10 Ways to Make Yourself Crazy Heart Rate Training

The beginning of heart rate training can be incredibly frustrating. You have to check your ego at the door and be prepared to "run" slower than you ever thought possible. There is no way around this, but there are some ways to make matters worse. Below are some of the lessons that I have learned the hard way. 

1) Forget Chafing 101 - I have had my fair share of chafing issues and I thought I had finally figured it out. I knew what I needed and where. I knew at what distance I started having problems. Then I strapped on a Heart Rate Monitor. I admit, that the idea of it causing chafing never even crossed my mind, but if it had I would have assumed that since I am already used to wearing a sports bra it wouldn't be a problem. My post run shower told me otherwise. Ouchy!

2) Use a Dying Battery in HRM - As much as I would love to be able to run an 8 minute mile with a heart rate of 70 I know that that isn't the case. Unfortunately, that is what my watch kept telling me. I would start the run with my none too impressive walking heart rate of around 110 bpm. I'd bring it up to my target 145 and then 10 minutes into the run it would drop down into the 70s and there was nothing I could do to bring it back up. After having this issue multiple times I finally had the bright idea to change the battery and all was good in the world.Tips: Don't assume a heart rate monitor comes with a full battery. That isn't always the case and changing the battery is one of the cheaper potential fixes. 

3) Sweat Too Little - One of the biggest complaints about heart rate monitors is that they take a while to adjust to a workout and start giving accurate readings. This is typically because the contact points need to be wet to be conductive and pick up the electrical impulses of your heart beat. Typically, during a workout, you will be sweating and that will provide that conductivity. To give the monitor a jump start at the beginning of the workout simply wet the strap before you put it on. There are a number of ways to do this depending on your level of squeamishness. You can lick the strap, lick your hand and wet the strap, wipe the strap with a wet cloth or even slide it under running water. There are also gels on the market for just this purpose. I have never used those products so I cannot speak to whether or not they are better than plain old fashioned H20.

4) Sweat Too Much - This one was a real issue for me. Whenever I ran in really high humidity or for longer than maybe 5 miles my HRM would start reading 0. It drove me crazy. Finally, I found advice from a comment over atDC Rainmaker (a very helpful blog that I refer to often when researching new exercise gadgets). I was using a soft Polar strap and one comment suggested using scissors to cut the strip of material between the two contact electrodes. This solved the problem for me. One reason this may work is that when you sweat a lot, the material absorbs all the salty sweat and become conductive. Because of the conductivity the voltage differential between the contact points disappears and the monitor isn't able to register a heart beat. Tips: Stitch both sides of the cut to prevent unraveling. Use a sewing machine if at all possible and place all knots on the side away from the body to limit chafing. 

5) Train While Dehydrated - I can see a marked difference in pace at a certain heart rate when I don't drink enough water throughout the day leading up to my run. Try to start every run fully hydrated and drink throughout the run. 

6) Train Mid-Afternoon - The temperature at run time can make a huge difference when you are trying to maintain a specific heart rate. In my experience the difference between a 6pm Florida run and an 8pm Florida run is about 2 minutes per mile! If at all possible train either early or late.

7) Visit People in Hilly Places - You learn a lot when HR training, including where all the hills are in your running area. When I say hills, I mean you will be able to see inclines so shallow a tennis ball wouldn't roll down unassisted. I did the first few weeks of my training the flatness that is eastern Florida. Then I went to visit my brother and his family in Virginia. Between having to train mid-day and dealing with the hills, I was forced to take up-hill walk breaks in order to keep my heart rate in check. 

8) Start Heart Rate Training in Summer - I am currently making this mistake for the 2nd time. Based on the fact that heart rate training is difficult in the heat, it would seem like a good idea to start your training program in the fall or winter. This way  you have time to slowly adjust to the climbing temperatures as summer nears. Unfortunately, I don't follow my own advice and am thus counting the days until fall comes to Texas and I get to feel like super woman during my runs. 

9) Listen to Upbeat Music - If  you are used to listening to music while running you are going to need some new playlists. Either that or you will constantly have to reign yourself in when the song changes and your feel try to catch up to the beat. Tips: Instead of listening to music, I like to use podcasts and audio books. They distract from the monotony of slow running without pulling you to run faster. Just be wary when listening to James Patterson books when running in the dark. You will be dealing with heart rate spikes for completely different reasons.

10) Schedule Races - My first attempt at heart rate training ended early because I had races on the calendar and I couldn't force myself to maintain focus while worrying about whether I would be prepared come race day. This time around I am committed to taking up to a year off to give this time to work. 

What else would you add to the list?