Understanding the Heart Rate Zones of Running

Understanding the five heart rate zones of running is key to optimizing your training, preventing injury, and achieving your performance goals, regardless of your experience level. Let's delve into each zone and how to calculate your desired heart rate (HR) for each zone.

How to Calculate Max HR Using the Tanaka Formula

Max HR= [208 – (0.7 x age)]

Example for 26 year old:

((208- (0.7 x 26)) = 190 bpm

Heart Rate Zones

• Zone 1: Very light, 50 percent to 60 percent of MHR

• Zone 2: Light, 60 percent to 70 percent of MHR

• Zone 3: Moderate, 70 percent to 80 percent of MHR

• Zone 4: Hard, 80 percent to 90 percent of MHR

• Zone 5: Very hard, 90 percent to 100 percent of MHR

Zone 1: Recovery and Regeneration

Zone 1 represents the gentlest pace, ideal for recovery runs and regeneration. Here, you're moving at a relaxed, conversational pace, allowing your body to recover from more intense efforts. These easy miles promote blood flow, aid in muscle repair, and enhance overall recovery, making them essential for maintaining a healthy training balance. Embrace Zone 1 as an opportunity to enjoy the rhythm of running while nurturing your body's resilience.

Zone 2: Aerobic Development

Zone 2 encompasses the aerobic development phase, characterized by a sustainable, light-to-moderate effort level. Running in this zone enhances aerobic capacity, improves endurance, and promotes efficient fat metabolism. Long runs, steady-state efforts, and aerobic base-building sessions often fall within Zone 2, laying the foundation for long-term success as a runner. Embrace the challenge of maintaining a steady pace and feel your fitness expand with each stride.

Zone 3: Threshold Training

Zone 3, the threshold zone, is where you confront discomfort and push your limits. Running at a pace just below your lactate threshold, you're training your body to tolerate and buffer lactate more efficiently, delaying fatigue and improving performance. Tempo runs, lactate threshold workouts, and sustained efforts target Zone 3, challenging both your physical and mental resilience. Embrace the discomfort as a sign of growth and progress on your journey to becoming a stronger, faster runner.

Zone 4: Aerobic and Anaerobic Mix

In Zone 4, you use a mix of aerobic and anaerobic metabolism for energy. Running in this zone helps your body get better at using carbohydrates for energy and learn to withstand higher levels of lactate in the blood. This zone is crucial for improving your ability to sustain higher intensities during races and tough workouts.

Zone 5: High-Intensity Intervals and Sprints

Zone 5 is the realm of sprinting and explosive power, where short bursts of maximal effort reign supreme. Sprint workouts, strides, and plyometric exercises propel you into Zone 5, enhancing neuromuscular coordination, developing fast-twitch muscle fibers, and refining your top-end speed. High-intensity intervals help you maintain or improve your max heart rate so you can push yourself harder on race day.

By understanding and utilizing these heart rate zones in your training, you can better tailor your workouts to meet your specific goals, enhance your performance, and reduce the risk of injury. Happy running!

Author: Dr. Ashlyn Kerls PT, DPT, Cert-DN, Cert-BFR, Cert. Running Gait Analysis

Treadmill vs. Overground Running – Benefits and Drawbacks

Running has always been a popular exercise option for those seeking an efficient and cost-free way to build cardiovascular endurance and stay in shape. In recent years, its popularity has continued to grow. Whether you prefer to run outdoors on roads, trails, or tracks, or feel more comfortable logging your miles on a treadmill, both environments offer unique benefits. However, there are also distinct differences and potential drawbacks to consider when choosing between them.

Running Mechanics: Treadmill vs. Overground

Based on existing evidence, overall running mechanics, or "form," are fairly comparable between treadmill and overground running after an appropriate warm-up period of about 2-6 minutes, depending on the person and pace. This means that if you receive a running analysis on a treadmill, there should be good carryover to what would be seen in an overground environment, with a few considerations outlined below.

Benefits and Drawbacks of the Treadmill

Benefits:

1. Consistent Environment: A treadmill offers a climate-controlled environment without the variability of weather and terrain encountered outdoors. This consistency allows runners to have complete control over their speed and incline, making adjustments as needed throughout each run, which is especially helpful for newer runners.

