way to get an estimate of your workout intensity. If you’re easily able to have a conversation while you’re working out, then your intensity is low. If you can talk, but only in short sentences, then your intensity is moderate. You’ll know when you’ve hit a high-intensity, anaerobic level when you’re so out of breath that you can no longer speak.

2. Rate of Perceived Exertion (RPE)

Another way to gauge your intensity is by how you feel. Obviously, this is a subjective measure of your intensity. But it still gives you a good measure of a light, moderate, or high workout intensity. During a workout, you rate how hard you’re working on a numeric scale. The easiest scale to use is from 1 to 10, where one is like a walk in the park. A rating of a five is a moderate intensity, and a ten is the highest.

3. Heart Rate

Heart rate is the most objective way to measure your workout intensity. To use this method, you’ll either need a stopwatch or a device that measures your heart rate. Again, to zero in on the most appropriate workout intensity, as well as your goal heart rate for that intensity, it’s a good idea to work with a coach or personal trainer.

At MagMile CrossFit, our programming is rooted in sound training principles and delivered in a challenging and supportive class environment. To learn more about how to get started, contact us today.