Thursday, January 5, 2012

New Year's Day 5k: What Maximum Heart Rate?

I think most people go out on New Year's Eve, drink a lot, and wake up with a headache sometime in the afternoon on January 1.

Boring. Why not go swim over six miles mid-day, find somebody to cook you dinner, and then collapse before 10 pm so that you can run a 5k the next day?

Sounds like a plan to me. Which is why I entered myself and the about-to-age-up significant other in Potomac River Running's New Year's Day 5k 2012.

Well, that, and my official 5k PR as of 12/31/11 needed to go down. It was 29:10, yet my 10k PR is 54, I can do a 58 10k at the end of a (hot) Olympic-distance triathlon, and the last 5k of a half marathon I did in October was in the low 28s.

Yeah, so, um, that PR wasn't really indicative of what I could do. So when the race started, I went out. Fast. Note the heart rate graph.

Nothing like hitting 90% of your maximum heart rate 0.2 miles into a 3.1 mile race and not falling below that point the entire race. Well, maybe hitting 101% of your maximum heart rate, as noted above, is pretty cool.

(Yes, I know that a maximum heart rate calculated solely based on your age is not accurate. Let me feel badass anyway, OK?)


Now, while I didn't totally die, I did positive split (7:46-8:03-8:16 and then 7:44 pace for the end). However, there was a downhill in mile 1 and and uphill in mile 3. So I give that positive split a big whatever and embrace my new PR of 25:18.

Even though I'm a little irritated that it wasn't sub-25. Damnit.

Fortunately, there was hot chocolate after the race to make everything better.
Everything.

11 comments:

  1. Only a 101%? Psshhhh. Next time go for 110%.

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  2. We were at that race spectating! Congratulations!

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  4. I say base your maximum heartrate on a beer mile.

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  5. EPIC!

    Also, linking to your other blog instead of a link to the boyfriend is epically uncool.

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  6. And now you have to race another 5k just to get sub-25. It never ends. Until you somehow figure out how to finish before you have started.

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  7. Congrats on the PR! Great way to start the new year!

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  8. I confess to wondering about max HR as well! Hmmm... Awesome new PR! Find a flat course and you'll kill that sub-25 goal.

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  9. The typical NYE sounds like mine. Except bronchitis ruined it this year. You are badass. That is one hardcore 5K. Way to ring in 2012!

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  10. I'm jealous of your sweet HR graph. How did you make it with all the Zones? Hard core.

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  11. George (chocophilenyc)January 23, 2012 at 12:19 PM

    Congratulations! That is a huge PR!!

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