A heart rate monitor can be a useful training tool for endurance athletes.
Simply put, following a heart rate monitor program teaches your body to burn fat as opposed to carbohydrates. It helps you build an aerobic base. While at the same time avoiding the physical stress of anaerobic training. Once you have built up an aerobic base, anaerobic training can slowly be added and you will be far better prepared to handle it.
AEROBIC: Workouts where you are burning fat as your main source of energy.
ANAEROBIC: Workouts where you burn carbohydrates as your main source of energy.
GLYCOGEN: Your stored carbohydrates.
For long distance races, teaching your body to burn fat is ideal for a simple reason.
Your body stores a lot more fat than it does carbohydrates. During your endurance race, if you burn fat opposed to carbohydrates, you don't use up your glycogen stores as quickly.
In a marathon or triathlon for instance, your body begins to shut down once you use up your glycogen reserve. This is when you hit the proverbial "wall" that endurance athletes have come to dread. Your energy will suddenly disappear and even walking will be a difficult task.
A heart rate monitor will enable you to stay in your fat burning range. The goal of this training system is to not go over your maximum aerobic heart rate(mahr). If you are in poor shape to start with, you will be training at a very slow pace at first. As you progress, you will find that you can train at a faster pace yet stay below your mahr. At this point you have basically taught your body to burn fat.
As an added bonus your recovery from workouts will be much faster and the chances of injury will be greatly reduced. As I mentioned earlier, once your aerobic base is good and sound, you can begin adding some anaerobic workouts to your training.
If you should decide to train with a heart monitor, this is your basic formula for finding the mahr just right for you.
The key number is 180. Subtract your age from that number. If your physical fitness level is just average, take off 10 more beats. It you have trained a few days a week for several years, don't change the number. If you have trained like an all star at an advanced level for several years, add five beats. If you are over 60, add five beats. If you are anywhere in your teens, add five beats.
Now that you have your magic number or your mahr, strap on that heart rate monitor and away you go. Start out very slow for 10 or 15 minutes. Then watch your monitor and try and keep it 20 beats or so below your mahr. You can go closer to it, but it is important you do not go over. If you are in very poor physical condition, this will most likely seem very slow. That's ok! You will see a marked improvement as your body learns to burn fat and your fitness improves. Be patient. Stay below your mahr and soon you will find yourself training at a faster pace.
Here is a test for you to do the very first week you begin training with a heart rate monitor. This is very important, because it will demonstrate to you how you are progressing and how training with a heart rate monitor improves your conditioning.
Find a track or anywhere else where you can run a precise measured mile. Warm up at a very low heart rate. Preferably at least 20 beats below your maximum. After your warm up, increase your speed so that when you hit the start line you are right on your mahr. Start the timer on your watch as soon as your mile begins. Run the entire mile as near as possible to your mahr. For example. If your mahr is 125, hold your pace between 120-130. The idea is to average 125 as near as possible. Stop your timer as soon as you reach the end of your mile. Record that time!
Now go out for a month and train. Use your heart rate monitor during all your run training sessions. Make sure you use it on all your runs. Always do a 15 minute warm up and a 15 minute cool down with your training in the middle.
For example: A 40 minute run would consist of a 15 minute easy warm up, 10 minutes at 15-20 beats below your mahr(or closer, but not over), and a 15 minute cool down.
A one hour run would be a 15 minute easy warm up, 30 minutes mahr training, and a 15 minute cool down.
Do shorter workouts in the beginning and at least 1 workout each week that is longer than the others. Every week, increase your long run by 5 or 10 minutes as your fitness improves.
The maximum I ever did was 2 hours. So it was a 15 minute warm up, 90 minutes just below my mahr, and a 15 minute cool down.
When preparing for a marathon I would often run longer than 2 hours in a training session. In that case I would do the entire run well below my mahr. As your fitness level improves, it would be too taxing to run longer than 90 minutes at your mahr pace. For runs longer than 2 hours it would be wise to stay well below your mahr for as much of the session as possible. As you get further into the workout, your heart rate will gradually work its way up, but that is quite normal.
As your fitness improves, try running right on your mahr for one of your training runs. If you find yourself going a bit over, that's ok! Just slow down and let your heart rate settle back. You will learn to slow down as you approach a steep hill and to speed up as you go downhill. That way you can avoid big fluctuations in your heart rate.
After one month of training, do your mile test in "exactly" the same manner as you did the first time. Be sure and time it accurately and stay as near to your mahr as possible. And no cheating! If you have trained consistently, your mile time should come down. For example. If your very first test mile was 10 minutes and 45 seconds, and a month later you are 10 minutes and 10 seconds, congratulations, you have become a fat burning machine! That means you are running faster without working harder. You are getting fitter! Now keep up the good work and do the one mile test every 4 to 6 weeks. Avoid doing the test every week.
I would try and run 4 or 5 days a week for optimum results. It all depends on the training program you are using. Just be sure to work your rest days in there. Proper rest is an integral element of heart monitor training.
Adding a well designed heart rate monitor program to your endurance training will teach your body to use fat for fuel and at the same time conserve your glycogen stores for later in your competition. The result will be increased endurance and the dreaded "wall" will no longer be an obstacle to fear.
