Based on your maximum heart rate you aim for the following Target Heart
Rates :
Target Heart Rate 1: Max Heart
Rate - 50 beats
Target Heart Rate 2: Max Heart
Rate - 40 beats
Target Heart Rate 3: Max Heart
Rate - 30 beats
Target Heart Rate 4: Max Heart
Rate - 20 beats
Target Heart Rate 5: Max Heart
Rate - 10 beats
It is impossible to aim for exactly one heart rate when you are
running. Therefore you use heart rate zones.
Step 2: Use the Target Heart Rates to Establish
Target Zones
The lower end of the zone is:
Your target heart rate minus five beats.
The higher end of the zone is:
Your target heart rate plus five beats.
So the heart rate monitor training zones are as follows:
Zone 1 : Target Heart Rate 1 minus and
plus five beats.
Zone 2 : Target Heart Rate 2 minus and
plus five beats.
Zone 3 : Target Heart Rate 3 minus and
plus five beats.
Zone 4 : Target Heart Rate 4 minus and
plus five beats.
Zone 5 : Target Heart Rate 5 minus and
plus five beats.
It's all simple maths, but an example will make it a lot clearer.
Step 3: Let's Just Look At An Example
E.g. Take a younger runner 20-30 years old who may have a maximum heart
beat of 195.
Then the target heart rates, according to
Zoladz are:
Target Heart Rate 1 = 195 - 50 = 145
Target Heart Rate 2 = 195 - 40 = 155
Target Heart Rate 3 = 195 - 30 = 165
Target Heart Rate 4 = 195 - 20 = 175
Target Heart Rate 5 = 195 - 10 = 185
And the heart
rate monitor zones are:
Zone 1 : 140 to 150 bpm
Zone 2 : 150 to 160 bpm
Zone 3 : 160 to 170 bpm
Zone 4 : 170 to 180 bpm
Zone 5 : 180 to 190 bpm
Step 4: Knowing How to Use the Heart Rate Monitor
Training Zones
Zone 1 is what I use for most of my long runs and
for recovery runs.
Zone 2 is my easy run pace.
Zone 3 is my tempo run pace.
Zone 4 is my interval pace.
Zone 5 is hardly ever touched by me in training. Only when I decide I
want to go flat out at the end of a training session.
Oh, I almost forget. In between Zone 2 and Zone 3 I have identified my steady
state pace. Pretty much half marathon pace for me. So that is
what I call Zone 2 ½ with a range from 155 to 165
beats per minute.
The funny / strange thing is that nowadays, steady state pace
seems to have been forgotten about. People talk about easy runs, long
runs, tempo runs and intervals, but you don't see a lot of talk about
steady state runs.
That's a real shame because steady state
runs, I think, are pretty important. Doing mid-long runs at
steady-state pace is an excellent training for longer distance races of
10k and up.
Step 5: Using an Easy Calculator to Establish
Your Own Heart Rate Monitor Training Zones
As you see, the calculations for the Zoladz heart rate monitor training
zones are not that difficult.
I have, however, added a Zoladz
Heart Rate Training Zones Calculator to
this page for your convenience. Feel free to give it a try. Just put in
your maximum heart rate and then press the "click me"-button.
A method much more used in heart rate monitor training is the method of
Karvonen. The Karvonen
Heart Rate Monitor Training Method
uses both your maximum heart rate and your rest
heart rate.
I prefer the method of Zoladz.
It is simpler. After all you only need your maximum heart rate.
I have done quite a bit of testing at all kinds of different paces and
heart rate ranges. The Zoladz zones line up pretty well with my pace.
In other words: eventhough
the Zoladz method is simpler, it seems to be accurate enough to do the
job. So that’s why I go Zoladz!
Step 6: Further Recommended Reading
Running
Training - The running training section of this
site contains a whole lot of information that can help you transform
your running. Especially make sure you learn about the different
running speeds and how they help. A good summary is the running
workouts page or the page about How
to Improve Your Running.
Maximum
Heart Rate - For the Zoladz method to work properly
you need to establish your maximum heart rate. The max heart rate page
will tell you how to do this.
Cheap
Heart Rate Monitors - Interested in getting a
starter heart rate monitor? Then check out the cheap heart rate
monitors page and explore your options.
GPS
Running Watch - Interested in a more advanced heart
rate monitor? Then the GPS running watch page may be something for you.
Your heart rate monitor is a nice
tool to have. But you need to know how to use it and why you run in
each of the different zones. So make sure to check out the running
training section of this website (see link above).
I hope this page helped you.
I'd really recommend reading some of the following pages to learn more
about heart rate monitor training and the different running workouts
you can do.
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