Self-imposed HR limits?

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  • Jthanmyfitnesspal
    Jthanmyfitnesspal Posts: 3,521 Member
    This is a great list of responses, with most people saying "no, they don't limit HR." I've asked my doctor a few times, and he give a pretty measured answer, something like "it's probably fine to max your HR." Note the word "probably," I think there's always a small chance that, if you have a heart problem, it could manifest during exertion. C'est la vie!

    Anyway, I attended an indoor running class complete with loud music and a DJ last week. We were encouraged to really push it, and I did. My max sprint was 9MPH on a 1% incline (for about 30 seconds) which gave me a max HR of 170BPM. I'm 57 years, so this was much higher than recommended (on average), and I feel like it left my chest a little sore :# . It certainly left one knee a little sore! But, a few days later, all is OK, and I suspect I'm better for it!
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 31,965 Member
    Jthanmyfitnesspal wrote: »
    This is a great list of responses, with most people saying "no, they don't limit HR." I've asked my doctor a few times, and he give a pretty measured answer, something like "it's probably fine to max your HR." Note the word "probably," I think there's always a small chance that, if you have a heart problem, it could manifest during exertion. C'est la vie!

    Anyway, I attended an indoor running class complete with loud music and a DJ last week. We were encouraged to really push it, and I did. My max sprint was 9MPH on a 1% incline (for about 30 seconds) which gave me a max HR of 170BPM. I'm 57 years, so this was much higher than recommended (on average), and I feel like it left my chest a little sore :# . It certainly left one knee a little sore! But, a few days later, all is OK, and I suspect I'm better for it!

    Just FTR, you didn't actually ask if any of us consciously try to max out our heart rate during workouts, or go as hard as we can manage without worrying about it.

    I have done so, and have no real concern about going absolutely as hard as I can to see how high HR will go, now and then, up to and including tested HRmax. I've been at my (tested) max (about 180) any number of times, which is well over my age estimated max. (I'm 63, so 220-age would be 157; other age based formulas I've tried also estimate low). I'm well over that 157 often during workouts (it's just nicely into anaerobic threshold).

    (Having higher than estimated HRmax is not any kind of honor; it's just genetics, meaningless . . . and pretty common.) HRmax tends to decline with age, but I've seen some research suggesting the decline is slower among athletes.

    I'd actively discourage someone from trying to max their heart rate (at any age), without medical indication that their heart at least has no obvious issues, and certainly wouldn't encourage it before very good base cardiovascular fitness is in place. Personally, I don't see age per se as an issue (though those of us with history of obesity of course need to be extra cautious about being relatively certain there are no issues left over from that).

    I rate-limit when using a training plan that suggests I do so; I go for max effort at times, too.
  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 9,388 Member
    spiriteagle99 wrote: »
    There are training methods that use low HR to improve performance, like Maffetone's. I have friends who have had success with that. I don't use it. My HR is somewhat erratic and usually quite high. I live in a hilly area so every time I go up a hill my HR rises and stays up. The numbers that Maffetone uses as training goals are only possible for me at a walk, not a run, so not helpful.

    Yes, this! Maffeton ignores the fact that landscape might be undulating, and especially that there are people with a higher natural maxHR. If I trained with this method I could only walk - and would not get much better. I know because I hike quite a bit, and used to walk some 20km a day for pokemon go a few years ago. No, I didn't get fitter this way. I could have continued this for a lot longer without ever being able to actually run.
  • deannalfisher
    deannalfisher Posts: 5,600 Member
    the concept behind Mattetone works - but IMH the calculation doesn't - getting zones tested (via a VO2 Max test or lactate threshold) and established that way will give you more accurate data

    and its not something that happens over night - ideally you need 3-4 months of training to see results (i started seeing them after 3 months) - but then other training ramped up and i stopped following the protocal
  • amandaeve
    amandaeve Posts: 723 Member
    Yes. I am prone to fainting, so I can't do intervals or have my heart rate get high when it's hot out. I've been monitoring my heart rate for years, so I am well trained to know when fainting is imminent. Perceived exertion doesn't help; I'll faint when I don't feel like I'm working that hard at all.

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