Heart Rate Monitor Training

Heart Rate Monitor Basics

Most people know about heart rate monitors, but few know just how to use them and the right way to do heart rate monitor training. It is vital for everyone who uses a heart rate monitor to understand the right way to use it and what it all means.

The point behind any heart rate monitor is to gauge where you are in your workout. The intensity at which you are working needs to be monitored. Feedback is instant and will tell you how well your heart is working. When you achieve your desired run at a lower heart rate and at the same intensity, you can see just how much your heart is improving.

Not only does it tell you how well you are working, but a heart rate monitor will tell you when enough is enough. Instead of risking overtraining, you can gauge your workout better, and plan more accordingly for recovery days.

Determine Your Heart Rate Monitor Training Starting Point

Step one is to determine where your heart rate training zones should begin. These zones are determined by a percentage of your maximum heart rate. The best known formula to determine your maximum heart rate is: 220 less Your Age = Your maximum heart rate.

Are you one of those people who are fit enough to know that this heart rate is too low? If so, there is another method used to determine your heart rate training zone:

• First of all, you must have a clean bill of health from your doctor.
• Using your heart rate monitor as a guide, do a thorough warm up.
• Run as hard as you can for about three minutes.
• Do a walk or jog recovery for another two minutes.
• Follow that with another three minutes of hard running.
• In the last minute, you’ll reach your maximum heart rate.

Next, determine your maximum heart rate. Calculate your heart rate monitor training workouts using the following guide:

• 70-80%: aerobic training pace i.e. long runs
• 80-90%: lactate threshold pace, tempo runs
• 90-97%: long interval pace
• 95-100%: short interval pace

As for choosing the right heart rate monitor for the job, choose whichever you like, with whichever features you enjoy, but remember what is important is how you use it in your heart rate monitor training!

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