Road Cycling - Ave HR on rides/races

I'm interested in your average heart rate expressed as a percentage of max (actual h/r numbers mean nothing) over a period of time:

For example, over a 2-hours period, on a hard ride, what is your average HR expressed as a % of max? I did what I consider a good, hard effort on a 2-hour ride last evening, and my average was right @80%. Now bear in mind that I'm back on the bike less than 2 weeks following a tibia fracture, so I'm nowhere near top form. However, looking back @ my logs, I've also done as much as 88% over the same period of time.

So, what are your %-of-max-hr numbers over a specific period of time? What do you garner from those numbers? ThanX!

On my rides, I average 80%. On my runs, about 4 to 5 miles, I average 85%.

On a nice long, aerobic ride (2-5 hrs) I try to stay at 73-77% of my max. On hammering group rides (up to 2 hrs) I've been as high as 85-88% of max.

I try to stay within the 80 % of max HR. However, I only have a MHR of 165! I know it sucks! But I just can't breath anymore when I hit 165 bpm. On another note, is there anything I can do to increase my MHR?

I'm interested in your average heart rate expressed as a percentage of max (actual h/r numbers mean nothing) over a period of time:

For example, over a 2-hours period, on a hard ride, what is your average HR expressed as a % of max? I did what I consider a good, hard effort on a 2-hour ride last evening, and my average was right @80%. Now bear in mind that I'm back on the bike less than 2 weeks following a tibia fracture, so I'm nowhere near top form. However, looking back @ my logs, I've also done as much as 88% over the same period of time.

So, what are your %-of-max-hr numbers over a specific period of time? What do you garner from those numbers? ThanX!

Over a 2 hour ride, my average HR is around 85% of max.

Actually, I would prefer if people talk a little about speed as well. I hardly reach 80% of my max. My max is 206 running, not sure about cycling max. I average about 120, reaching up to 140 on my rides of 2 hours, so the average is around 60% of my max. My speed is about a 25km/h average. What I do know is that the pros also ride around 60% of their max for aerobic effort, but their speeds are way above mine. I read about Lance's ceiling of 129 bpm when doing his aerobic effort rides... but for him extends up to 5 hours or so. Freaky!!

I have no idea where I stand... but coming off from my running, I'm currently building up my base for cycling. So, yeah, that is about it.

I try to stay within the 80 % of max HR. However, I only have a MHR of 165! I know it sucks! But I just can't breath anymore when I hit 165 bpm. On another note, is there anything I can do to increase my MHR?


HRT says nothing abou performance, as you get fitter your max will most likely drop. you say you can't breath at 165 what happins, Asthma? coughing?

For the past week, my average HR has been 83% of max on my rides.
For the month of May, my average HR was 71% of max.

HRT says nothing abou performance, as you get fitter your max will most likely drop. you say you can't breath at 165 what happins, Asthma? coughing?


First of, thanks for your interest in my reply. When I hit 165 bpm, I just pant like crazy and can hardly keep up with my breath. If you say that my MHR will drop as I get fitter, what physical indications can I use to tell that I am getting sronger other than the fact (if ever) that I can hang with the big boys on club rides. Thanks again in advance for your reply

I struggle with this...I run a high HR when I ride. My max is about 199-202, I haven't tested it in a long time but hit 199 recently. When I ride I spend a lot of time in the 160's to 175 if we are riding at a good pace...(18-19mph avg.on rollers without much drafting). Many of those I ride with seem to be 10-15 beats lower. I just climbed Sherman pass...2.5hrs 162-182 hr the whole way, stopped to pee twice but no other breaks, not a level spot for 15 mi. plus. My partner was at 145-160 hr.

I feel that I need to make my easier days easier and my hard days harder but it is hard to do. even on easy days I get to 175 hr on some of the climbs while trying to stay below 155 for the ride. On hard days when we hammer I can hit the 190 - 195 on climbing sprints and spend a lot of time in the 180's...too much time!

Riding in the 150's-160's is just the way I ride, not overly taxing, just my zone. I read training info and it seems to indicate this is too high a range to be in so often. I do feel that I get worn down more than others and have to be careful. RotorCranks seem to be lowering HR but lets not go there...lol

I just climbed Sherman pass...2.5hrs 162-182 hr the whole way, stopped to pee twice but no other breaks, not a level spot for 15 mi. plus. My partner was at 145-160

Does your partner have the same MHR?

First of, thanks for your interest in my reply. When I hit 165 bpm, I just pant like crazy and can hardly keep up with my breath. If you say that my MHR will drop as I get fitter, what physical indications can I use to tell that I am getting sronger other than the fact (if ever) that I can hang with the big boys on club rides. Thanks again in advance for your reply

Hello, I am fairly new to biking but have over 10 years experience in Nuclear Medicine and work with several Cardiologists so I can give you a little bit of educated information. You Max heart rate will not increase as you get fitter, it does go down with age. The number 220 minus your age gives you a rough idea of what your 100% heart rate is.

You can test (although not many do) to find out what your TRUE max heart rate is. You run a treadmill protocol with an Oxygen mask on, they take constant measurements and plot onto a graph measuring your true oxygen consumption.

When you hit 165 bpm (you are wearing a heart rate monitor, right?) and you say you cannot breath, I assume you are hitting your anaerobic threshold which means your heart/lungs cannot keep up with oxygen demand. As you train more, it will be harder and harder to get to your max heart rate, the heart becomes stronger, vessels become larger, and you can increase the stroke volume (amount of blood the heart pumps). Training hard can, in some cases, cause collateral vessels to grow in the coronary artery system. Disclaimer-You should not substitute my advice for the advice of your physician.

