Running Routine

Happy New Year y'all!

Derek and I spent New Years in SC with the Ziegler family. We got home last night with enough time to unpack, do some laundry, and collapse into bed. Now it's time to get back into the daily routine - and time to kick start my new running routine with my new heart rate monitor!
My first step for training is to determine my Target Heart Rate, so I know how hard I need to be running.


After researching some articles through PubMed and Web of Science (an indexing database provided through UA), I decided to use the Karvonen method to determine the best target heart rate for me. I chose this one because it actually uses your own resting heart rate to calculate your target heart rate, and not just your age. That means it will also need to be adjusted as my cardio-health improves (typically, your resting heart rate will lower as your cardio health gets better). It also has been used by doctors during multiple medical studies.

I'm going to post my calculations - feel free to check my work or use the formulas for your own training! Resting heart rate = beats per minute when at rest. If you calculate that, make sure you have had sufficient time at rest before taking the measure. For example, you may want to calculate it when you are laying down to sleep or when you are watching a really boring TV show :)


Max Heart Rate
HR_max = 205.8 − (0.685 × 26 [my age]) = 187.99

Target Heart Rate (rounded)
THR = ((HR_max − HR_rest) × %Intensity) + HR_rest

At 50 % Intensity
THR = ((187.99 − 54) × 0.50) + 54 = 121

At 85 % Intensity
THR = ((187.99 − 54) × 0.85) + 54 = 168

Last year I participated in a kinesiology study, and my target heart rate for the study was between 150 and 160 so I think my results here are good. I will use the results from this formula for two weeks and then recalculate.

Wish me luck!