Before I was pregnant, I'd use my Garmin as a guide for how fast to run. My average pace tended to be in the low 9:00s, so if I glanced down and saw myself edging towards the 10s, I'd speed up. That's not really working so well for me right now, at almost 6 weeks post-partum. Just trying to maintain a pace in the 9s in this period of recovery shoots my heart rate into the 180s.
The problem with a heart rate in the 180s? It makes me HATE running! And it's not healthy. It's also really hard to run a decent distance when you're so overtaxing your heart. I hate to think that my old comfortable pace is now "sprinting" to me, but it sure feels that way to my heart!
So now I'm running instead with my Polar F6, which just monitors heart rate and calories burned, and figuring out my pace after the fact by cross-checking my mileage with my time spent running.
It took me a lot of months of running and a leaner body weight to get to the 9s, and it's going to take a lot more miles and pounds lost again before I say goodbye to the 10s again. For now, I'm proud that I ran 3 miles this morning while my newborn slept at home.
you sure shouldn't be worrying about pace right now. I wish I could not focus on it some times myself. by the way... have you read Run Like a Mother? It's fantastic. they also have a blog and facebook page that are really great. http://runlikeamotherbook.com/
ReplyDeleteThanks for the rec!!Love it!!
ReplyDeleteto be running 3 miles at ANY pace is an amazing accomplishment, especially after giving birth/caring for a child..... Etc., Kudos!
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