Half Marathon Training - Week 2 Complete!

 Am still lying in my sweaty running gear, licking the last of my post-exericse Pad See Ew off my lips, and feeling good about finishing my 3rd week of training (including the pre-training week)!

Tips I've learnt from this week:

1. Fiber.
Don't know how to put this delicately, but fiber is great, and very important for healthy bowel movement. However, when you start increasing your jogging distances... well, the natural action of jogging also helps bowel movement. Therefore, when you are running more, it can be advantageous to start eating a little bit less fiber. How do you know if you have too much in your diet? You'll know when you go running :D

2. IT bands.
There is a very good reason I did my last post on illiotibial band syndrome. I haven't gotten to the painful stage, but I can definitely felt them tightening. Therefore, I spent a few minutes before my long run today rolling them out, and am trying to do some strengthening exercises while I'm brushing my teeth so that I do it regularly.

3. Breathing and focus.
So there are two ways to get through a long training session: the first is to try and distract yourself with something else. I, for example, have been watching TV while jogging. Unfortunately, there are a couple of problems with this. Sunday afternoon is full of really bad TV! I ended up watching an hour long ad for the Total Home Gym, which is really, really repetitive, but at least made me feel good that I was working out. So, it's not great when there is nothing to distract you, but it is also pretty bad for your form.
The other option I started trying out today after I got sick of the Total Home Gym ad, was to actually stay focused on my breathing and try to get myself in a meditative state. I've done a little bit of meditation before, and I know that it is supposed to be really good for your mind to give it down time to focus on absolutely nothing. (It's highly recommended for those who suffer from depression or obsessive compulsive thoughts to take up a repetitive sport such as swimming, rowing, cycling or jogging, in case you are wondering, just for this reason along with the added benefits of exercise).
So about 2/3 of the way through my long jog today, I flicked off the TV channel, though did leave it on FM radio for background music, and tried to maintain correct technique while breathing deeply and slowly. Surprisingly, I managed to drop 10 bpm off my heart rate doing this, and felt a while lot better by the end. Am definitely going to keep working on this and developing my ability to do it for longer and longer times.


The training for this week:

I have to admit, I moved all my training sessions around, but did complete them all.

Wednesday (not Tuesday) I did my 40 minute easy jog at 9km/h, though because of the need to go to the bathroom, and then just losing it, I did take two breaks. However, I jogged for a total of 40minutes that session.

Thursday I did my 30 minutes easy, and actually went for a jog along the river, which went for almost 40 minutes, but it was feeling good. However, speed varied quite a bit looking at my RunKeeper afterwards. Might want to work on that.

Friday I took as one of my days off.

Saturday (not Wednesday)I did what was listed as a 50 minute pace piece made up of 15 minutes warm up, 2 minutes race pace and 1 minute easy x 4, and then 14 minutes cool down. So I did all that, and then realised - that doesn't add up to 50 minutes! Even taking into account it might be 'repeat 4 more times', that's still not 50. I went through a few more of the sessions later on on the app, and it appears to do this a number of times. There is the pace session where you do 30 minutes warm up, 10 minutes goal pace and 2 minutes easy x 4, and then 15 minutes cool down, for a total of 1hour and 10 mins. hmm? Really? So, got to keep an eye on that.

Sunday today was a nice long slow jog for an hour. Wore my heart rate monitor for the first time, and started off around 145 which is pretty good, then midway climbed up to around 160 bpm. However, after I started focusing, it was dropping down to 150bpm, which is a great spot for me to stick at. I did wonder if I possibly should have been going a bit faster, but by the end I was still getting a stitch, so maybe it was just right.

Weight wise: My original aim was to lose 0.5 kgs a week. Last week I had gone up just a little bit to 76.9 (I also moved to weighing in pre-run which I think is a good idea). So, not a great start.
But this week pre-run I came in at 75.8! Yah! Not totally on goal, but catching up from last week. Just need to make sure it wasn't because I've dehydrated myself or anything like that. But often weight loss does take a few weeks to show on scales, and I've now increased my mileage quite a bit on what I was doing before training.

