I’m asking because last night I ran a normal route for me and found that I was really struggling to keep my HR below the 142 threshhold I like to use for longish runs…normally I can just settle into a nice pace and run between 138 and 141 all day long.
This bit of an elevation led me to wonder what could cause your HR (over the same course & PE) to run high…
Is it lack of recovery (had a hard workout weekend last weekend - one week post Gulf Coast) , being sick (just getting back from a sinus infection), loss of fitness (laid off almost a full week post Gulf Coast), dehydration, or “just one of those things”??
The biggest reasons I find for my HR going high like that are lack of rest, lack of recovery, sick and dehydrated. Lack of rest is one of the biggest for me, If I’m traveling a lot for work, I typically get back late Friday and my heart rate is either 120 or 180 on Saturday with nothing in between!
I had the exact same effect on Saturday, 1 week after the GCT. I was trying to do a 7 mile run to loosen things up before the Disney 1/2IM this Sunday, and I was hitting 190ish at an 8:00 pace. I was pretty badly sleep-deprived and had been eating mostly pasta and breads for the last 3 days. I walked the second half home at a 100+ HR, took a multivitamin and ate some steak fajitas…instant recovery. One good night of sleep and the next day I did the 7 miler in 56:02 comfortably in the 160s HR, which is normal for me (max about 210). This has happened a few other times, and all with the exact same symptoms and crappy diet/rest ahead of time. I attribute it to a lack of proper rest, and lack of potassium, calcium, B vitamins, etc.
