heart rate for newbies

[screenman]

After a few years break about 6 or 7 years ago I got back to fitness using the Mathetone methods, I often go back to it now for a few weeks and it seems to work well for me.

 

[ADarkDraconis]

All very true, but...

SHINY THINGS!
GRAPHS!
STATISTICS!
KUDOS ON STRAVA!

Most men (especially myself) are suckers for all that stuff. It adds to my enjoyment of cycling and let's face it, if that wasn't a basic truth most of the companies making the stuff would be out of business post haste.

I find the people that generally care about Strava bragging and such are in all likelihood similar to the people that care how many 'likes' on facebook on instagram they get. If you enjoy it, more power to you! I don't think it has anything to do with what genitalia you are equipped with.

 

[si_c]

I find the people that generally care about Strava bragging and such are in all likelihood similar to the people that care how many 'likes' on facebook on instagram they get. If you enjoy it, more power to you! I don't think it has anything to do with what genitalia you are equipped with.

There are a few people who indulge in strava bragging, but people use it for different reasons. Mrs C uses it to calorie track, and to be honest, that's also the biggest reason I started to use it, but then I also like numbers, more numbers = more fun.

 

[bpsmith]

... you don't need technology to tell you that you feel stronger or faster or fitter.

You do on this forum. The moment you say “I felt faster” or similar, someone comes along and asks for the proof in scientific form and/or with the numbers to match. When you can’t quite put your finger in it or “prove it”, you get shot down.

 

[ADarkDraconis]

You do on this forum. The moment you say “I felt faster” or similar, someone comes along and asks for the proof in scientific form and/or with the numbers to match. When you can’t quite put your finger in it or “prove it”, you get shot down.

That's a shame.

 

[hoopdriver]

I think the thing to do is ignore those people and leave them to their own private numbers-driven hells.

 

[eagles633]

I think the thing to do is ignore those people and leave them to their own private numbers-driven hells.

It's not all about the numbers tbf. You need gadgets also

 

[ADarkDraconis]

It's not all about the numbers tbf. You need gadgets also View attachment 400293

Gaaaaah, at least use black zipties!!! Nice looking bike, though.

 

[eagles633]

Had to wait for the snow to melt before nipping out for a 12 miler today. Did 5 mile outwards miles uphill and 5 miles back into a biting wind below zero degrees. It Felt like biking through sludge. Still got out there though
Got back and the garmin said i needed 48 hours rest this time. That's down from 72 hours from a similar ride last week. So all heading in the right direction.
Gotta say thx to @nickAKA for the heads up on stravafix. I'd of probably overtrained without the info on there.

 

[si_c]

Had to wait for the snow to melt before nipping out for a 12 miler today. Did 5 mile outwards miles uphill and 5 miles back into a biting wind below zero degrees. It Felt like biking through sludge. Still got out there though
Got back and the garmin said i needed 48 hours rest this time. That's down from 72 hours from a similar ride last week. So all heading in the right direction.
Gotta say thx to @nickAKA for the heads up on stravafix. I'd of probably overtrained without the info on there.

I wouldn't necessarily worry about overtraining tbh, just go on how you are feeling. If you fancy going out for a ride, go for it, don't worry about whether you should still be recovering or not. The body is marvellously adaptive and as long as you get a decent amount of sleep and eat properly, the worst that will happen is you will feel a little more tired than the day before, and your legs will ache a bit.

I'm currently hovering around -70 as my fitness/fatigue figure, but I know I'll have no real problems commuting to or from work this week, as I'm used to it.

 

[eagles633]

I wouldn't necessarily worry about overtraining tbh, just go on how you are feeling. If you fancy going out for a ride, go for it, don't worry about whether you should still be recovering or not. The body is marvellously adaptive and as long as you get a decent amount of sleep and eat properly, the worst that will happen is you will feel a little more tired than the day before, and your legs will ache a bit.

I'm currently hovering around -70 as my fitness/fatigue figure, but I know I'll have no real problems commuting to or from work this week, as I'm used to it.

Nice graph. Nice consistent effort you got going there. I'm hoping to replicate your work.
Interesting to see you're going into the overload. Iv'e been going over it and coming back down to the optimal level. I have been listening to my body and at the moment the 1 day training 2 days off seems to be good for me. Iv'e been shattered on my 2 rest days. The garmin connect app seems to be confirming what i'm feeling as in rest needed.
I think iv'e seen you comment somewhere that you are using cycling in helping weight loss. How are you getting on if you don't mind me asking.
The main reason i'm cycling is to aid weight loss.