My biggest relief is that I'm past the 3 week mark, counting the pre-training week, which I am. I have an awful habit of coming down sick 2 weeks into a new program, and I have to admit that the beginning of this week I was feeling pretty seedy (which is why I moved my first jog to Wednesday, not Tuesday). But I'm now feeling good again.

Next week I'm going to start looking into energising methods such as gels for my longer run, now that I've broached the 1 hour. I'll let you know my research.

(This was meant to be posted on Sunday, but as I accidentally locked myself out of my apartment, you are getting it Monday night. For that full story, check out my post on 100 First Drafts.)

Maffetone Method Part 3: Review

Hopefully by now you have tried the Challenge to work out your own Maximum Aerobic Heart Rate, and done some testing to set a baseline, which is all just generally useful information to have.

But is it worth actually following the Method properly and in a dedicated manner?

Well, the cons of the method:
My first issue is he complains that the maximum heart rate formula of 220-age is not individualistic enough, but what he offers is 180 - age with just a 10bpm leeway. It doesn't sound all that individualistic either. If maximum heart rate can vary a lot between people then the maximum aerobic heart rate will vary as well. Therefore, I would start with his formula and use the testing to adjust it to your needs over a few months. I am not, of course, the only one to have noted this. For example see Greg Crowther's blog post where he lists this and a number of other problems.

Second, a lot of people complain that after following it religiously, they didn't see any improvement. (For example see the lead post in the thread on the cool running forum.) I admit that I did it for three-four months earlier this year and didn't see that much improvement. Having said that, I now realise my heart rate was based on what I had worked out a few years previously when I was fit and healthy, not old and recovering. So I was probably working out at too high a level. Also, if you go three months and see no improvement, then you aren't following his method properly: you should be doing your testing every month and adjusting until you do see improvements.

One thing that Greg Crowther also noted was that most of the high level athletes that support Maffetone are competing in endurance racing such as Mark Allen who does Ironman racing and Stu Mittleton who does ultra marathons. There are questions about whether it is as useful for high level sprinters and other short distance/time events. 

Pros:
First, which most people agree with, it is amazingly peaceful and relaxing, ensuring that you actually enjoy exercising and feel better afterwards not worse. And to be honest, if that is all you get out of it, that is an awful lot in today's society.

It doesn't appear to aggravate any existing injuries or develop new ones.

When done properly, ability to run (either faster or longer) does appear to improve, even though each session is well within your comfort zone, so that's pretty exciting.

The basic concepts (regular testing, adjust programs until there are noticeable improvements, monitoring life stress when planning workouts etc) are all really sound and good ideas. 

The message that the 'no pain, no gain' theory isn't actually necessary is useful for those who have been burned and scared off exercise by Army Sergeant type gym instructors.


My Personal Experience: 
As mentioned, I did it for 3-4 months, though possibly at too high a heart rate. Over that time I didn't see much improvement, but also managed to go to the gym five times a week because I knew I wasn't going to be killing myself so didn't lose motivation. At the end of the period I then started more interval training and found my speed increasing very quickly, and I'm sure that was partly due to the good preparation. Also, I found after stopping and going onto harder workouts, my overall stress levels in general increased.

Therefore, my recommendations:
For athletes I recommend it as an off-season training tool and for active recovery. However, during the season, you will need to do some speed and weight work to be at the top of your game.

For people coming into exercise for the first time or after a long time, I definitely recommend doing at least 4 months of the method before moving onto harder programs because it will keep you motivated, keep you from injury, and build up your aerobic system.

For regular exercises it is still good to vary your workouts. Over winter, or a stressful time at work, try the Method in a dedicated manner for a few months and see if it works for you. 

For myself? Well, everything is a bit stressful at the moment, and the thought of just doing a nice, enjoyable workout is hugely appealing (and allowed me to do a 21km ergo the other day) so I'm going to be using it as my base, and added in a few other workouts a week, and just see how it all goes.

