Pacing can be very challenging but technology can be used alongside listening to your body and how you feel as a guide. Monitoring your heart rate can provide an understanding of how hard your body may be working during or after activities, allow you to monitor symptoms, predict and reduce the risk of future crashes, validate how you feel, and create a sense of independence or control.
High-accuracy wearable technology can help measure exertion and rest by using heart rate and movement data. By analysing this data in real-time, it can help you to find, and stay, within your energy envelope.
Alerts act as your personal guide, signaling when you're crossing your anaerobic threshold and potentially over-exerting. Real-time notifications can help you to consider slowing down or taking a break to reduce the chances of a crash.
These alerts can be helpful for two reasons:
Immediate Action: The moment you cross into your over-exertion zone, you can reduce your exertion or stop to rest, reducing the risk of a crash.
Increased Awareness: Regular alerts help you become more attuned to your body's limitations, enabling you to make better choices about your activities going forward.
The key aim of heart rate monitored pacing is to help you balance your rest and activity so that you can do more, with less. More information on this topic can be found here:
Workwell HRM Sheet (With the caveat that we don't use the same zones and thresholds as the Workwell Foundation)