Is my heart rate too high when running?

[VictoryOrDeath]

Is my heart rate to high when I'm running - this is from a 35min run this evening:



Garmin and others are not super accurate. Go by "feel" and what is normal for you on the watch.
So did you feel like you were working hard on the run? At the start did it feel more manageable?
Google zone 2 running for tips on how to get a steady HR when running

Same for me. If I’m at less than 90% I’m crawling. Over the years I’ve accepted that I have great endurance and no kick whatsoever

@Whyherewego, I did feel like I was working relatively hard.

I'm not particularly fast, and feel like I'd be crawling if I ran according to heart rate zones 😄.

I'm interested to see how quickly my heart rate drops now, I'll keep an eye after my next run.

Hmm, that's interesting re anaemia.

My heart rate massively spikes when I run as well. It does drop really quick when I finish and I control my breathing when walking to get it back under a 100. I am pretty fit so I no particularly worry about it, I am nearly 40

I am 52 and looking at some of my recent runs, I can still get my HR up to 188. But... this is typically towards the end of a race when I am pushing hard for the finish. My resting HR is only around 50. I have never really worried too much about what the stats say, more about what my body says and how it feels.

What are you measuring it on? A watch or a chest strap? I find watches can highly inaccurate and I have recorded runs averaging 180+ whilst still holding a conversation with anyone I’m running with. Chest straps are much more accurate.

Yes, just a watch - it's a Garmin Forerunner 35.

I’d be tempted to try a chest strap if you are concerned, just to see if there is a difference. Garmin do one which will connect to your watch so you can monitor whilst you are running. The sensors on watches can be impacted if they are too tight or not tight enough, or even just a bit of sweat.

That does seem quite high. You'd get more benefit and get better at running if you slowed up a bit.
Training pace is one where you can talk a bit. Not full on chatting (unless you're very fit) but short sentences. Race pace is where you can't say much at all!

I reached 188 when I was pushing myself hard during a 10K a couple of weeks ago. Average for a regular run is in the 150 or 160 zone.
I am a runner though. I drop down dead if I had to play football!

I'm 50 and mine goes up to 185 in the first few mins of a 5k then settles around 170. That first bit always nearly kills me.
I do two runs a week and am slim. Drops really quickly when I finish. Resting is 47 and goes down to 38 when I sleep.

That looks normal range for being a recent runner. It will come down over time with consistent running.

There's loads of advice about 80:20 zone 2 running at the moment, but a lot of running advice is by experienced runners for experienced runners. To develop that aerobic stamina, run/ walk sessions help keep heart rate in that lower aerobic zone. C25k basically does that in the early weeks. "Jeffing" is a good strategy of short, frequent alternating run/ walk intervals. The aim is walk breaks don't exceed 30s, but the run intervals are also very short.
It's good to mix things up anyway.

(I basically did marathon training by run/ walking long runs at 60/90s running, 30s walking and running 5k or less hard. I got a new 5k pb 3m later!)

Thanks everyone, I feel generally reassured that I'm not about to drop dead 🙂.

Even when I've trained for races and I've felt OK while running, mine always says I'm above my max heart rate.

I was new to a fitness watch this year and it freaked me out, but I've been running and doing martial arts for years and have had no issues. When DH puts my each on, it matches his watch.

It depends on all sorts of things. If you’re very fit it’s good to be able to work at that sort of pace - it means you’re really pushing it.

If you’re just starting out, then you may find that you are taking longer to recover and getting quite tired.

The other part of tracking your HR is your recovery time. My HR goes quite high doing metcon work in the gym (a mix of strength and cardio activity) but I recover quickly.

And the other thing to look at is your resting HR. MHR goes into the peak zone for my age with strenuous exercise, but my resting HR is between 58 and 63.

It depends on so many things. I am slim and fairly fit, I exercise most days but I have a high heart rate due to a medical condition. It’s not dangerous (as per my cardiologist) it’s just me. My dh however who frankly is neither slim nor fit has a much much lower hr than me. We go out cycling together and it pisses me off when my hr is at 190 going uphill and his is 120! His heart is fine though (recently underwent all the tests due to familial history of heart disease) we are just different.

more important than the high heart rate is the recovery.

my pattern is similar. high rate during the run, very quick recovery. and my resting heart rate is below 50.

at the end of a run you should feel like you could go on 'forever'.

I'm 52, my resting HR is around 60-65 and today I ran a 5k in 24 minutes and my heart rate averaged 163.

A "social" run sees my heart rate in the 150s. As posters have said, what matters more is how quickly it comes down to normal once you've finished.

If I ran at zone 2 I'd be running more slowly than my normal walking pace!

I'm 46 and my average was 154bpm running 7.5k today. I'm currently getting back into things after a break in exercising in August. It's taking me ages to get back up to speed! It felt like hard work today as a lot of it was uphill.