Have also just ordered his new book online, so will read that and see if it has anything particularly new. 

Maffetone Method Part 2: The Practicals.

So, are you intrigued yet about how to actually apply this method?

Well, as mentioned in the previous post, the Maffetone method is not a rigid program such as Couch to 5k which tells you what to do every workout of the week. Rather, it is a set of principles for how to approach exercise (as well as diet and lifestyle, but here I’m going focus mainly on the exercise component).

But, that doesn’t mean you can’t develop a practical application. In order to create a program, you need to include two aspects in order to be considered suitable by Maffetone standards:

1.     The majority of your exercise program should be focused on developing aerobic fitness.

2.     Every exercise program needs to involve ongoing testing to evaluate its effectiveness and to identify when problems start to arise.

Aerobic Fitness = Working out at your Maximum Aerobic Heart Rate:

If you google Dr. Maffetone, you will find quite a bit on his 180 formula. This is a method for working out your maximum aerobic heart rate.

As mentioned in the series on heart rate, a lot of programs are based on exercising within particular heart rate bands, usually based on a percentage of maximum.

However, Dr. Maffetone suggests that instead of working on a percentage of maximum, which can be difficult to work out and is very variable between individuals, you should work out within a 10 bpm range of your maximum aerobic heart rate, worked out by his rough formula:

180 – your age, then:

-       Minus 10 if you are recovering from serious injury or illness or have been on long term medication.

-       Minus 5 if you haven’t exercised regularly for the last few years, have been exercising with an injury, have been regressing in training or have more than 2 colds per year 

-       Stay at this number if you have been exercising regularly for a few years without any problems.

-       Plus 5 if you are a competitive athlete who has been improving and had none of the above problems.

(Though note that over 65 or under 16 this needs to be individualised as the formula breaks down a bit).  

So, for me it would be 180 – 29 and minus another 5 as I get colds all the time = 146.

Then take 10 to give you your range. So, the majority of my workouts should be between 136-146 bpm.

Now, if you go and try that, you will find out why the theory has been considered with some skepticism: 140 can be a walk for a lot of people. I went through a really annoying stage where the range was just in between a jog and walk, so I did this sort of shuffle thing when outside, or just put up the incline and walked when on a treadmill.

However, the claim of the program is that if you continue to do this, you will get faster, but your heart rate will stay the same, demonstrating an increase in your aerobic fitness.

In turning this into a work, he includes a long warm up and cool down of 15 minutes each, slowly building up to the required heart rate and then building down again. This can result in a ‘workout’ of only 15 minutes at the require heart rate, or for beginners it might even just be a warm up and cool down.

In developing a long term program, he recommends spending 3-6 months doing nothing but aerobic work, and only after that, once you have a suitable base, can one or two anaerobic sessions can be added.

Testing:

The second important aspect of the method is constant measurement in order to tell if you are actually improving.

As the method claims to focus on building aerobic fitness and increasing the body’s fat burning, he suggests two tests that should be done on a monthly basis to ensure everything is on course.

1.     Fat Burning: Obviously if you increase your fat burning ability, this should be seen in a decrease in body fat content. While this can be worked out using complicated measurements, he suggests just using a waist to hip measurement ratio to see if the program is working.

a.     So once a month (not more often) you should measure your waist at the height of your belly button, and again at the widest part of your hips.  Then work out your waist to hip ration: waist/hip.

b.     He argues that if your aerobic system is developing properly, this ratio will gradually diminish, along with your excess fat.

