Just a decade ago runners and walkers would time workouts and them have to figure out how far they ran/walked.  If you didn’t know the distance of workout you may have to get in your car, drive the loop and hope your car measured the distance accurately.  Many don’t realize that often cars are not calibrated accurately.  This could mean the workout is actually longer or shorter than expected sometimes by a tenth or more per mile.  This could significantly affect the result of the workout.  The individual then would have to calculate their pace per mile by dividing the total time run/walked by the distance covered.  If you wanted to see how many calories you burned during the workout once again you have to spend time calculating your weight, distance, speed into calories burned.  The individual then had to keep track of all the data somehow.

With a GPS running watch the individual simply turns the watch on and is off to start the workout.  The GPS watch times your run while calculating your pace, distance covered and your calories burned all while you are running.  This information is helpful in keeping the individual running at the pace they should be training at. The individual knows instantly if they are running too fast, how far they have run to the tenth of a mile and total calories burned.  GPS watches are especially useful when you run in an area you are not familiar with.  The GPS tracks your every turn in the city or woods during your workout.   If you become confused just follow the plotted map back the way you came.  GPS watches also store the data for future viewing.  One can look back to see how far they ran on a certain day, week or month.  The Garmin Forerunner 205 Personal Trainer let you download recorded courses and compete against previous workouts.  The GPS watches need to be recharged. The battery life of a GPS watches is usually between 10-13 hours.  With a battery life this long it means you get several workouts in before you have to recharge the watch. The data stored in the GPS watch is not lost even if you let the battery die.

GPS watches help the individual monitor speed, distance, pace and calories burned during a workout so you can train smarter, more effectively and enjoy the feedback of the latest technology!

Pam Daugherty has been a runner for 28 years.  She has represented the Mid-Atlantic Region in the Woman’s National 5k Championships and was named the USA Track and Field Mid-Atlantic Long Distance Runner of the year in 1994.  For  GPS Watches  recommend  www.webwarezwatches.com

Heart rate zone training is not as hard to figure out as you may think.  In simple words you use your heart rate to help train in the correct energy system or zone you are going to race in.  Training for a 10k uses a different energy source or heart rate zone then training for a marathon.  The marathon requires an emphasis on aerobic endurance while the 10k requires more speed.  You will need to train at the aerobic threshold.   A common mistake runners make is training in a zone that has nothing to do with their goal race.  In marathon training/racing it is so sub-maximal that it is very easy and tempting to go faster.  But going faster is a huge mistake because if has no benefits at all.  It will only make you feel wasted from the workout.

The formula to help determine your heart rate zone is 220 minus your age giving you your maximum heart rate (MHR).  If you take 85% and 80% of your maximum heart rate you get your target heart rate zone.  The upper limit represents 85% (MHR x 0.85) of your maximum heart rate.  The lower limit represents 80% (MHR x 0.08) of your maximum heart rate.  While you are training keep your heart rate monitor between these two numbers.  When you train with a heart rate monitor you can set your upper and lower limits that represent your heart rate zone.  The heart rate monitor will beep letting you know if you are going to fast (above your upper limit) or to slow (below your lower limit).  Since you will know instantly if you are above or below your target heart rate zone you can adjust your pace accordingly.

Training within your target zone will help your body adjust to the pace you will be running for your marathon.  If you start your marathon to fast the result could be walking by mile 20.  I personally trained for the Philadelphia Marathon twice.  The first year I ran the beginning to fast.  By mile 17 I was walk/running.  The next year I was in the same shape but trained with a heart rate monitor within my target zone.  I wore it during the marathon race to keep me within my target zone early in the race.  I ran the first 17 miles over a minute per mile slower but my final time was 35 minutes faster finishing with a personal best time of 3:17.

Pam Daugherty has been a runner for 28 years.  She has run a marathon PR of 3:17, which qualified her for the Boston Marathon. For a large selection of heart rate monitors go to www.webwarezwatches.com