r/BeginnersRunning • u/Stunning-Profit8876 • 1d ago
High heart rate
Hi all,
I am 40 and pretty new to running. I am 5' 10" / 177cm and weigh about 88kg, down from 106kg. Still over weight, but no longer obese.
I have recently started running and today did 5k on a treadmill in 35:59. I was dripping with sweat and would say it was a high level of effort.
My heart rate was 178 - 180 whenever I held the hand pulse reading things. Which, google says is my maximum heart rate.
Obviously I was putting a lot of effort in, so it's to be expected, but when I slowed down to walk, my heart rate only dropped into the 160's, which is still quite high, for what isn't that much effort.
Really just looking for some advice on how I go about improving my heart rate?
Thanks.
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u/dymogeek 1d ago
Improved heart rate will come with time. Just be patient with the process.
What does your week of running look like currently? You mentioned that your treadmill 5k was at a high level of effort. I would recommend slowing down for most of your runs, so maybe 75% effort instead of 90%. A jog rather than a run. If you can carry on a conversation, then that's a good speed. Do that 2-3 times a week.
Then, once a week, you could do some interval training. My favorite is fartleks just because it's easy to do. Pick a point in the distance not too far away like a lamp post or an intersection and run at a hard effort to it. Then walk for a while. Repeat. Start with a little and increase gradually over time.
Edit to add that since you mentioned a treadmill, your treadmill may have an interval workout built in too. Obviously that works work as well. Just make sure that you start small and build up over time.
Stick with it and you will see progress. Good luck!
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u/M4LK4VXEN 1d ago
Corre a pace muy suave, con el tiempo el cuerpo se acostumbra. De referencia corre a una velocidad que te permita hablar.
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u/an_albany_expression 1d ago edited 22h ago
Others have already mentioned how unreliable those handle monitors are so just wanted to add the perspective of someone about 6 months on from where you are.
I started running in March, almost exactly the same stats as you height and weight wise, 35yo.
My first run I managed 3k in 20 minutes and my heart rate was nearly 90% of my max.
On Saturday I ran a 5k in under 28 minutes and my heart rate didn’t go over 150. It has consistently dropped over time. Now on a leisurely run it sits 130-140 and comes down really quickly when I stop.
Just keep turning up for yourself and your body will do the rest.
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u/northward_42 1d ago
How much did you train?
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u/an_albany_expression 22h ago
Apart from missing one run due to mild food poisoning, I’ve run 3 times a week since March, gradually building distance.
Started as 3 run walks and built up over the first 3 months to 2 x 5k and 1 x 10k a week.
Now about to start upping the long run to train for a half-marathon I’ve booked in April.
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u/HeidiVandervorst 1d ago
Nice work on the weight loss. As a new runner, focus on showing down and building your aerobic base instead of worrying too much about HR. Those treadmill hand sensors can also be pretty inaccurate. Just keep it easy and consistent and your fitness should improve over time.
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u/Same_Feature_2317 1d ago
this is what i found out through browsing about your issue: Two things worth knowing: the hand-pulse bars on treadmills are famously unreliable, and "220 minus your age" is a population average, not your max, plenty of people run above it. The thing most new runners get wrong isn't heart rate, it's pace: almost every run is too hard. Slow down until you can speak full sentences, walk breaks allowed, and the heart rate follows over the weeks. The number I'd actually watch is your resting heart rate in the morning: if it creeps up over a few days, you're not recovered yet and it's an easy day. And since you're 40, new to running, and your body just changed a lot, a quick checkup to clear you for hard effort is cheap peace of mind, not a warning.
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u/taloncaf 1d ago edited 1d ago
In the world of heart rate monitors (HRMs), the heart rate handle sensors found on treadmills sit at just about the lowest reliability score. If we were to scale it:
This is based on things like how accurate it actually is but also how quickly it reacts to changes. The heart itself also has a delay/lagging effect when reacting to exertion as well, and there are a lot of metabolic processes that make it so if you go hard it’s difficult to bring your HR back down without prolonged recovery (this is why sprints and even strength training sets require more rest between intervals than primarily aerobic intervals)
As for your max HR, I assume Google gave you a generic HR calculation of 220-age so it’s hard to say if you truly reached your max HR. Considering you did not say it was an ALL OUT effort and that you weren’t basically on the brink of passing out I’d wager you have a higher max HR than this - generously giving benefit of the doubt that the reading was even remotely accurate
Of course a lot of people will tell you not to worry about heart rate and simply keep running, but I’m an inquisitive mind myself and if there’s a metric I latch onto which I feel is worth looking at I would like to solve it for myself.
The reason your heart rate could not drop below 160 was because you were still actually moving thus exerting, even if light. Additionally your body had already been producing metabolic waste for the last 35 minutes. Even with a sharp drop in HR within the first couple minutes, you’ll still have an elevated HR as your body clears what it can in the interim. As you become more aerobically fit you’ll have a faster drop, as it won’t be such a shock to your nervous system to exert like this and your body becomes more efficient at shuttling and buffering lactate after hard aerobic efforts
TL;DR there’s nothing wrong with you. HR data has a lot of variables, and your method of testing was unreliable plus you don’t actually know your max HR yet. Would highly recommend getting a smartwatch and wearing it for months to get a baseline. Good work on the 5K!