2.     Speed: Similarly, Maffetone recommends conducting a Maximum Aerobic Function Test (MAF test) once per month. The test requires maintaining the same heart rate over the same distance or time, and repeating the test every month.

a.     For example, I would try to maintain a heart rate of 145 over a distance of 1 mile and ideally every month my time would improve. Or I could test myself for 10 minutes and see how far I got in the same time.

b.     He starts with examples of 1 mile, but does mention that some prefer to do a longer distance such as 5 miles to add an element of endurance. Either is fine, though with the 5 miles he notes the time for each mile for comparison.

c.      He argues that if your MAF test results start to worsen, it is an indication that there is a problem such as excess stress, dietary/nutritional imbalance or a physical problem.

And that’s it. Work out at an aerobic heart rate and keep measuring yourself to make sure you are improving.

So, your challenge for this week:

Work out your Maximum Aerobic Heart Rate range, and then do initial tests to work out your waist to hip ration and baseline MAF test score.

Next post, I’ll look at some of the critiques of the method and general verdicts.

The Maffetone Method Part 1: What is it?

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Want exercise to be fun, non-stressful and actually effective? Well, Dr. Maffetone has been claiming for almost 30 years now to provide just that, and a lot of people appear to agree with him. So, it seems worthwhile having a look at what he says.

I have divided this discussion into three parts: an explanation of the theory behind the method, how to apply the method, and then verdict/feedback on it. Welcome, to part 1.

Dr. Phillip Maffetone has published numerous books over the years detailing different aspects of his approach (it should be noted that it is not a strict formula, but more of a set of guiding principals for approaching health and fitness). The most recent is 'The Big Book of Endurance Training and Racing', which I have to admit I haven't read yet. His seminal work was 'The Maffetone Method' which came out in 1999, but he acknowledges on his webpage that it is outdated now. On his webpage there is also a lot of useful info, and there are various discussions about the method on health/fitness forums (both positive and negative). I’ll be working mainly from The Maffetone Method and his webpage, as well as other articles.

The Maffetone Method, according to the book, is ‘The Holistic, Low-Stress, No-Pain Way to Exceptional Fitness’. It was developed by Dr. Maffetone after working as a sports physician for many years and found the ‘no pain – no gain’ theory did not get the results he or his clients wanted.

I first heard about this program through my eldest brother. He was on Reserves Officer training with the Australian Army and it was recommended to him by one of the Personal Training instructors, who spoke very highly of it. He said he had used it to get army personnel into exceptional shape, even in their later life.

The first thing to note is that the focus is on developing health, not just fitness. Maffetone gives the example that when he was younger he worked his way up to doing the New York Marathon, but did huge amounts of damage to his body while doing it. He decided he might have been fit enough to run the marathon, but did not have the underlying health to do it properly.

So what is the method? According to the introduction, the important features of the method are:

1. The best exercises for burning fat and improving your health is aerobic.
2. Exercise should be fun. If it’s a chore, something’s not right.
3. Excess stress is bad, and an improper exercise program can increase stress.
4. Many People eat far more carbohydrates than necessary, and more people than we realize are carbohydrate intolerant.
5. Certain dietary fats are good.

He also mentions quite a bit in the book barefoot/minimalist running.

Some of the concepts are not particularly unique, such as exercise should be fun, stress is bad, and some fats are good. Though it is good that he points out exercise stress needs to be taken into account with all other stresses in your life.

Some of the concepts are whole movements in themselves such as the reduced carbohydrates (his is similar to the paleo-method of eating) and minimalist running.

For me, the most interesting concept was that the best exercise for health and fitness training is aerobic. I had heard before that it was best for burning fat, but assumed that training as an athlete you would need to be doing mostly high intensity training.

However, his claim is that for at least the first 3-4months, and then as the majority of training after that, exercise should be at a low heart rate and should leave you feeling like you could do the entire work out again. Of course, I thought about this today as I staggered back from CrossFit barely able to raise my arms to swig from my water bottle.

So, to conclude about his method let me quote from his webpage:

"There are many different facets of health and fitness that also must work together to create optimum human potential—like you felt when you were younger and full of vigor. This approach is a way for an individual to more objectively look at his or her whole life, and address any and all factors that are not working most advantageous for optimal health and fitness. These factors include ones diet or nutritional status, exercise routine, and how physical, chemical and mental stresses are best regulated."

