Cardio load turns supported heart-rate workout data into a view of your recent training pattern. Zolt presents that pattern as Fitness, Fatigue, and Form.
These are modelled training-load values. They are not direct measurements of fitness, tiredness, injury risk, or readiness to race. Use them to compare your current training with your own recent history.
Common questions
- Why did my cardio load change today?
- What do Fitness, Fatigue, and Form mean?
- Why did one workout add so much cardio load?
The three values
| Value | What it represents in the model |
|---|---|
| Fitness | Your longer-term cardio training pattern |
| Fatigue | The more immediate load from recent cardio training |
| Form | The balance between the longer-term and recent patterns |
How workouts enter the view
Supported cardio workouts contribute through their duration and available heart-rate intensity. A longer or harder session can contribute more load than an easy session of the same duration.
If heart-rate data is incomplete, the workout may contribute differently or may not contain enough information for the expected result. Open the original workout record when a session looks wrong.
How to read Fitness
Fitness moves with the longer-term training pattern in the model. It normally changes more slowly than Fatigue.
A rising value means your recorded cardio load has been building. A falling value means recent training is below the longer-term pattern. Neither direction is automatically good or bad. A planned recovery period should look different from a build.
How to read Fatigue
Fatigue responds more to recent cardio load. It can rise after demanding or closely spaced sessions and fall when recent training is lighter.
The value is not a measurement of how tired you feel. Sleep, strength training, illness, work stress, and soreness may affect you without appearing fully in this cardio model.
How to read Form
Form shows the relationship between the Fitness and Fatigue values. More negative form generally means recent cardio load is high relative to the longer-term pattern. More positive form generally means recent cardio load is lighter.
Read the direction and recent context before the label. A negative value during a planned build may be expected. A positive value before an event may reflect a taper, or it may simply reflect missed training.
What the model cannot tell you
Cardio load cannot diagnose overtraining, predict an injury, or decide whether pain is safe to train through. It also does not fully represent strength work, technical practice, sleep, nutrition, or life stress.
If you have chest pain, fainting, unusual shortness of breath, or another concerning symptom, stop using the score as a decision tool and seek appropriate medical care.
If the values look wrong
- Confirm that the workout appears in the connected health platform.
- Check that the workout includes the expected heart-rate record.
- Check for duplicate workouts.
- Confirm that your heart-rate zones and profile settings are current.
- Compare the chart after the next correctly recorded session.
Use Heart rate zones in Zolt for zone setup and Activity Score for the broader daily movement view.