twobikes

I was there two weeks, but never rode a bicycle. We saw lots of people riding bikes everywhere. I saw only a couple of road bikes. The rest were utilitarian city bikes. Most had the butterfly trekking handlebars . Most were derailleur shift with around 21 speeds. There were a few coaster brake bikes. Quite a few had internally geared hubs, mostly three speeds. Most had generator powered lights. Some were generator hubs. Just about all of the components were Shimano.

We were driving from place to place with a rental car visiting friends. The GPS was invaluable.

I met a German who is training for a half marathon. He had just lost about 40 pounds and looked very trim. He spoke very highly of using a heart rate monitor for weight loss and for conditioning. So, I went to Wal-Mart last evening and bought a MIO Sport HRM watch for less than $30. It seems to work very well, but it is very difficult to take a reading while riding. Firmly grasping the handlebars or pressing against anything with the hand on the arm wearing the watch results in no reading. Already I learned I have probably been riding too hard and need to be more patient about my progress.

JPradun

Riding too hard? Doubt it.

Strap the watch to the handlebars. I'd just invest in a better HRM.

twobikes

MIO HRM watches require the steel plate on the backside of the watch to be in contact with skin on your arm in order to give a reading. Hanging the watch on the handlebars would not work.

A year ago I picked up a copy of the German magazine Fit for Fun while in an airport. It is published by the folks who run the German Sports University in Cologne. They published a small book called Cycling and Health available free for download. They claim 80 percent of cyclists train too hard and that works against them achieving their goals. The German man I met is a very firm believer in staying in the pulse rate range. For weight loss that is 65 to 80 percent of maximum heart rate. He said simply, "It works!" That means I need to ride a little easier than I have been riding. I will try to report back later, but perhaps in the Clydesdale section.