Good luck

I assume so...same age, he's a better rider naturally, but I'm training more than he is right now. I do find that riders that I ride with, are fitter and faster, have similar Max HR, can't ride as long in the 180's as I can. They rarely get to that point, but when hammering at the end of the ride, I'm just cooked and get dropped.

I too run a high HR.

When in shape 4 years ago my HR would be 180+ for hours at a time (did a double and HR was 180+ via manual check everytime that I checked) I recall a ride once where I kept my HR at 190-194 (HR monitor) for 2 hours. I was able to talk still, tho labored. (I took this to mean that I was under my AT)

Here recently I'm back on the bike. My max HR so far has been 175 just this sat. Prior to that was 174. I have been averaging 156-157 for my hard rides. (2.5 - 3 hours)(last five hard rides have been this duration, same average)

I'm 37 so its posible that 175 or so is my max. Using it the 157 represents a very high % as a sustained average.

These rides vary in climbing, but ave speed is 15.3-16.2MPH for the ride. Distance between 38 and 50 miles.

Hello, I am fairly new to biking but have over 10 years experience in Nuclear Medicine and work with several Cardiologists so I can give you a little bit of educated information. You Max heart rate will not increase as you get fitter, it does go down with age. The number 220 minus your age gives you a rough idea of what your 100% heart rate is.

You can test (although not many do) to find out what your TRUE max heart rate is. You run a treadmill protocol with an Oxygen mask on, they take constant measurements and plot onto a graph measuring your true oxygen consumption.

When you hit 165 bpm (you are wearing a heart rate monitor, right?) and you say you cannot breath, I assume you are hitting your anaerobic threshold which means your heart/lungs cannot keep up with oxygen demand. As you train more, it will be harder and harder to get to your max heart rate, the heart becomes stronger, vessels become larger, and you can increase the stroke volume (amount of blood the heart pumps). Training hard can, in some cases, cause collateral vessels to grow in the coronary artery system. Disclaimer-You should not substitute my advice for the advice of your physician.

Good luck

That makes total sense (fitter = bigger heart = less taxing). Thanks for the response. I'm going for my yearly physical (last time was ages ago) and see what the doctor says. Althought I've measured my resting HR (as soon as I wake up in the morning) and it was at 48 bpm (woohoo!)

On a nice long, aerobic ride (2-5 hrs) I try to stay at 73-77% of my max. On hammering group rides (up to 2 hrs) I've been as high as 85-88% of max.

From many things I've read, it is a good idea to do a large part of your training in the aerobic zone (70%-80% of max.) I also have a testimonial about his... I began training with a HRM this spring, for the first time, and I've seen excellent results already. My resting pulse has dropped by about 20 BPM, and I can now maintain average speeds of 18-20 MPH for 3-5 hours without "blowing up."

Until the end of last summer, I rode with only a speedometer, and gauged my rides by average speed. From what I remember of my perceived efforts, I was training far too hard. I did a 68 mile solo ride this past weekend, with 4000+ feel of climbing, at an average speed of 18.3 MPH. My speed for the second half of the ride was 19.7 MPH (big time negative split.) This was my fastest time ever for that particular course, even though my previous best came after far more miles of riding (last summer) and I weighed 15 pounds less. I attribute the improvement to an increase in aerobic fitness, as a result of doing a lot of work to build up my "aerobic base."

I still do group rides once or twice a week, for enjoyment. It's a nice change of pace, and the anaerobic training is good for increasing resistance to lactic acid. Soon, I hope that I'll even be able to do the group rides predominantly in my aerobic zone (except when we hammer the hills, of course... :D )

I'm interested in your average heart rate expressed as a percentage of max (actual h/r numbers mean nothing) over a period of time:

For example, over a 2-hours period, on a hard ride, what is your average HR expressed as a % of max? I did what I consider a good, hard effort on a 2-hour ride last evening, and my average was right @80%. Now bear in mind that I'm back on the bike less than 2 weeks following a tibia fracture, so I'm nowhere near top form. However, looking back @ my logs, I've also done as much as 88% over the same period of time.

So, what are your %-of-max-hr numbers over a specific period of time? What do you garner from those numbers? ThanX!

I did what I consider an easy solo tempo ride on Saturday and the numbers were as follows
Time - 2:50
Distance - 56.2 miles
Average HR - 137 (70-71% of est. max)
Average MPH - 19.8
Average Watts - 201

The wattage number may be skewed a little low as it includes 0s or non-pedaling time into the average. Normalized power might be 20-30 watts higher... only guessing as I didn't download the ride.
Conditions were just about ideal for riding with temps around 80, no large climbs to speak of (only some rollers), light traffic roads outside of the city with few stoplights and only a light breeze of maybe 5-10mph on the way out. When I finished this ride, I wanted to go another 2 hours but knew I was doing big gear hill repeats the following morning at 6:30 so I left it at that (wife had also called twice which made the choice even easier).

For perspective, my max HR is over 194 as I've seen 194 on the bike and wasn't ready to keel over (last season). This year I hit 193 once during the final sprint of a criterium. An average TT hr for me would be somewhere between 178 and 182 depending on the day.

Most team training rides see an average HR of anywhere from 130-145 but it really doesn't mean much unless it's a steady tempo. On rides where the average is 130, I may spend 80% of the time at a 120HR softpedaling while the other 20 percent is spent at a 180HR which is a way harder ride than one where I spend the whole time at a 135-140HR. During the hard portions of a ride when the pace is really going, I may be somewhere around 160-165HR sitting in and around 180-185HR on the front.

I did what I consider an easy solo tempo ride on Saturday and the numbers were as follows
Time - 2:50
Distance - 56.2 miles
Average HR - 137 (70-71% of est. max)
Average MPH - 19.8
Average Watts - 201

Great info., BikeInMN!!!!! ThanX! :)