Are you one of those who thinks that you have to finish running and feel as if a tractor had run over you? Are you worried that you didn’t sweat enough in the workout you did today?
If you think like this, you are wrong, since a good workout is not measured by how sore you are after executing it, nor by what has made you sweat. There are other factors to know if your running training is being correct or on the contrary you are passing for the level of physical condition you have.
How do you know if your running training is correct?
1. Pay attention to your heart rate
This parameter is probably the most objective way to check the level of your training.
To do a good workout you must calculate your maximum heart rate. For this, there are numerous formulas on the Internet, which will give you an approximate value with which to make estimates. If you really want to know your exact value you will have to undergo a stress test, where they will get the maximum threshold that you can reach in your workouts.
An important detail with which you can check if your body has reacted correctly to the training carried out the day before is to measure the heart rate at rest just after waking up from sleep. If your pulse is slightly higher than other days, it means that you have not been able to recover from the training you did the day before, so you should lower the intensity in the next workouts.
2. Put a note on the training you do
This system is what is known as the rate of perceived exertion . Some authors say that a scale from 1 to 10 should be considered, where 1 is the minimum effort that can be made and 10 the maximum effort.
This scale will help us to assess the work done as it seemed to us, that is, after training you should give it a grade based on your scale of effort. If your grade exceeds 8, you should pay attention to routines of this type, since they will probably be too high for your state of form.
3. Find out your level of recovery between intervals
Many of you will surely be including interval training in your routine due to the many advantages that it presents.
HIIT training has scientifically proven benefits when it comes to burning fat and conserving muscles, therefore, it is a highly advisable method to use, but we must pay attention to the recovery between intervals of our heart, since it is a quite important value with the which we can perceive the effort we are making.
A good workout should allow your heart rate to drop considerably after a minute. If, on the other hand, these pauses do not allow you to recover correctly, you should increase them in order to achieve a good rest that allows you to be able to execute the next interval of work.
4. Watch your sleep
One of the proven benefits of sport is that it helps us fall asleep. With a single session your quality of sleep is capable of being improved, so you should pay attention to what you sleep, since it can be an indicator that your training routine is being adequate.
On the contrary, if you perceive lack of sleep or difficulty conceiving it, it could be an indicator of overtraining.
5. Assess your level of attention throughout the day
Numerous studies show the benefits that physical activity provides with regard to attention and performance during the rest of the day. These benefits do not take long to be experienced, since with a couple of workouts a week you can obtain the benefits that are associated with sports practice.
Ideally, after your training, the rest of the day you feel with much greater attention and vitality. If, on the other hand, your workouts make you feel fatigued and with little vitality, this is a sign that this training is not adequate for the level at which you are currently.
Reference
- Duron, Alexandra. How to Know If You Actually Got a Good Workout. For Greatist. ⌈Revised August 2016⌉.
