3dsteve

ok im still new i just got a heart rate monitor ,i have a couple questions ,first how do i know what my max is ,and how do i know what i should cruse at (bpm) ,what is a good all around number to look for

pearcem

well, the only way to really determine your max. heart rate is to see what the highest heart rate you can achieve is. My coach got me to do this through the following test. Put your bike on a trainer. start of a 10 mph at whatever cadence you want. after 2 minutes, increase the speed by 2 mph. Repeat this until you can't go anymore and then do your best to sprint the finish (you don't want to pass out or throw up or anything, but you want to be exhausted at the end). If you don't have speed on your trainer set up, then make the increases by keeping your cadence as constant as pssible and increase your gearing every 2 minutes. This is obviously a tiring and involved test, so if you don't wan't to do this anytime soon, a lot of people use 220- their age to get a very approximate estimate of their max (so i would be 220- 18 = 202 max heart rate). This is an extremely vague and unspecific estimate, an it seems to become less accurate the more in shape you are (especially for older folks). You can defidently use this estimate, but for better accuracy, i would do a test. As for heart rate zones to stay in, they are calculated by percentage of that maximum heart rate. I don't know the exact percentages for the specific zones, but i do know that most people's lactic threshold is around 90-95% of their max. When you go above your lactic threshold, your body doesn't have enough O2 and begins creating lactic acid, which creates an intense burn. You can't sustain this for very long, so you want to keep your heart rate below this point. Other than that, i don't know the zones. I'm sure someone will be able to tell them to you.

martin_j001

There is no good all around number to look for, as each of us has a different maxHR, resting HR, lactate threshold, etc, etc. To estimate your maxHR, you can use the formula 221-your age (so if you are 28, your estimated maxHR would be 193bpm). This, however, is proven quite well to not be very accurate. The best way to know your maxHr is to be tested for it or to test yourself to find this out--you can find directions on how to do this in many books (Cyclists Training Bible is one book to find that will help you do this). Finding your lactate threshold (LT) is harder and more involved, and can pretty much only be accurately determined in the lab if I'm not mistaken, as it requires blood tests. Determination of your LT will point you closer towards what is a good "cruising" HR% to not build up lactic acid your body can't get ride of. Hope this helps.

EDIT: beat to the punch again...I need to learn to type faster or something....

3dsteve

thanks and keep them comming, looks like i should be around 181 or so