Running Pace vs Heart Rate
I'm preparing for Louisville 140.6 in October which typically is not a very hot race... in fact in can even be a bit cool. I've been training using heart rate. I'm finding that my heart rate zones really don't line up with my pace zones very well. Today I did a two hour run using heart rate zone and I averaged a 9:46 pace while hanging in heart rate zone TRP and Zone 2. It wasn't that hot this morning (probably 75 F). My Pace zone would have had me running about 8:45 in TRP and about 8:05 in zone 2. Should I be training using pace zones instead of heart rate zones since Louisville is not a hot race? I was disappointed when I finished and looked at my average pace... I felt like I could have gone harder and gotten a faster pace... of course my heart rate would have risen.
Comments
Just my 2 cents, first pick one and don't worry about the other. IOW, if you're training by HR, don't worry about your paces (but know your paces based on your different HR zones).
I train by pace and know what my HR should be for my different pace zones. If I encounter a hot/humid race, I switch to HR, otherwise I ignore HR after the first 6-8 miles in a 140.6.
Hi Robert - here is what I do (i.e., not be the official advice). Similar to Derrek.
I have different approaches for training and racing.
I break training days into quality workouts (speed, power, tempo, etc) and other runs ( long runs, active recovery days, EZ days). I do the quality workouts by pace and ignore my heart rate. I do the other runs with heart rate targets. All my EZ/Active recovery days are at my EZ heart rate (because my goal is recovery and being aerobic). For me, that is below LT1 (below 140bps and my max is around 195 right now). TRP runs are by pace, but I usually cap the HR around the EZ level for the first hour, but let it drift up as I fatigue)
Racing (IM racing) - I try to use HR caps. The first 5-6 miles I try to drive HR back to the top of my EZ range. Then I let it climb to bike + 5-10 (normally get off the bike in upper 140s/lower150s). After that - I am usually hoping that I've managed my day effectively enough to sustain my heart rate through the back half of the marathon.
The main reason that I use HR on race day is that it accounts for heat, fatigue etc and my purpose is to maximize the results of the whole day. The reason I use pace on quality run days is that my purpose is to drive a training effect for a targeted metabolic system and I am not concerned with blowing up.
I agree with the above but remember, HR is a peak inside to what your body is actually going through (cumulative stress of all the factors of the day), its almost like a health crystal ball. While you don't have to use the exact HR number, I agree with Rich a CAP is best, because you do know that anything over XYZ, you're in trouble, period. Walking is imminent. And if you can have an eye on that number slowly creeping up, you can do damage control before its too late.
Maybe after Lou you look into running with Power and grabbing a stryd - might be worth the fall run durability investment to see if you like that better.
Another things to think about are
Just my random two cents. The men above me in this thread know far more than I do.
Cant wait to virtually stalk your race from Kona!
I agree with Rich. My thinking: as you get fitter during training, your HR will get gradually lower for any given pace. But during Ironman training (the last 10-12 weeks before the race), you are doing so much work, that trying to get faster while you are putting up the volume is quite problematic. So best to train at the paces you take going into the last 3 months with, and if your HR seems to be getting lower for specific paces, live with that.
Come race day, the pace/HR relationship will look VERY different than it did during your training days, because the swim and bike have significantly depleted your resources. So at any given HR, you will find yourself going slower than you did during training. As Mariah and Rich both note, it's best to have a hard HR cap on race day to account for that and any potential environmental concerns.