In the next post, I'll look more into what is involved in training according to Maffetone.

A fuller list of his works for those interested:
Complementary Sports Medicine (Human Kinetics, 1999);
The Maffetone Method: The Holistic, Low-Stress, No-Pain Way to Exceptional Fitness (Ragged Mountain Press/McGraw Hill, 1999);
Fix Your Feet: Build the Best Foundation for Healthy, Pain-Free Knees, Hips, and Spine (Lyons Press, 2004);
In Fitness and In Health (David Barmore, 1993-2009, five editions.);
The Big Book of Endurance Training and Racing (Skyhorse Publishing, September 2010);
The Big Book of Health and Fitness (Skyhorse Publishing, December 2011)

Heart Rates Part 3: Heart Rate Reserve and Target Zones

Well done if you have worked out your resting heart rate and your maximum heart rate! You are well on the one to constructing a workout program that is best for your body. The final step in this process is understanding the target zones for exercising in and your heart rate reserve.

Let me start with the concept of target heart rate zones, which most of you might know about already but bear with me. The idea argues that there are a series of zones between your resting heart rate and your maximum heart rate which develop different aspects of your fitness. Ideally, you should be creating a program that involves working at a number of different levels across the cycle.

For most simple programs these zones are based on a percentage of your maximum heart rate. Here is a sample chart which demonstrates the concept:

Fitness Target Zones: Heart Rates
Exercise Level	Benefits	Intensity Level (Max HR %)
Light Exercise	Healthy Heart Maintenance	50% - 60%
Weight Loss	Burn Fat & Calories	60% - 70%
Base - Aerobic	Increase stamina & endurance	70% - 80%
Conditioning	Fitness conditioning, muscle building, and athletic training	80% - 90%
Athletic - elite	Athletic training and endurance	90% - 100%

From the website Heart.

As you have now worked out your maximum heart rate, you can develop or understand programs that work on this model.
Please keep in mind that these divisions are very simplified and only indications. For example, obviously all exercise must burn calories, it is just that the lower heart rate levels allow the body to rely on its fat burning processes rather than using other processes. However, any process has to burn something to create the energy and so will use calories in one form or another, it might just not use your fat stores first.

This method relies only upon your maximum heart rate and as general fitness does not affect maximum heart rate as much as resting heart rate, these zones do not take into account your own fitness very much.

Another method takes into account the available spread of heart rates that an individual can work within. This spread is based on the range between your resting heart rate (which can vary up to 60 or 70 bpm between a fit and unfit person) and your maximum heart rate.

If you are not very healthy at all, you could have a resting heart rate of 100 and a maximum heart rate of say 180, therefore an active range of 80bpm. On the other hand, an athlete might have a resting heart rate of 50 and the same maximum of 180, so has an active range of 130 bpm. So how can we take into account this range?

This is where Heart Rate Reserve comes into play. Your heart rate reserve is just this, your active heart rate range. It is calculated by subtracting your resting heart rate from your maximum heart rate.
Eg.
Our not so healthy person: 180 (MHR) - 100 (RHR) = 80 (HRR).
Our athlete: 180 (MHR) - 50 (RHR) = 130 (HRR).

Based on this theory, target heart rate zones are calculated based on a percentage of the heart rate reserve which is then added back onto the resting heart rate (being your bottom line.)

