Another fine day for running. Today, I extended my route to include the full length of the ravine near my home. It was really pleasant running in a pastoral setting for about two-thirds of the route, and it included a variety of surfaces: gravel, wood chips, mud, grass and asphalt. There's a huge difference running on wood chips vs. asphalt. My knees thanked me.
The new route took me longer to complete, and I was really exhausted by the time I reached home. My maximum heart rate is 170 (using the rule of thumb formula of 220 minus my age) and I believe I'm supposed to be exercising at about 85% of my maximum heart rate. Imagine my surprise when I glanced at the heart rate monitor to see 166 registering. That was the highest I've ever seen it. I didn't average 166 BPM, but I would say that I did average around 152 throughout, which is still a bit high. Overall, I kept up that rate for 27 minutes. Not bad for an old guy.
Recovery was another story. Although I took my recovery drink following the run, I felt bagged for much of the day. Instead of exercise leading to a heightened sense of energy, I felt the opposite, an indication that perhaps I overdid it. Perhaps I'll go back to the shorter route for a while, or slow down my pace a bit on the longer circuit.
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