Originally Posted by
cohophysh
So your thoughts. I'm 46, so do all the math and for an aerobic work out it says that 80% is about 139bpm. Okay, I am still breathing through my nose at that point. Now if I go until I can talk (as some convential wisdom recommends) but not sing my HR is about 165-175, which is obviously way out of the 80% range. So what are your thoughts? My only bad is I am a type 2 diabetic. No sign of heart disease, no angina, no heart issues whatsoever.
Your cycling maximum heart rate is your cycling maximum heart rate.
The formulas just produce an average, with a standard deviation of 10-12 beats.
Assuming the forumula you chose returned 173 and a 12 beat standard deviation, there's a 68% chance that your maximum heart rate falls within the range 161-185, a 14% chance for 149-161 and 14% for 185-197, a 2% chance for 137-149 and 2% for 197-209, etc.
That makes the formulas worthless for training purposes.
Your lactate threshold also varies with a low of perhaps 60% of VO2 max and 75% of maximum heart rate in sedentary individuals to maybe 90% of VO2 max and 95% of maximum heart rate in some elite endurance athletes.
So even knowing your maximum heart rate doesn't help too much.
The simplest inexpensive thing to do is to find your LTHR by riding as hard as you can for 30 minutes without stopping and average your heart rate over the last 20 minutes per Joe Friel's
The Cyclist's Training Bible. Set your zones based on that under (1 active recovery, 2 endurance, 3 tempo) around (zone 4 threshold) and over (zone 5) with definitions varying depending on who you talk to (IIRC Friel runs zone 4 up to LTHR, starts 5a there, and adds 5b/5c)
Chris Carmichael's test protocol outlined in
The Time Crunched Cyclist: Fit, Fast, and Powerful in 6 Hours a Week has a pair of 8 minute maximum efforts separated by an easy 10 minute spin; that's easier to do and easier to accommodate with traffic outside in suburban settings although the resulting zone definitions will be different.
If you really want you can do a ramp test to find your maximum aerobic power and cycling maximum heart rate (you get different muscle recruitment running, swimming, etc. and therefore different maximum heart rates).