Columbus Strategy

I was listening to an iRunningradio podcast the other day, and Jim set out a guide to what your heart rate should be during the marathon itself. While I’ve done some heart rate training in the past, I’ve always felt that I likely raced too hard than was suggested.

I’m now tempted to give it a try in Columbus, just to see how things go.

I will need to listen to the podcast again to see what numbers they gave, but I came across the following online:

Your marathon effort should be in three zones. Zone 1: Try to run at a constant heart rate for the first 13 miles. Zone 2: Miles 13-20, strive to increase your heart rate by 3-4 beats. Zone 3: From mile 20 to the end, increase rate another 3-4 beats. Zone 1 will be approximately 80% of MHR (using the Karvonen formula described in my Summer footnotes column). Zone 3 will be 85% of MHR; however, do not arbitrarily set Zone 1 at 80% because your anaerobic threshold can vary depending upon your level of fitness and may be higher than 85%. – http://www.rrca.org/publicat/fal01coach.htm

Ok, listened to the podcast again. According to Jim,
Miles 1-3: 70-75% MHR
Miles 4-13: 75 – 80%
Miles 14 – 20: 80-82%
Miles 20 – 26.2: 82-85%

For me, that translates to
Miles 1-3: max 160
Miles 4-13: max 167
Miles 14 – 20: max 171
Miles 20 – 26.2: max 175

(and this is my calculating my reserve, if it’s just %age of max, it would be lower!)

Ok, I’m heading out for an easy 8, just for fun let’s see what my HR ends up being!