This is used by a lot of more developed training programs, such as the rowing programs on the Concept 2 webpage, who define the different target zones as follows (based on Heart Rate Reserve):

TRAINING INTENSITY TABLE

Band	Type of Work	% HR	What it is good for	How you Feel
UT2	Utilisation 2. Light aerobic, low intensity work. Sustainable and fat burning.	55-70	General CV fitness	Relaxed. Able to carry on a conversation.
UT1	Utilisation 1. Heavy aerobic work using more oxygen.	70-80	Higher level of CV fitness	Working. Feel warmer. Heart rate and respiration up. May sweat.
AT	Anaerobic Threshold. Harder work. On the aerobic limit. Pushing into anaerobic area.	80-85	High level of CV fitness. Building mental and physical tolerance.	Hard work. Heart rate and respiration up. Carbon dioxide build up. Sweating. Breathing hard.
TR	Oxygen Transportation. Working hard. Unsustainable for long periods.	85-90	Developing oxygen transport to the muscles under stress. Increasing cardiac output.	Stressed. Panting. Sweating freely.
AN	Anaerobic (without oxygen). Short bursts of maximum effort. Unsustainable. Burning carbohydrate.	90-100	Anaerobic work. Increasing speed. Accustoming the body to work without oxygen.	Very stressful. Gasping. Sweating heavily.

From Concept 2.


So, let us compare the two methods for our two examples the not so fit (NSF) person and the athlete. Say that both of them want to build up a good cardiovascular (CV) base by doing some conditioning work staying in the aerobic band.

According to our first and second chart:

Base - Aerobic

Increase stamina & endurance

70% - 80%

UT1

Utilisation 1. Heavy aerobic work using more oxygen.

70-80

(Keep in mind that the two charts do not align against each other perfectly, but the example shows the variance between a fit and an unfit person.)

So, for our NSF person with a max of 180
Chart 1: 126 - 144 bpm is the range they should be working in.
(180 x 0.7 - 180 x 0.8)

Chart 2: 156 - 164 is the range they should be working in.
Reserve = 80.
Resting = 100
So (80 x 0.7) + 100 and (80 x 0.8) + 100 
56 + 100 and 64 + 100. 

And our athlete?
Chart 1 will be the same: 126 - 144

Chart 2: 141 - 154 is the range.

Reserve = 130
Resting = 50
So (130 x 0.7) + 50 and (130 x 0.8) = 50.
91 + 50 and 104+ 50.

What can we learn from this?
First, when working out your zone, make sure whether the program is referring to % of maximum or % of reserve, as there is a big difference.
Second, generally as you get fitter the target heart rate you are working at will need to drop to stay in the lower zones. Your body will become more effective, and so if you keep working at a higher rate, you will be in a different zone.
Third, using a percentage of your heart rate reserve gives you a more personalised program.

Conclusion:
Even if you don't use it, take time to sit down and work out your target zones based on your heart rate reserve and Concept 2's bands just so you can get a feel for how it might be different to what your treadmill chart might be asking you to do.

Heart Rates Part 2: Maximum Heart Rate

So, have you worked out your resting heart rate yet? 

Well, now that you have that, the next important figure to work out is your maximum heart rate. Why, I hear you ask? (Well, probably not, but you should, because it is an important question).

Maximum heart rate is not the rate that you should aim to exercise at, just to make that clear at the beginning. However, a lot of training programs work on a series of exercises that focus on maintaining a particular % of your maximum or your heart rate reserve (more on that in a later post). Therefore, to use these programs most effectively you need to know your max. 

Many of you would have been told to calculate your maximum heart rate based on a formula that uses your age. 

The most common formula I've come across is 220 - your age = maximum heart rate. (Some now adjust that to 226 - your age for females).

Therefore, since I'm 29, my maximum would therefore be 191 or 197.

Online calculators like the one at My Dr ask only for your age and from that tell you what you should be working out at, apparently using the 220 formula as they recommend 191 for me.  

Anyone else see any problem with this? That all males and females, regardless of exercise history, health, anything like that all have the same maximum heart rate? True maximum heart rate does not change like resting heart rate does, but still, there must be more variation than that!

Considering 2 years ago I used to sit on 198/199 for roughly half an hour once a week, I some how doubt that those figures given are my maximum. (By the way, totally do not recommend working at that level, I just had little choice.)

There has been a lot of research into the area, which I think has been summarized nicely by Brian Mac, who then allows you to enter your age (though didn't ask for gender, which is strange as that is one variable he discusses), sport and level (average/elite) and will then give you a range of answers based on the different research he discussed. Highly recommend you check it out to show how much formulae can vary.  

