Ive been working with the HR monitor a lot lately… Im getting back into running after a long break, and my tempo runs are around 7:15-7:45 pace, but my 3 recovery runs a week are at like 10:00 pace because I am running around a 148-150 HR for those. Granted, I am running outside in like 85 degrees with high humidity in Florida, but should I really be running THAT slow for recovery runs?
If you’re going to talk about this in terms of HR based training, you need to provide more than just your HR @ 10 minute pace - what does that HR represent in terms of percent of threshold (which threshold, derived how?), max, or HRR (heart rate reserve, ie max-resting)? Presumably you zeroed in on 150 as being an appropriate recovery (aerobic) HR somehow.
Yeah, sorry. Well on the Tempo runs my HR is between about 172 and 178. I basically calculated my resting HR as 48, max as 198 (based loosely off of the 220-age equation) and calculated HR zones from there… With the 198-48 times X% plus 48.
OK, so 150 is nominally “<70%” - so the answer is basically yes, you should be running that slow. Or to put it another way, if that’s the speed you end up at when you are holding an easy aerobic/recovery pace, then that’s the speed you should be running, because that’s how (not) hard you intend for that session to be. It sounds very circular, but that’s the way it is. Does everyone run 10 minute pace for easy aerobic recovery? Of course not. But right now, you do. Note that your calculations are based on a rule of thumb that’s wrong as often as it is right, and you might be well served to gather some additional data (eg. self-administered Conconi test, or a 10K TT) to more accurately estimate your threshold and subsequent training zones.
Another way to look at it might be - if you feel (or can demonstrate) that your 7:45 or so “tempo” pace is realistic for something like a 10K to 10 mile race pace, you could use some formula like Daniels, which would then claim that your VDOT is about 42-44, for which “long/easy” pace is…9:30-10:00 per mile.
Another simpler test would be whether that 10:00 pace actually feels easy/totally aerobic/conversational/like you could go all day.
Ive been working with the HR monitor a lot lately… Im getting back into running after a long break, and my tempo runs are around 7:15-7:45 pace, but my 3 recovery runs a week are at like 10:00 pace because I am running around a 148-150 HR for those. Granted, I am running outside in like 85 degrees with high humidity in Florida, but should I really be running THAT slow for recovery runs?
If you know your paces you shouldn’t be caring about your HR that much if at all. go to here http://www.mcmillanrunning.com/mcmillanrunningcalculator.htm type in your pace from a recent race then use those paces. If your tempo runs are around that pace I would say you are somewhere in the ball park though.
Don’t feel bad. I have been running for almost a year and I still can’t beat 9:30 mile in a hard effort. But I could lose some weight and have NEVER been a runner. But I also haven’t figured out nutrition.
Mothball your HR monitor and go by RPE. I’m not sure how long your tempo runs are but I think anything over 9 min pace is counterproductive (giving for 7ish pace during the tempos).
That’s about my tempo pace, my easy runs are between 8:30 and 9:00
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When you say your tempo runs are between 7.15-745…that’s quite a range. Train to a specific time and stick…eg 3X 1mile @ 7.30 and don’t deviate. Tempos should require a lot of effort but be doable. Your recovery runs are important but should just feel easy.