2. Lower-Impact Surface:Treadmills generally provide a lower-impact surface compared to running on roads, potentially mitigating the effects of heavy, repetitive impact on bones and joints over time. This can be particularly useful for those recovering from injuries or experiencing joint pain.

Drawbacks:

1. **Risk of Overuse Injuries: Despite the lower impact, the repetitive nature of treadmill running and lack of terrain variability can increase the risk of overuse injuries, such as Achilles tendinopathy. There tends to be a reduction in step length on the treadmill, which has been linked to higher loading rates and accumulated force output at the calf complex and Achilles tendon.

2. Muscle Imbalances: The homogeneous environment of the treadmill can exacerbate muscle imbalances over time, as it doesn't engage as many muscle groups as variable outdoor terrain.

Benefits and Drawbacks of Overground Running

Benefits:

1. Engagement of More Muscle Groups: The increased terrain variability of overground running naturally recruits and engages more muscle groups to navigate twists, turns, and elevation changes. This can create more muscle symmetry, reduce the risk of underdevelopment of certain muscle groups, and increase core activation due to the need for constant stabilization and balance.

2. Mental and Cognitive Benefits: Running outdoors provides greater mental and cognitive benefits compared to indoor running. Being in nature can improve attention, memory, and concentration. Additionally, sunlight exposure during outdoor runs has numerous health benefits.

Drawbacks:

1. Weather Conditions: Weather can be a significant factor when running outdoors. If you don't enjoy running in the rain or snow, a treadmill might be a better option on those days.

2. Safety Concerns: Depending on your location, it may be challenging to find a safe place to run outdoors. Running on harder surfaces, such as concrete or asphalt, may also lead to joint pain or injury if your body is not adequately prepared for the load demands.

Final Thoughts and Verdict

Given the pros and cons of both options, it's ultimately up to the individual runner to decide which environment works best for them based on their specific goals and personal preferences. For most runners, a combination of both treadmill and overground running is optimal for pleasure and fitness goals. When training for a specific event, the training surface may be more indicated by the distance and demands of the race. Treadmills can be great for speed or interval training, particularly for beginners learning to pace themselves, while outdoor running may be preferable for those with more experience or those training for endurance events with variable terrain.

Incorporating variety into your running routine is beneficial. Find what works best for you and enjoy your runs!

Author: Dr. Sophie Zimmerman PT, DPT, Cert-DN, Cert-BFR, Cert. Running Gait Analysis

Lacing options for running shoes

Do you experience any unwanted movement or excessive tightness in your running shoes? If so, try one of the techniques below which have been utilized by many runners to address these types of small irritations without a change in shoes.

Window Lacing

Purpose/when to use: High instep, to relieve pressure at the top of the foot

How:

• Unlace the shoe down to the eyelet that is just below the pressure point.

• Re-lace by going straight up to the eyelet above the pressure point and then crossing the laces over.

• Finish lacing the rest of your shoe in your usual way with criss-cross lacing at the top.

Heel Lock/Runners loop

Purpose/when to use: Heel slipping in your shoe, toes bumping against front of shoe

How:

• Lace your shoes normally, criss-crossing them until you reach the second eyelet below the top on each side.

• Instead of crossing over again, pull each lace end up on the same side, inserting it into the top eyelet on that side; you’ll form a loop.

• Pull each lace end across and through the loop formed on the opposite side of the shoe.

• Pull the lace ends up and out a few times in order to shrink down the loops so that they hold the lace securely on each side.

• Finish by tying your shoelaces in the usual way.

Reef knot:

Purpose/when to use: Hold’s laces more securely

How:

• After you have laced your shoe through each eyelet and are ready to make the knot, start with standard method used to make knot by crossing the laces and pulling snug

• Make your first loop as you would normally do

• Now reverse the lace path as you go to make your second loop.

• Test by pulling each top eyelet outward. If your laces twist and become twisted or perpendicular you have tied a usually granny knot. If it stays parallel then you have made a reef knot.

Next time you notice unwanted movement or compression with your running shoes, try one of these simple strategies to save both your feet and your wallet!

Author: Dr. Ashlyn Kerls PT, DPT, Cert-DN, Cert-BFR, Cert. Running Gait Analysis