A few weeks ago, I went on a group run with the women's run group I lead. We ran easy, we chatted the whole time, and we were moving at a pace that was at least 3 minutes per mile slower than my solo effort pace.
It was one of those runs where you're moving, breathing, connecting, being — not pushing. But guess what my watch told me when I uploaded it?
“Unproductive.”
Because my heart rate was “too high” for the pace I was running.
I laughed, but I also rolled my eyes.
Because this is the exact kind of moment that shows how heart rate training can mislead you — especially if you're femme, midlife, or navigating real life in a real body.
Let’s talk about it.
The Promise (and Problem) of Heart Rate Training
Heart rate training can be helpful — in theory. But it only works when it’s:
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Personalized
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Regularly updated
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Used in context of your actual life and body
Which is rarely how it’s applied.
Instead, athletes get sold on:
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Heart rate zones from a generic smartwatch formula
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VO₂max test results from years ago
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One-size-fits-all methods like MAF
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And "status updates" from their device that say things like “Unproductive,” “Overreaching,” or “Peaking” — even when the athlete feels great
If you’re training off this kind of feedback without questioning where it came from or whether it fits you, it’s easy to start thinking you’re the problem when the training stops working.
You’re not the problem.
The system is.
Even VO₂max Isn’t the Gold Standard
Let’s say you’ve done a VO₂max test. Maybe even more than once. That’s great.
But VO₂max is a snapshot, not a stable identity. It changes — sometimes daily.
Factors that can shift your VO₂max:
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Sleep quality
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Stress (mental or physical)
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Illness, inflammation, or allergies
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Where you are in your cycle or menopause transition
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What time of day you test
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What you ate (or didn’t eat) before
That fancy lab result? It may not reflect what your body can actually do on this day, in this moment, under these conditions. So if you're basing all your zones on a VO₂max test from 3 years ago? That’s just wishful thinking with a side of outdated data.
Smartwatches Still Aren’t Femme Tech
Now let’s talk about the gear.
Smartwatches weren’t built for femme physiology. They:
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Struggle with accuracy on smaller wrists or darker skin tones
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Misinterpret hormone-related fatigue as “overtraining”
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Don’t track perimenopause, HRT, or even the complexity of our stress response
And while I appreciate that companies are trying to improve, let’s be real: when your watch gives you a status like “unproductive” because your heart rate spiked while you were talking on a social run, it’s clear the device doesn’t understand the assignment.
Storytime: My Heart Rate on a Social Run
So back to that run. I’m running with friends, talking the entire time. My pace is 3+ minutes slower than usual. I feel amazing. I’m in the zone — and I don’t mean Garmin Zone 2.
But I get home, upload the data, and Garmin hits me with:
“Unproductive” — high heart rate for low pace.
Yeah. Because I was talking. Which requires breath control, which increases HR. That’s not overtraining. That’s just being a human having a conversation while moving.
But my watch wasn’t built to recognize joy, connection, or hormonal nuance.
It only sees metrics, not meaning.
Why the MAF Formula May Not Work for Peri and Menopausal Athletes
The classic MAF formula — 180 minus your age — sounds simple and neat, but that simplicity is exactly the problem for many peri and menopausal athletes.
Hormones during this phase of life are anything but stable. Estrogen and progesterone levels fluctuate wildly, impacting your heart rate, recovery, fatigue, and even perceived effort. That means:
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Your “true” aerobic threshold could shift day to day or week to week.
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Heart rate zones based on a static formula might send you too hard on some days, too easy on others.
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You may feel fatigued or “off” despite your heart rate looking perfect on paper — or feel great when your watch says you’re overreaching.
So relying on 180 minus age without factoring in hormonal changes or life stressors is like trying to drive a car by only looking at the speedometer while ignoring the road conditions.
In short: MAF’s formula wasn’t designed with the complexity of peri/menopausal physiology in mind, and treating it like gospel can leave you frustrated, burnt out, or worse — sidelined.
Here’s Why All of This Matters
Because your heart rate is a mood ring, not a machine.
It changes with:
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Hormones
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Sleep
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Fueling
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Hydration
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Stress
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Talking, laughing, arguing, parenting, existing
Your training plan needs to flex with that. Otherwise, you’re forcing your body to obey a set of numbers that weren’t designed for it.
And if you’re using heart rate zones as gospel, without checking in on how you actually feel, you risk:
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Training too hard on days you should back off
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Training too easy when your body’s ready to push
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Blaming yourself for “unproductive” results that are based on flawed or incomplete tech
What Works Better?
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RPE + breath talk test
If you can talk but not sing, you’re in aerobic territory. If you’re gasping, back off. That’s better data than your watch. -
Tracking your patterns
Learn how your body responds across your cycle (or without one) and adjust based on energy, mood, and recovery. -
Contextual metrics
Use HR, VO₂max, and other numbers as supporting data, not dictators. -
Body wisdom > device data
If you feel good, you probably are doing good. Trust that.
Don’t Let the Algorithm Kill Your Joy
That slow run where you’re laughing with friends? That counts.
That walk where your HR is high because you’re overstimulated and didn’t sleep? That counts too.
Your heart rate isn’t a moral compass. It’s just a signal.
And it’s one of many.
So let’s stop letting outdated formulas and one-size-fits-all tech define what a “good” training day looks like — and start honoring what actually helps us move, feel, and thrive.
Want coaching that understands this? That respects your physiology and your lived reality?
This is what I do. Let’s build a smarter, more adaptable training approach — for your body, not some watch’s opinion of it.