If you've been reading this blog for a while, you already know that I am a huge data geek. I like to know how far I have run and how long it took me with great precision. Perhaps I would be a happier person if I could just fling the door open and go running with the wind in my hair -- footloose and fancy free -- but that's just not me. I like gadgets. I like data. I like graphs.
Being an unapologetic geek, it shouldn't come as a surprise that I take a decidedly mechanistic view toward the human body. I think that most things regarding the body can be described using the same terms as one would use for any machine. Weight loss? Burn more fuel than you consume. Want to run faster? Race like you train; train like you race. The whole relationship between fitness, heart rate, metabolism, and all that crap makes perfect sense to me because of my overarching attitude toward this fleshy transport device for our brains we haul around all day. I would be a decent track coach for the Borg.
[The enigmatic brain is a bit of a black box, but for now, my research shows that beer seems to keep everything up there on an even keel.]
So having said all this, you might be surprised to learn that I don't run with a heart rate monitor [HRM]. I know what you're saying. [Duh.] The reason why I haven't, though, is pretty sound, I think. I think I am already pretty overladen with crap when I run. Right now, in order to do this activity that human beings have been doing since Ancestor Monkey first fell out of a tree, I have to have my Nike+ sports kit, my Road ID ankle bracelet [in case of emergency], and a technical shirt. At least. Not a lot of crap, but I am also thinking about getting a hydration pack. And I often feel like I ought to pack a cell phone just in case. But I don't want to be rolling down the street looking like these idiots:
The thing is I do own a heart rate monitor -- a Polar FS1, official HRM of the Amish. [No offense to all you web-surfing Amish.] It doesn't get more minimalist than the FS1. It only has one button, saves only one workout, and provides only two statistics -- average heart rate and elapsed time. For a while, I owned a cheap, off-brand HRM that allowed you to configure one heart rate zone, and it had an audible alarm if you were outside the zone. It stopped working one day. So I think that another part of the reason I don't run with a HRM is that the one I have is so basic. I need more data. Lame, I know.
But I've been thinking that I am at a point in my "running career," whatever that means, that I ought to pay attention to quality. Up to now, I have just been concerned about checking off the workout and accumulating mileage. Now, I'm thinking more about efficiency and optimization. After all, if I am going to do something to benefit my health, shouldn't I try to maximize that benefit if possible?
I need to start running with a heart rate monitor to ensure that I don't over-train or [more likely] under-train. If I want to improve my speed and maximize the fitness benefit of my running, which I do, then I need to push it. I'm not going to push it on my own. Therefore, I am going to start using my trusty Amish HRM and see what happens. I'll keep you posted.
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