 

[Alan O]

I wouldn't necessarily worry about overtraining tbh, just go on how you are feeling. If you fancy going out for a ride, go for it, don't worry about whether you should still be recovering or not. The body is marvellously adaptive and as long as you get a decent amount of sleep and eat properly, the worst that will happen is you will feel a little more tired than the day before, and your legs will ache a bit.

I'm currently hovering around -70 as my fitness/fatigue figure, but I know I'll have no real problems commuting to or from work this week, as I'm used to it.

I had a try with the Strava chart thing, but I have to say I really can't make much sense of what I'm supposed to be getting from it - it looks like over-analysis from too limited data to me. And if you over-train, your body will soon tell you.

 

[nickAKA]

I find the people that generally care about Strava bragging and such are in all likelihood similar to the people that care how many 'likes' on facebook on instagram they get. If you enjoy it, more power to you! I don't think it has anything to do with what genitalia you are equipped with.

The bragging aspect is of little interest to me tbh but I wouldn't consider being 'proud' of our (small) achievments a negative thing, I personally find it motivating. I don't follow many or have many followers on strava, I just follow my mates who are like-minded - as in they're cycling / running for fitness, and being of a similar vintage it's good to see how their efforts compare with mine. Different strokes for different folks, there isn't a black & white right / wrong way of doing it so it's whatever makes you happy IMO...

 

[nickAKA]

I wouldn't necessarily worry about overtraining tbh, just go on how you are feeling. If you fancy going out for a ride, go for it, don't worry about whether you should still be recovering or not. The body is marvellously adaptive and as long as you get a decent amount of sleep and eat properly, the worst that will happen is you will feel a little more tired than the day before, and your legs will ache a bit.

I'm currently hovering around -70 as my fitness/fatigue figure, but I know I'll have no real problems commuting to or from work this week, as I'm used to it.

Your base fitness level is the deciding factor in how much recovery you need, but I do find the stravistix 'form' measure pretty good for me, personally. I aim to keep my form above the recommended -30, which currently means I take a day off every 3 or 4 days - seems sensible to me. The forward projections are handy if you're working toward something specific so you know when to reduce your training to allow a fuller recovery.

DISCLAIMER - I am in NO WAY an expert, I'm quoting what stravistix say here and present this info without prejudice or favour...

 

[si_c]

I had a try with the Strava chart thing, but I have to say I really can't make much sense of what I'm supposed to be getting from it - it looks like over-analysis from too limited data to me. And if you over-train, your body will soon tell you.

Absolutely, I do find it seems to track fairly well with how I feel, but being able to quantify it helps me moderate the intensity of any work I do during the second half of the week.

Nice graph. Nice consistent effort you got going there. I'm hoping to replicate your work.
Interesting to see you're going into the overload. Iv'e been going over it and coming back down to the optimal level. I have been listening to my body and at the moment the 1 day training 2 days off seems to be good for me. Iv'e been shattered on my 2 rest days. The garmin connect app seems to be confirming what i'm feeling as in rest needed.
I think iv'e seen you comment somewhere that you are using cycling in helping weight loss. How are you getting on if you don't mind me asking.
The main reason i'm cycling is to aid weight loss.

I'd end up in the overload zone I think just from commuting week to week, as even with two rest days at the weekend it shows me as having recovered less than might be expected. However as @nickAKA says below, provided I have at least one solid day a week off the bike I'm not particularly fatigued on a Monday morning for the commute.

As for weight loss, in total I've lost a little over 6stone (~80lbs or 40kg), I'd quite happily lose another stone though, which is what I'm working on presently. But that has been over about 3 years since I started cycling, and last year my net weight loss was slightly below zero as I was far too happy eating lots of crap.

Your base fitness level is the deciding factor in how much recovery you need, but I do find the stravistix 'form' measure pretty good for me, personally. I aim to keep my form above the recommended -30, which currently means I take a day off every 3 or 4 days - seems sensible to me. The forward projections are handy if you're working toward something specific so you know when to reduce your training to allow a fuller recovery.

Definitely agree, I've only been tracking it really since the start of the year, but it has hinted to me on a couple of occasions that perhaps I shouldn't go for th extended ride at the weekend and perhaps an extra rest day is a good idea.