Heart Rates - 1st use of a HRM. What's it mean?

[DCLane]

OK - I've finally used the HRM in my Bryton Rider 35 in the Otley Sportive today: http://www.cyclechat.net/threads/the-otley-sportive-2nd-year-15th-september-2012.109236/

It went loopy the end (reading 243bpm then 0bpm ) but the first 70 miles should be at a steady 130-174bpm. Apparently I'd stopped it but it was still recording.

I've posted the results below and at http://www.brytonsport.com/mapTrackView?id=1284169 , with slight adjustment for the heart attack/dead bit at first - advice please. What's it all mean? I'm a quite fit 42 year-old male.

Avg HR 159 bpm
Max HR 174 bpm
Uphill Avg HR 164 bpm
Downhill Avg HR 158 bpm

Zone1 01:04:30 (20.15%)
Zone2 01:10:27 (22.01%)
Zone3 00:49:00 (15.31%)
Zone4 01:27:47 (27.42%)
Zone5 00:04:49 (1.5%)
Zone6 00:03:33 (1.11%)
Zone7 00:40:00 (12.5%) - a lot of this is at the end, it's about 2% elsewhere

 

[black'n'yellow]

unfortunately, without knowing what your true maximum HR is - it doesn't actually mean anything...

 

[DCLane]

unfortunately, without knowing what your true maximum HR is - it doesn't actually mean anything...

Thanks. Another stupid question - how do I find this out?

I'm 42.

Using the 220-age guesstimate = 178 ?
Using the 214-(0.8 x age) for men alternative I get 180.4

 

[HLaB]

Thanks. Another stupid question - how do I find this out?

I'm 42.

Using the 220-age guesstimate = 178 ?
Using the 214-(0.8 x age) for men alternative I get 180.4

220 minus age is garbage for me and most folk I believe; going by that I'm 21 again, just like I was 16years ago

 

[black'n'yellow]

theoretical numbers are exactly that - my max HR is about 13-15bpm higher than those formulas suggest. The only way to be certain is to put yourself through a DIY ramp test and see what you get.

Warm up for a good 30mins, then find a local, long-ish hill. Ride hard all the way up, then at about 1/4 distance from the top, sprint flat out until you are over the top. The highest number you see will probably be close to your max. All of this presumes you are medically fit, with no heart problems - it's not pleasant and it;s not the sort of thing you want to be doing too often.

 

[black'n'yellow]

then do it again, until you vomit. THATs your max.

unless you actually plan on vomiting during races, then there's no need to go that far. You just need a number to train by that is 'reasonably' close to your max HR - it doesn't necessarily have to be exact, especially if you are training by %HR, it will be near enough within a few beats...

 

[DCLane]

All of this presumes you are medically fit, with no heart problems - it's not pleasant and it;s not the sort of thing you want to be doing too often.

Thanks. No heart problems (or blood pressure ones - now!). However, I'm asthmatic, which is what's causing issues on some steep hills if I'm caught unawares.

I'll give it a go ... well, except the vomiting bit

 

[wmtlynx]

Don't max out for too long our too often. But it's always good to see how much you have left to give when climbing our sprinting. I've got up to 191 myself. But, if I'm climbing a hill and think I can't make it, look down and see 165bpm then I know I still have more to give. HR monitor yet to prove wrong on this.

 

[black'n'yellow]

Don't max out for too long our too often. But it's always good to see how much you have left to give when climbing our sprinting. I've got up to 191 myself. But, if I'm climbing a hill and think I can't make it, look down and see 165bpm then I know I still have more to give. HR monitor yet to prove wrong on this.

your HR is not really an indication of 'how much you have left in the tank'. In most circumstances like that, you will hit your VO2 max long before you hit your HR max..

 

[Nigelnaturist]

Just query on another aspect, I just looked at your cadence it shows 85 max downhill avg 85 and nothing for avg or uphill, or did you add this later.

 

[ColinJ]

When I was about 38, I did a 5 hour local ride wearing a Polar HRM. Towards the end of the ride when I was feeling tired, I came to the nasty steep climb at Thursden on the way back towards Widdop reservoir. There was a strong headwind blowing which made the tough climb tougher still. I used every last bit of my strength to stay on the bike and winch my way to the top. I must have got extremely close to my maximum HR. I checked the reading when I got home - 198 bpm!

I have no idea what it would be now. I'd guess about 180 bpm but it will be many months before I am well enough to risk finding out!

 

[ColinJ]

Oh, another thing ... There is a big discrepancy between the calories burned and weight loss figure! I reckon you would have burned a lot more fat than 78.8 g. I typically burn about 1 pound of fat per hilly 100 miles cycled, i.e. about 450 grams. You did a bit less than a century and are smaller than me, so I think you would have burned 250-350 grams of fat on that ride.

 

[SportMonkey]

Loopy at the end looks like battery issues - my polar does this. Split seems good for HR, so does average and max.

As for this trying to hit your maximum heart rate, unless you know you're fit and healthy it is not something you want to be doing without medical supervision. If you have problems with your heart running it that hard will end up with you on the floor and in a very bad way.

 

[Rob3rt]

You can also test your MHR indoors on a turbo, Warm up well for 15-20 mins, then from here until the end of the test, every 2 mins increase the effort level until you feel you can not raise it any more, then just give it one final empty the tank effort. Cool down well following. Then review the data. The highest HR achieved can be taken as your max (or you could take the average of the last 15-30 secs or something if there is some suspect looking data. Remember you only need a decent estimate, a beat here or there isn't going to be a problem.

You can also train using other HR methods, using the lactate threshold as used by Joe Friel in his book, the Cyclist's Training Bible. For this, there are several test methods such as a 2x20 min TT effort and your zones will be worked out in a different way, where there will be some sub-lactate threshold zones, and some zones that are >100% lactate threshold. Basically the same thing with a different reference.

then do it again, until you vomit. THATs your max.

Generally, you will reach your max HR some time before you experience any extreme adverse effect's other than the agony of a full blown effort.

 

[DCLane]

Just query on another aspect, I just looked at your cadence it shows 85 max downhill avg 85 and nothing for avg or uphill, or did you add this later.

It shouldn't show anything - there wasn't a battery in the Cadence meter!