In Our Running ABC's, H is for "Heart Rate Zone"
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We’re on an eight day streak here, so for the Running ABC’s here is H for “Heart Rate Zones”
These days heart rate monitors are a lot easier to come by and are a pretty standard tool for any runner these days. When I got my first heart rate monitor back in 2002, that was all it did, no GPS, not even time. The worst thing was, I have no idea why I was even using it and I would simply run as hard as I could to try and push my heart rate up as high as I could.(True Story!)
If used correctly, a heart rate monitor will help you not only make sure you are working hard when you need to be working hard, but also make sure you are working easy when you need to and ensuring you are getting enough recovery. Your heart rate is the perfect indicator of external factors in your life that may be affecting your recovery and work rate. For example, poor sleep would mean a run on the following day, you would not be able to run as fast as what you normally would, but your heart rate would still be high showing you have performed the run at the desired work rate.
So Where Do Heart Rate Zones Fit In?
When working with a heart rate monitor, you will aim to hit a specific zone during that training session. For most of your runs, you should be aiming to run at a slower rate to try to minimize stress on your body, allow you to recover and prevent injury.
Below are general guidelines on where each heart rate zone falls. With the percentages being a percentage of your maximum heart rate.
Zone 1: 60 to 70 % - This should be a very comfortable effort and is used for warm up, cool down and light recovery runs.
Zone 2: 70 to 80 % - These are generally your fat burning zone where a lot of training is performed. You should be able to hold a conversation at this pace and run comfortable for long periods of time.
Zone 3: 81 to 93% - This is generally when you would start to be burning more carbohydrates as fuel. this should be a comfortably hard effort and you should only be able to say should, broken sentences.
Zone 4: 94 to 100% - This is hard effort and would be the same as most people would run their 5k race pace.
These heart rates are sometimes spread across 5 o 6 zones for more accuracy, but the above should still work for you.
So How Do You Find Your Maximum Heart Rate?
As a definition your maximum heart rate is the highest number of beats per minute your heart can pump under maximum stress, but determining what you maximum heart rate is can be a little more difficult. The old rule of minusing your age from 220 can still be used but research has shown that it is not accurate for all people, especially if you are fit or older.
Two ways that I have found to get my maximum heart rate are the following:
1. Hit the hills: After a 10 minute warm up, find a hill that will go for at least 400m to 500m start by running hard up the hill and then come down at an easier pace. When you reach the top of you hill climb, make a mental note of your heart rate, and by about the 5th of 6th hill climb, your heart rate at the top of the hill will start to be consistent and this should be a good reflection of your maximum heart rate.
2. Cooper Test: This is a great way for working out your VO2Max and is basically an all out 12 minute run after a 10 minute warm up. Noting your heart rate at the end of the run, should also be a good indication of your maximum heart rate. Go to the following web site for more information on the Cooper Test and determining your VO2Max: https://www.brianmac.co.uk/gentest.htm
If you missed my earlier posts, you can see them at the following link:
https://steemit.com/running/@run.vince.run/the-abc-s-of-running-the-letter-a
https://steemit.com/health/@run.vince.run/running-abc-s-b-is-for-bq
https://steemit.com/running/@run.vince.run/the-running-abc-s-c-is-for
https://steemit.com/running/@run.vince.run/d-is-for-doms-in-the-running-abc-s
https://steemit.com/running/@run.vince.run/running-abc-s-e-is-for-epoc
https://steemit.com/running/@run.vince.run/continuing-our-running-abc-s-f-is-for-fartlek
https://steemit.com/running/@run.vince.run/g-is-for-glutes-in-the-running-abc-s
Thank you for those useful information. I think I need to pay more attention to my heart rate to improve myself!
Nice on the info regarding heart rate monitors. Is there any particular device you would recommend?
Hey @sylvesterjohn kinda depends on how much you want to spend. In my opinion I have used watches by Garmin, Suunto and Polar and found them to be very good at heart rate especially with a chest strap. I have not used very many optical heart rate monitors and I have also found them to wast battery very quickly.
Let me know if you need me to elaborate more.
Regards @run.vince.run