In April I read the book 80/20 Running by Matt Fitzgerald. I had heard how great heart rate training is and it seems every runner I know has moved to it. I decided to give it a try and started May 1st. It’s been eye-opening and a challenge but I am remembering how much I love running and how I want to improve. I want to reach my goal of running a marathon. And I want to do it in under 5 hours.

I feel as if I’m starting over.

My very first heart rate training run was extremely hard. And slow. Like super slow. Like I feel I could walk faster. My average pace was 16:52! I’m usually around 10:00-10:30 in my races. After this run, I was feeling really discouraged. How would I be able to complete the Las Vegas Rock N Roll marathon in under 5 hours? If I don’t meet the cutoff time I will get swept.

But I kept going.

I am following the plan as close as I can. I have not skipped a run yet. I had to move a couple items around but I am doing it. This week marks the start of week 3 and it’s getting easier. And I’m shaving off a little bit of time here and there. This morning I averaged 15:26, more than a minute less than when I started. I am comparing the same run (Foundation 3) for these numbers.

Yesterday I did a 7-mile long run and I felt so good after. I was tired but not too much. My legs were a little tired but not too much. My first long run (6 miles) was 16:17 pace. Yesterdays was 15:57. It’s not a lot but it’s trending in the right direction. My hope is that after two months of heart rate training, I am closer to my usual training times.

My real marathon training starts in July. I hope to cut more time as the weeks go on. I really like the challenge and philosophy behind heart rate training and I want to keep doing it. It’s humbling to be back at these times. And frustrating. But I am not having any of the health issues I get when I don’t follow (dizziness, nauseous) so I want to keep at it. (Don’t worry, I have a doctors appointment coming up to have everything checked out to make sure I don’t have an underlying issue). If I can’t get my time down, I will drop down to the half and try again for a marathon.

I will conquer the marathon distance. I need to. I am driven.

Already doing heart rate training? Tell me about your experience. I am trying to trust the process but some days are harder than others.

Interested in heart rate training? Check out Matt Fitzgerald’s book and let me know what you think!* 

*I am an Amazon Associate. If you purchase the book through the above link I receive a small percentage.