I remember the first time I joined a road race (Condura Race), I saw a couple of guys running in front of me with black straps peeking out at the back of their white shirts. I honestly thought these guys probably have man-boobs and they were just wearing a bra*laughs*. It was because my idea of a heart rate monitor is something that you would normally found in hospitals and tread mills. Yeah, that’ how naive I was then.
Five road races later, I decided to buy my own heart rate monitor watch. I wish I could just buy a GF 405, however, I can’t do this as I’ve just shelled out a huge amount of money after a vehicular accident I encountered as detailed from my previous post. So I bought a heart rate monitor at 50% discount last Saturday with the aim of testing it for Mizuno Infinity Run 2009. However, the heart rate monitor wasn’t working (..err..that’s why it was being sold for 50%?) when I tested it Saturday night and so I ended up just using the timer on the race day. My wife brought it back yesterday and the Timex guy replaced it with a new working one. I was able to test it this morning at Oval and I’m very happy with it.
How I’m going to use it to improve my performance is probably the next question in newbie runners mind. To use a heart monitor effectively, you will need to determine first your Maximum Heart Rate. I got this formula from Runner’s World website which will help you get an approximation of your maximum heart rate:
Men: 214 - (0.8 x age)
Women: 209 - (0.9 x age)
Now that you know your maximum heart rate (MHR), you can use this on your different training zones. Here’s mine:
Easy Run/Recovery Run (50%-60% of MHR)
Aerobic Training (70%-80% of MHR)
Tempo Training (80%-100% of MHR)
If you want to have a peak on how I’m going to use this on my weekly trainings, here it is:
Monday: Easy Run , ensure that my heart rate doesn’t go below 114
Wednesday: Tempo Run>Easy Run for 15 minutes, Tempo run for 30 minutes-ensure that heart rate doesn’t go below 152 and another easy run for 15 minutes
Friday:Tempo Run> Easy Run for 15 minutes, Tempo run for 30 minutes, ensure that heart rate doesn’t go below 152 and another easy run for 15 minutes
Sunday: Long Run, ensure my heart rate doesn’t go below 114 slowly increasing to 134.
As you can see from above, I’m focusing on Tempo runs after learning that Kenyans do tempo runs twice a week. While I cannot run as fast as them, at least I’ll be able to get the most out of my cheap heart rate monitor. My long run too is also of equal importance, making sure that my long run doesn’t go below 30km.
I hope this helps. Send in your comments and suggestions!
No related posts.
Wayne
on Jun 12th, 2009
@ 12:05 am:
Hi Sam. Timex makes good heart rate monitors. You’ll enjoy having this. Nothing wrong with Garmin or Polar but Timex provides good quality at a little less cost.
admin
on Jun 12th, 2009
@ 12:24 am:
Hi Wayne,
Yeah Timex seems to be the most practical solution to monitor your hear rate. They you cannot improve what you cannot measure, hence I bought this one.
diego
on Jun 12th, 2009
@ 7:43 am:
Got mine too from Timex (HRM). Thanks for the NFO…now I have an idea on how to use it
argonaut
on Jun 13th, 2009
@ 11:22 am:
how much did you get it? 1120? can you nudge me on my IM incase sam regarding this?
Thanks!
admin
on Jun 13th, 2009
@ 2:59 pm:
Pare, if you look closely in the screenshot above, you’ll see the cost. Ok its php2,240 at 50% discount. Buy now or it will soon be out of stock. Bought it at SM Dasma, try it there in Molino or SM Bacoor
diego
on Jun 13th, 2009
@ 11:53 pm:
Actually it is also available at all TIMEX botique ( shopping malls) Mine is a Timex Heart Rate Monitor Target Zone Trainer. Got it as a reward gift from Citibank Rewards Points….for being a loyal clienty…hehehe They say it cost around 6K ( HTH)
Luis Arcangel
on Jun 14th, 2009
@ 8:29 am:
Nice post Sam. As for me, I don’t use my HRM. I find it a hassle to set up, and the one time I actually had it work it felt so uncomfy. Guess I’m just not used to it, but I’m aware of its numerous benefits for training.
Cheers,
Luis
admin
on Jun 14th, 2009
@ 9:10 am:
Yikes how come HSBC doesn’t have a similar promo!
admin
on Jun 14th, 2009
@ 10:56 pm:
Yeah it gets very uncomfy during runs. But you’ll get used to it. Try adjusting the heart strap, might be too tight
Beating Your Own Time - a trip down memory lane « TheRunningNinja.com - My Running Adventures, Thoughts and Rumblings, Reviews, Running Shoes, Running Gadgets
on Mar 30th, 2010
@ 1:20 pm:
[...] to Jet, their heart rate monitor feature is superb. I will try to compare this with my other HR watch and check which one is really [...]