However, while using a formula can be alright to give you a general idea, since they can vary +/-20 beats, it's probably worth doing some testing yourself. 

© Julos | Stock Free Images & Dreamstime Stock Photos

An accurate, but expensive, way is to go to a sports clinic and actually have a maximum heart rate stress test performed. They hook you up to a whole lot of fancy equipment and make you run on a treadmill. The results come with a lot of other important and interesting information, so is worth the money. The only downside that I've heard from friends (I haven't done it myself) is that you are doing a one off test. If you are slightly sick that day, aren't prepared to push yourself as hard as you otherwise might, etc. the results can come in lower than they might otherwise be. 

The other cheaper, but less accurate on a once off test, is to perform similar tests yourself. 

NOTE: I recommend having someone with you when you do this, in case of a medical emergency.

Also, you will need a heart monitor for this. Using the ones on a treadmill isn't really practical, as it is not safe to run with your hands on the grips over a speed of about 6.5km/h. A band around your chest with a watch that you can program with your age and gender is much better. (I'll do another post later on different models of heart rate monitor. For this, if you haven't got one yet, try to borrow a good one off a friend, or you can pick up cheap ones at Big-W and places like that usually for around $30 (the expensive ones start at around $200, so you are saving a lot).)

Polar (heart rate monitor company) gives these two tests to try out: (note that they expect you to know what 85% of your maximum heart rate is already, which is a bit counter intuitive, but you can use a formula for a basic number).

Sub maximal heart rate test

A sub maximal test is not as specific as the VO₂ Max test, however it is more individual than the age based formula and it can be performed readily in the field.

Example 1: Running

Ensure the Polar heart rate monitor is set to display heart rate in beats per minute. You must first perform a 15-20 minute warm up with your heart rate gradually reaching 85% of your maximum heart rate.

Now, on a running track or other open environment, perform a 2 minute run at maximal effort, recover for 2 minutes (either remain stationary or slow walk) and then perform a second 2 minute run at maximum effort. Take note of the highest heart rate value reached either in the first or second interval and add 5 additional beats to the highest value. This number can now be used as your maximum heart rate.

Example 2: Cycling

Ensure the Polar heart rate monitor is set to display heart rate in beats per minute. You must first perform a 15-20 minute warm up with your heart rate gradually reaching 85% of your maximum heart rate.

Now, at the base of a hill which has a steady gradient of approximately 4-5%, perform a 3-4 minute seated climb at maximal effort, in a gear that allows you to maintain a cadence of 60-70rpm. Take note of the highest heart rate value reached. Add 5 additional beats to the highest value and this new number can be used as your maximum heart rate.

These are good as they are pretty simple, and as long as you have a heart rate monitor, you can do it almost anywhere, any time. 

However, as a rower, my favourite is based on the Concept 2 suggestion. It is hell, but I think more accurate. Please note, this is for generally healthy, fit people without any heart conditions.

They suggest a Step Test. The Polar method is two sets of maximum effort, which is good that they did it twice but most of the time when we jump from a lower rate to a higher rate, we don't really know how far our maximum really is. This test, on the other hand, gets you to work up step by step until you utterly cannot continue ('until you blow' is their wording).

Most gyms will have a Concept 2 rowing machine, but make sure you know the proper technique before trying to do this test or you might end up straining something or taking out someone else's eye (oh you laugh, but not as much as I laugh at the people who think they can row at my gym!). 

It's easiest if you know how to set the machine to do 1.30min intervals. If not, I recommend having a friend next to you monitoring your heart rate and reminding you to step up ever 1.30mins. 

Start off rowing at an easy rate that gives you a heart rate of 140bpm. If you have already warmed up, you only need to do this for 1.30mins, but if you haven't warmed up already, I personally recommend just doing a few more minutes to make sure you don't injury yourself. 

