So I am 60 and trying to do the 5k Training Plans. The problem is, the plans (beginners) expect me to run and keep my HR in Zone 2 - seriously! I walk for 60 minutes on the treadmill and my HR is in Zone 4. Yes, I know I am not fit (yet) but nor would any other beginners...… (My Max HR, Rest HR and Zones are set up correctly)
If you are walking with your HR in Zone 4, then your heart rate zones are incorrect; unless of course you do have some health issues; or you are walking extremely fast. But even then, it's unlikely you would be able to hold Z4 intensity for an hour.
How have you arrived at your max heart rate? How did you measure your resting heart rate? How did you set up your zones?
higginsdj unfortunately none of the formulae are likely to give you an accurate result max HR varies widely in males aged 60 (or any other age/gender group) and unless your MHR is reasonably close to the real figure then it won't help you to train and it will not give you accurate VO2/Training effect/recovery times etc. It would be worth trying to determine it more accurately by a treadmill test (but check with your doctor before doing that since you have high blood pressure)
As noted, you need to determine your true max HR before you can be comfortable that your zones are correct. There are many different formulas out there but generally they underestimate for us older folks (I'm 62 max HRmeasured of 174 and RHR 48). However, I have been active all my life so am reasonably fit. On the other hand, part of my work involves working with people at the other end of the fitness spectrum and I have seen people struggling to keep heart rate down when becoming active. Your starting point needs to be a measured HRmax, or at best a sub-maximal test that will allow reasonable extrapolation to give you a probably more realistic HRmax.
Before you attempt a max HR trial, speak to a doctor.
As for your resting HR. Is that taken using values determined overnight? If it is, I would suggest you take your resting heart rate immediately you wake up. Do that for a few days and see if there is any difference. Our heart rate during the night tends to be lower as we are more immobile. I am of the believe that the best time to take RHR is shortly after waking up.
If your HR zones then turn out to be correct, then you need to reduce your pace on the treadmill to bring your HR back to Z2. In fact, I'd actually recommend you do that now. Most of us find it hard to accept that it is better to move easier to get faster. Training in Z2 for many can be as much a mental challenge as physical. However, as you develop aerobic capacity, you will find that you will eventually get to go at a faster pace for the same heart rate. But it will take time!
