Running advice

Topsking2010
Topsking2010 Posts: 2,245 Member
edited November 12 in Fitness and Exercise
When your run a half or full marathon do use a HRM? If so, what is your maxmium heart rate during the race?



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  • BrianSharpe
    BrianSharpe Posts: 9,248 Member
    Last September running a very flat course 165BPM, in January on a hilly(ish) snow covered course my Garmin recorded a momentary spike of about 190 but my average HR was only slightly higher than from September so it may be a false reading.
  • stonea22
    stonea22 Posts: 46
    I used to not wear a HRM when I was running because the HR freaked me out and I preferred to run by feel. Now I where it for the more accurate calorie burn. Like the person above me, I average about 165-170 but have spikes on hills.
  • JulieDerda
    JulieDerda Posts: 163
    I just started running. I'm overweight but I too range from 160-176 when running 4 miles. Thats my goal at least is to not let my heart rate drop below 160.
  • MandaJean83
    MandaJean83 Posts: 675 Member
    My resting HR is in the high 80's-low 90's...so when I'm running, I've had it hit 190 a few times. Mostly I hang around the 150s-170s, but I feel fine in that range, not like i'm gonna pass out as some may think...
  • josavage
    josavage Posts: 472 Member
    My Garmin with a HRM died this summer so I only made it through half of my marathon training with it. My heart rate usually averaged in the 150s. I train with a group. We run a steady pace but one where we can still talk. I run a harder for a race but not much harder.
  • scottb81
    scottb81 Posts: 2,538 Member
    When I ran my half marathon I averaged 153, 89% of max. Max heartrate was 167, 97% of max. That is right around where the "experts" say a half marathon should be run. It makes for a tough run to hold it there for 90+ minutes.
  • Topsking2010
    Topsking2010 Posts: 2,245 Member
    I have a half marathon March 17 and need to find out what my maxmium heart rate should be during the race.
  • scottb81
    scottb81 Posts: 2,538 Member
    You should reach close to the max during the final sprint to the finish. The rest of the race should be run around 85 to 90% of max. How high you can maintain is based on your fitness. If you have done enough miles and/or done some tempo/lactate threshold training you may be close to 90%. If you have not done that you may be closer to 85% or lower.

    The half marathon is long enough that it has to be run below the lactate threshold (the point at which lactate builds up in the muscles faster than it is cleared causing the "burning" sensation in your legs and forcing you to slow down). From your recent training if you can estimate the HR where this happens then just below that is where you should race if you want to race by HR.

    This point can vary widely from below 70% in untrained people to above 90% in very highly trained runners.
  • wazoot
    wazoot Posts: 5
    So instead of giving percentages, can you give us some numbers? Would hitting 200 BPM be way too high? Should I rest if it gets above 200?
  • scottb81
    scottb81 Posts: 2,538 Member
    I can't give numbers without knowing someone's max heartrate. Mine is around 172. Somebody much younger might be 20 or 30 points higher. If you know your max HR you can use the percentages. If you don't know it you can estimate it with a number of different formulas (use 220-age or google max HR calculation) and then use the percentages.

    Personally, I don't race by HR. I race by feel (and by goal pace) and record the HR for post race analysis to gauge my fitness. Race pace for the half marathon should feel hard but sustainable. If the legs are burning anytime before the finish line is in sight the pace is too fast. If you are able to easily talk then the pace is too slow. If you are properly rested it is probably about a minute per mile faster than your normal daily training pace.
  • wazoot
    wazoot Posts: 5
    Alright thanks for the reply. I Looked up a formula for my max heart rate and got 202. If I go above that should I just stop and rest?
  • scottb81
    scottb81 Posts: 2,538 Member
    If 202 is your max you won't be able to go above it (because max is the fastest it will beat) and you won't be able to run close to it for very long. But while racing there is no reason to slow down when your heartrate reaches some value. You only need to slow down when your legs won't go any faster for the distance.

    If you don't have any pre-existing heart problems your heart will be able to handle any demand you place on it in the race. Your legs will give out long before your heart.
  • Topsking2010
    Topsking2010 Posts: 2,245 Member
    Scott I really appreciate your input and I plan to use your advice for my upcoming race. I need more tempo and hill running to get fit. Also I need to lose 10 pounds. My max heart rate is 171 and my goal is to run at 85%.
  • jdod13
    jdod13 Posts: 4
    152 bpm for a 1:47:06 half, but to be honest I don't find any HRM data useful during the race. In fact my monitor died before my marathon recently and I didn't miss having the info during the race. I do miss having the metrics after to check how things went. But during the race I find mile splits to be a better source of in the race information.
  • nickyeatrunread
    nickyeatrunread Posts: 173 Member
    Scott, I really appreciate your advice too. I usually base my training on pace, but it's interesting to see where one should theoretically fall for a half--I'm realizing that I consistently am at 90%-93%. No wonder my legs burn!
  • Topsking2010
    Topsking2010 Posts: 2,245 Member
    Scott you talked about proper rest before a race. How much rest should you get?
  • scottb81
    scottb81 Posts: 2,538 Member
    Scott you talked about proper rest before a race. How much rest should you get?
    You want to wake up the morning of the race with fresh legs; all residual fatigue from training should be gone and the legs should feel almost springy.

    To get there you need to stop all hard or long runs at least 5 days before the race. It takes 3 or 4 days to fully recover from a hard or long run and the training benefits are not fully realized in the body for 10 to 14 days. So, any hard or long running you do the week of the race will not benefit you in the race but may leave you more tired that you would otherwise be.

    Hard and Long are relative here and depend on your current fitness and typical training in the past two months or so.

    You also should reduce your training load the week of the race to ensure you are fully recovered by race morning. Run maybe 1/2 to 2/3 of your typical weekly mileage. Don't do anything hard but you can do some strides to keep the legs feeling fast.

    Strides are short, 60 to 100 meter pickups where you accelerate to race pace (or a little faster) hold the pace for 40 meters or so, and then glide and decelerate back to a normal run. A few of these the week of the race help keep in touch with speed but are short enough to not add any significant fatigue.

    Also, sleep is very important. If possible, try and get as many 8 hour sleep nights the week of the race as you can.

    In the end, what works best to arrive fresh at the race is kind of individualistic. So, you may have to experiment over a few races to find your own best regimen.
  • scottb81
    scottb81 Posts: 2,538 Member
    Scott, I really appreciate your advice too. I usually base my training on pace, but it's interesting to see where one should theoretically fall for a half--I'm realizing that I consistently am at 90%-93%. No wonder my legs burn!
    Most of your training runs should be at a lower heart rate. The reason is that the adaptations that will over time allow you to run faster are best stimulated with a high volume of aerobic training. Running too fast and going anaerobic does not help in stimulating these specific adaptations.

    These adaptations are:
    Increased capillaries in the legs = greater blood flow and oxygen transport to the muscles
    greater glycogen storage in the leg muscles
    Increased mitocondrial density in the leg muscles = greater ability to convert fat and glucose to energy
    Increased amount of aerobic enzymes in the leg muscles = greater ability to convert fat and glucose to energy

    By running at a lower heartrate you will stimulate these adaptations without wearing yourself out so much on each run. By being less tired you can recover faster and run more to get increased adaptations. So, most of your runs probably should be in the 70-80% range, once or twice a week in the 90% range, and in the 60-70% range if you are tired or for the second run of a twice a day training session.

    Over time, weeks to months, your speed at those lower heart rates will increase greatly. Your speed at 90% will also be much faster.

    This article is famous on the running forums and explains it very well. http://mytrilife.com/hadds/Part_I.htm
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