Questions for the runners.

CRody44

I am a walker not a runner (old, fat and an artificial knee). I started walking for exercise a month ago. I have increased my time (up to 48 minutes), distance (2.78) miles and MPH (3.45), and am getting into better shape and now, am able to push myself.

Do you run at your fastest pace every day or do you rest every other day from running,

. . .or do you run at a slower pace every other day to give your legs and feet a rest? (I don’t want to take a day off if I don’t need to.)

I am walking about as fast as I can every day and my feet are sore the rest of the day. I have been fitted at a running store with good running shoes (New Balance 1123’s) so the shoes are about as good as my feet are going to feel from the shoes.
My maximum heart rate is 153 BPM (remember, old and fat). 70-80% is 123-137 (Polar F11), but in the last two days, I have my heart rate up to 145 BPM, which is 95% of my maximum heart rate, For you experts, should I keep my heart rate at or below 137 BPM, and is 95% getting dangerous?

meli_medina

I asked the same question of Google one day, and this is the site that gave me a decent enough answer, I think.

Also, I run every other day, to give my body a break. Otherwise, you risk injury and that means more time off than just a day.

Source: http://www.thewalkingsite.com/thr.html

TRAINING ZONES

Healthy Heart Zone (Warm up) --- 50 - 60% of maximum heart rate: The easiest zone and probably the best zone for people just starting a fitness program. It can also be used as a warm up for more serious walkers. This zone has been shown to help decrease body fat, blood pressure and cholesterol. It also decreases the risk of degenerative diseases and has a low risk of injury. 85% of calories burned in this zone are fats!

Fitness Zone (Fat Burning) --- 60 - 70% of maximum heart rate: This zone provides the same benefits as the healthy heart zone, but is more intense and burns more total calories. The percent of fat calories is still 85%.

Aerobic Zone (Endurance Training) --- 70 - 80% of maximum heart rate: The aerobic zone will improve your cardiovascular and respiratory system AND increase the size and strength of your heart. This is the preferred zone if you are training for an endurance event. More calories are burned with 50% from fat.

Anaerobic Zone (Performance Training) --- 80 - 90% of maximum heart rate: Benefits of this zone include an improved VO2 maximum (the highest amount of oxygen one can consume during exercise) and thus an improved cardiorespiratory system, and a higher lactate tolerance ability which means your endurance will improve and you'll be able to fight fatigue better. This is a high intensity zone burning more calories, 15 % from fat.

Red Line (Maximum Effort) --- 90 - 100% of maximum heart rate: Although this zone burns the highest number of calories, it is very intense. Most people can only stay in this zone for short periods. You should only train in this zone if you are in very good shape and have been cleared by a physician to do so.

melizerd

I don't run every day (or walk) because it's hard on the knees. You need some cross training in there. I run every other day (and not at my FASTEST pace but a sustainable one) and then I use the elliptical machine, or bike on off days. I love to swim but can't get to the pool that often.

Your knees need a different kind of movement because they'll just feel worse after running if you're running/walking fast every day. Crosstraining is key to preventing injuries.

run_momma_run

I'm no expert, but I think you should keep your heart rate lower. And no, runners do not run full out each time - that spells i-n-j-u-r-y!

Depending on what a runner is trying to do; whether it's to increase speed or to increase distance, he or she will pull on a number of different workouts. Like interval training, hills, easy pace, race pace, tempo pace, etc. And yes, runners need rest days. Your legs (and feet and knees and hips) just can't take all the impact, all the time. In fact, when training for a marathon or a half marathon, I typically have 2 rest days!

Remember, you want to be walking in another month, not off with an injury! This is a marathon, not a sprint, and you want to let your body catch up with all the hard work you've been doing!!

CRody44

Thank you all for the information.