Yesterday, I spent the better part of the day running a 50K in the rain with Pano Skrivanos. Pano's a great runner, but until yesterday, he'd never run an ultramarathon. He picked my brain clean of hints and tips for running ultras during our 6 hours together and that got me thinking about ideas to blog about.
I figure it's been about 20 years since I got my first heart rate monitor. It was a Polar and it was big and thick and ugly and sensitive as all getout to moisture. I got it because I was really keen to get to Ironman Hawaii and I wanted to explore everything that might give me a competitive edge.
I've been through 7 heart rate monitors since. Bought a brand new Timex model just before I got injured, so it's been gathering dust for about 2 years. 'Just started to use it again and I'm glad I am because it keeps me honest.
You see, a heart rate monitor is the best coach most people can get. If you tell it things like your maximum heart rate and lactic threshold, it will tell you when to pick it up and when to slack off a bit. Your heart will tell you when you should train harder and when it's time to take a day off...or else!
Imagine for a moment you are a high performance race car. Under the hood is a finely tuned engine (your heart.) The car engine is measured in revolutions per minute (RPM). Your heart is measured in beats per minute (BPM).
Too few RPM and the motor will lug or stall. Too few BPM and you're not trying hard enough.
Too many RPM and the motor may burn out or explode. Too many BPM and you will run out of breath or pass out.
The red line is the point above which you may damage the motor. The trick is to shift gears at or near the red line for maximum performance and long motor life. Your red line is the point above which your body produces lactic acid, the stuff that makes your legs heavy and slows you down. Run at or above your lactic threshold when you can see the finish because you can only do it so long. Run just below your lactic threshold and you can run forever.
The trick is to find your red line, program it into your heart rate monitor and run below it when you are racing. The other trick is to and push your redline higher by training properly.
There are books written on heart rate training. Also tons of good information out there on the net to get you started. Here are a few useful references:
This one from the Polar site:
www.howtobefit.com/heart-rate-training-article.htm
This one from one of my personal heros, Mark Allen:
www.duathlon.com/articles/1460
This from Cool Running:
www.coolrunning.com/engine/2/2_1/1127.shtml
Congrats on finishing your first ultra, Pano! I hope this helps.
