[riley0003]

Hello everyone,<br>
I was wondering if you find it useful to wear a heart rate monitor for short distances, such as a 3 mile run. Sometimes it's a little frightening to see my heart-rate so high (177) when I wear it, but I haven't keeled over yet so I assume that it's OK. My husband had gotten it as a gift and never used it, so I "borrowed" it for a while.<br><br>
Susan

 

[jeans541]

I have been using a HR monitor for about 6 weeks now. I wear mine for every run--most are 4-6 miles now, but I still wore it a few weeks ago for 3 milers. I use mine to keep myself in a specific HR training zone. I can't tell from your post if you are wearing it for that same purpose or just curious about how high your HR gets while running, though. What are you looking to get out of wearing a HR monitor?

 

[Liam3494]

Susan,<br><br>
Personally, I hate them - you get controlled by them instead of by your running. I know there will be others who hold a different opinion, but I prefer the natural way - the "feel" of how I'm running.<br><br>
I'll let others talk about the positives....<br><br>
Liam

 

[riley0003]

I've only tried it a couple of times, more out of curiosity than anything else. Since I run such short distances, I'm not really sure if this would be helpful to me at all but I thought I'd give it a try. My husband got it as a gift but he doesn't like to wear it during his spinning classes so I "borrowed" it.<br><br>
The numbers are strange on it and don't seem to correspond very closely to my perceived effort sometimes, although this morning it seemed like a close match. The last 2 times I tried wearing it, the high rate was 170 and 177, respectively. This morning I tried it again and it recorded 166 for the high heart rate. All 3 times I was extremely tired and sweating like crazy but it didn't feel like I was working any harder when the rate recorded at 177 rather than today's 166. Ah well, it's probably all magic anyway, or just maybe random numbers.<br><br>
Susan

 

[jeans541]

I knew I saw something about HR training here--still finding my way around Kickrunners! Anyway, there is a thread in the "Race" area about HR monitors and how to make use of them: <a href="http://www.kickrunners.com/forum/showthread.php?t=8956" target="_blank">http://www.kickrunners.com/forum/showthread.php?t=8956</a><br><br>
If low heartrate training is something you might be interested in, I would recommend reading this: <a href="http://formationflier.spaces.live.com/" target="_blank">http://formationflier.spaces.live.com/</a> (It's also in the above Kickrunner thread)<br><br>
I don't necessarily follow the LHR training completely, but I use my HR monitor to make sure that my "easy" effort runs are exactly that. I have been able to increase my mileage this summer and not get injured. I agree with Liam that running by feel is much more enjoyable and if it works for you, I would leave the electronics at home. However, if you know you are prone to pushing your limits on runs and want the feedback on your effort level, a heartrate monitor is a valuable tool. My impression from the above links is that low heartrate training is most beneficial for those who run a lot of miles, but maybe someone more experienced would have a different opinion.<br><br>
You will find a variation in the numbers for several reasons....not a great connection (make sure the electrodes are wet before putting on the HR strap), heat and humidity, your stress level, amount of sleep you got the night before, hydration, etc.... You may be able to run a little faster some days than others, depending on all these different factors.<br><br>
Hope that helps!