TUESDAY
5.2 mile trail run
1:04:48
I stopped at 30 minutes and checked my heart rate. 180bpm after running uphill but not feeling at all tired. I also checked it when I got to the end. 162bpm at the bottom of a hill and not feeling tired. I used an online calculator and apparently my max heart rate is 191bpm. So my first reading puts me at 95% of mhr and the last puts me at about 85%. I've never paid any attention at all to these things, but I'm curious if anyone out there (HELLO?) knows much about this and what it means. It seems I was running pretty high, but I felt absolutely fine. Are the equations used to predict mhr worth anything?
Nutrition: 3,164 calories. 230 grams of fat, 100 grams of carbs and 194 grams of protein. I ate more today and it helped. Go figure.
I don't think any kind of prediction for max heart rate is at all accurate. They always seem to be very low. I've seen equations that take into account your age and the theory that your max heart rate decreases linearly with age. I call BS.
ReplyDeleteMost figures like this come from a study where they've taken demographic data and found a formula that more or less fits the mean. So they are pretty good, IF you are a totally average (mostly sedentary) American white male of middle age.
ReplyDeleteIn other words, crap.
Same goes for macronutrient and vitamin requirements, body fat calculators, BMI, recommended cholesterol levels, etc. All designed with your average couch potato in mind.
That being said, if your left arm starts to cramp please call 911.
The common equation I see is 220 minus your age. That seems to usually give a good ballpark, but everyone has a little variability- most of which comes from genetics and heart size. One thing seems to be true though- as you become more fit you max heart rate typically doesn't change much. However, you should notice that as you get more fit the rate at which your HR comes down after exercise decreases. Same principal that fit people have slower resting heart rates- they are just more efficient.
ReplyDelete