How Many Effort Points Can a Beginner Earn vs an Experienced Athlete?

One thing we get asked a lot while building MOTRA is whether beginners will always earn fewer Effort Points than people who’ve been training for years.

A beginner and a seasoned athlete can earn the exact same Effort Points, if they work at the same intensity.

It’s effort-based, not fitness-based.

Here’s why.

Effort Points are tied to heart-rate zones, not athletic ability

MOTRA calculates EP using the percentage of your max heart rate you’re training at.

The zones and their EP/min are fixed for everyone (Z2 earns 1 EP/min, Z3 earns 1.5, Z4 earns 3, Z5 earns 5) .

That means:

• A beginner running relativley slowly can hit Zone 3.

• An elite runner might have to run much faster before they reach Zone 3.

Different speeds, same intensity, same EP.

Beginners aren’t punished for being new

One of the biggest problems in fitness apps is that they reward outcomes, not effort.

Distance, pace, or reps always favour people who are already fit.

With EP, what matters is how hard your body is actually working.

A 20-minute Zone 4 session earns the same EP whether you’re running 10-minute miles or 5-minute miles. Your physiology decides the effort.

Experienced athletes don’t get a free ride either

If you’ve been training for years, your “hard” maybe looks chill from the outside, but your effort is still measurable. To earn more EP than a beginner, you actually need to work harder, not just be faster.

That’s the whole point: no shortcuts, no inflated rewards. Everyone plays by the same rules.

The bottom line

Your pace doesn’t matter. Your background doesn’t matter. Your fitness level doesn’t matter.

Effort matters.

That’s what MOTRA rewards.