[Callalily]

I got a new heart rate monitor for Christmas. It's a Polar F4--yes, I know the cheap kind because I didn't want to spend $300 on a hobby. I wanted to know my heart rate to ensure that I wasn't training too fast, and because I'm going to follow a training plan later on that specifies heart rate targets.<br><br>
I'm not sure if I'm getting accurate readings. I'm also not too technically inclinded, but I think I'm doing everything right. I'm wearing the monitor below my bra, although that seems a little far down. I'm 43 and I entered 97 as my low rate and 159 as my high rate.<br><br>
I feel like I'm going in slow motion out there and the monitor shows that I'm at 75% or more of my maximum. When I take a walk break, the bpm numbers go higher. The maximum heart rate in the summary is way higher than what it's supposed to be.<br><br>
What should I do? Slow down?

 

[VictorN]

I have two quick comments.<br><br>
1) How do you know that 159 is the correct max HR for you? It seems low to me, but then I know nothing about you so who am I to say.<br>
2) Lots of people simply run to fast when they are trying to put in base miles, so when they finally put on a HR monitor the target rates seem slow.<br><br>
A HR monitor is a great tool, but figuring out your true max HR is difficult. I know none of the standard rules of thumb work for me.<br><br>
Victor

 

[pace2race]

The common formula to estimate max heart rate is<br>
220-Age. For you that would be 177. Do you run any 5k races? A better way to determine a number closer to your max rate would be to run one hard, trying to sprint as much of the last 1/2 mile as possible. Then take your high reading and add 5bpm to it. Max heart rate is what you are born with and will decrease with age. It is not a measure of fitness. Resting heart rate is best to measure first thing in the morning, before you have moved around too much. Many plans call for training in ranges based on max heart rate. A better measure could be Heart Rate Reserve.<br>
That is calculated by:<br>
Max HR - Resting Heart Rate x Training Zone Percentage + Resting Heart Rate. Assume your resting Heart rate is 70bpm. The aerobic zone values are between 70%-80% of HRR.<br><br>
220-43 = 177 Max HR<br>
177 - 70=107x70%=74.9+70=145bpm which would be the lower end of the aerobic zone for you. 156bpm would be the 80% value.<br>
This would be the aerobic target zone for you.<br><br><a href="http://www.runningforfitness.org" target="_blank">www.runningforfitness.org</a> has information on Heart Rate Training and calculators which will take your information and list the zones for you. It also explains the benefits of each zone.<br><br>
The January/February 2008 issue of Running Times magazine also has a good, short article by Roy Benson about training zones on page 18.

 

[Callalily]

Thanks SO much. The web site was very helpful and sheds more light on the subject for me.<br><br>
I calculated the 159 number as the max HR by using the formula of 220-43 = 177 as max HR, and 159 is 90% of that. According to the manual that came with the HRM, that was the number to use. But I see now that there is more to it than that!<br><br>
Thanks!

 

[BigGahoona]

There's a good article in Runners World on HRM training. I hate wearing the thing but I might give HRM training a try after reading that article.

 

[hally]

There is also a discussion about this active on the Masters forum on this site, feel free to come join us over there.<br><br>
Barb

 

[VictorN]

That's a great thread. Here's a link to make it easier to get there:<br><a href="http://www.kickrunners.com/forum/showthread.php?t=17924" target="_blank">http://www.kickrunners.com/forum/showthread.php?t=17924</a>