Monday, January 14, 2008

Why bother?

If you're anything like me, you're just learning about what benefits there are to training with heart rate zones. For me, I never used to use them because I never bothered to do the benchmark test to get the right zones. Everything seemed (and would have been!) silly without that.

So the HR strap and Garmin collected dust in the closet.

But, now that I'm working with the Elf, I've taken the steps to test myself and get those elusive zones. Painful? A little. Useful? More than I ever knew.

But seriously...

...what's the point?

What's it all about? Why bother?

If you've ever asked yourself that question...like in the last day or so, maybe...then check out this article on the Multisport Mastery website (Elf's company). It makes an awful lot of sense to me!
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5 comments:

  1. 21stCenturyMom1:03 PM

    And if that article doesn't do it, there is a member of our elite running club who BQs and then some when she runs a marathon. She decided to use HR training for her last event and stuck to it exclusively. She never worried about her time or pace on training runs - only her HR. She PR'd. This is a very experienced runner, too.

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  2. Comm's5:49 PM

    i didn't read the article. I don't need to. There is much to take from Zone training. That being said its hard to train with others who do not. They treat practice like a hammer fest and you're seemingly plodding along.

    Eventually though, you'll be faster than ever.

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  3. Bill9:41 PM

    You'll see some amazing things after a while training with zones.

    One of the most interesting concepts I read about years ago was keeping a "flattening the course" via HR. In other words, keeping control of your HR by keeping it within the proper zone. What that means is you'll slow down on the uphills and pick up the pace on the downhills and flats. Meanwhile, others will hammer up the hills and it'll eventually catch up to them. The goal is to avoid the HR peaks and you'll see faster finishing times.

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  4. Joy | Love | Chaos9:47 PM

    Bill ~ I love the concept... flattening the hills.

    The visual aspect of it is great. I can imagine literally translating it from imagery to practice.

    Love it! Thanks!

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  5. ShirleyPerly6:24 PM

    Thanks for the link. BTW, Do you think HR training improves the body-mind connection or takes away from it? I'm always looking for ways to improve it and have so far shunned devices that measure or distract me when training/racing.

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