Now, if you can put your display so it is showing watts, every 1.30mins step up 25 watts. If you can't get it to display watts (though it's quite simple, just press the 'change display' button until it cycles through to watts) then you can just do it based on split using the table below.

Watts	25	50	75	100	125	150	175	200
500m	4:01.0	3:11.3	2:47.1	2:31.8	2:20.9	2:12.6	2:06.0	2:00.5
Watts	225	250	275	300	325	350	375	400
500m	1:55.9	1:51.9	1:48.4	1:45.3	1:42.5	1:40.0	1:37.7	1:35.6
Watts	425	450	475	500	525	550	550	600
500m	1:33.7	1:32.0	1:30.3	1:28.8	1:27.4	1:26.0	1:24.7	1:23.8

And as the name 'Step Test' suggests, you keep stepping up every minute and a half until you feel like you are going to die. 

Well done, that's your maximum heart rate. (Though, some people do recommend adding on 5bpm all the same.)

So, this week's challenge: using either one of the Polar Methods, or if you are feeling brave the Concept 2 method, test out your maximum heart rate.

Heart Rates Part 1: Your Resting Heart Rate

Why should you know your own heart rate before, during and after exercise? Why monitor your heart rate, and does working out at specific heart rates work better than at specific speeds?

This is the first in a series of posts on understanding your own heart rate and how to use that information to better tailor your exercise programs. Understanding your own heart rate, your maximum hr, your anaerobic thresholds, and your resting rate is pretty much fundamental for beginning any sort of serious exercise program.

In a later posts I will look at working out your maximum heart rate, understanding the different thresholds, and exercise programs based on working out at specific heart rates, such as the much discussed Maffetone Method. But today we start at the beginning: your resting heart rate.

Your heart rate, as might be very obvious, is the speed at which your heart is pumping. When your muscles require more blood, your heart pumps faster, when you are at rest your heart pumps slower. However, a higher heart rate doesn't always mean you are doing good things to your body. Your heart also pumps faster when it is stressed or sick, or if it is working very inefficiently.

So, do you want a high resting heart rate or a low one?

One of the biggest aims of fitness is to have your body able to do more with less effort. You want to be able to run faster with your heart pumping slower, because this means its not as stressed. Generally speaking, as you get fitter, your resting heart rate will go down. Your heart will be able to pump more blood with less effort.

Therefore, it is important to work out at the beginning of a program what your current resting heart rate is, which lets you know how fit you are now, and gives you a basis to see if you are improving later.

Working out your resting heart rate is super easy and needs only a clock that counts seconds.

It's best to take your resting heart rate just after waking up, but any time you have been lying still and not moving for a period of time will work (this is one of the few times I'm going to recommend watching TV, so enjoy it.)

Find your pulse either at your radial artery on your wrist just below your thumb or at your carotid artery in your neck. Make sure you are using just your index and middle finger to find the pulse, as your thumb has a slight pulse of its own and can confuse the counting.

Now, time yourself and count how many times it pulses in ten seconds. Then times this by 6 and you have your resting heart rate in beats per minutes. (You can also count for 30 seconds and times it by 2, if you feel this is more accurate, or count for the full 60 seconds, as with only 10 seconds miss-counting by one can have a much larger effect.)

It is suggested that:
60 or below beats per minute: = a fit athlete.
60- 80 bpm = average.
81-100 bpm = is high, but ok.
101 + bpm = not so good.

It is best to record your heart rate every morning for a week to try and get an average as its quite easy to have an unusual reading, such as waking up after a scary dream.

If you are serious about a new exercise program, particularly if you are an athlete, it is highly recommended that you take your resting heart rate every single morning. The major reason for this is that your resting heart rate will generally go up 10 bpm if your body is starting to fight an illness, and is a good indicator that you should cut down on your training until it returns to normal. This is an excellent way to try and avoid over-training.

Now that you know your resting heart rate, in the next post we will look at your maximum heart rate.