Unplugged
Originally Posted by
dannwilliams
I stopped wearing my heart rate monitor a couple weeks back. Enjoying my rides has become a little easier not checking to see if I am "in the right zone" on every hill and flat. I consider myself a "recreational rider." Not sure if I'll go back to wearing it next year. I am not training to race or anything, just riding for fitness and recreation.
… So now, I am just enjoying the ride!
Originally Posted by
John E
You will probably do just as well without the monitor.
Before we had all of the technology toys, we used the "conversation test" -- push yourself to the point at which you are just barely able to hold a conversation with someone. If you are breathing so hard you can't talk, you have broken into the anaerobic zone….
Originally Posted by
79pmooney
I see one great use for heart monitors as a non-competitive rider - to ensure I don't go to hard on the early hills of say a century with a mountain pass…
Originally Posted by
downtube42
Sometimes it's a fine line we walk between the joy of cycling and feeding the desire to improve. Cyclocomputers and GPS and HRM and power meters can help us in our quest to improve (or not get lost), but can also rub the joy right out of cycling. Heck, sometimes getting lost can enhance the enjoyment of a leisurely day on the bike. On the other hand, setting, working toward, and achieving a goal can be extremely rewarding. Electronics can help that happen.
I think unplugged rides are great fun. Instrumented rides can be fun, in a different way.
Dittoes to all the above congratulations for your weight loss. I have never used a HRM or power meter, but I pretty much ride to train for general fitness and weight management, mostly by mileage. This year I made great strides by emphasizing intensity/speed. Rather than heart rate, I monitor myself with
Relative Perceived Exertion as described in my:
Originally Posted by
Jim from Boston
...
“Time-restricted, Personally Ambitious, but Non-competitive Cyclist Training Routine.”… My basic premise was that I wanted to get significantly fit, within a busy work/family time-crunched life, but not suffer so much that I would abandon the program…
Originally Posted by
Jim from Boston
…this summer after years of mileage-based training I decided to emphasize intensity/speed, partly based on intervals…[so a stopwatch is another important feature]
I do check resting HR for overall assessment; currently about 48 bpm. Regarding technology while riding, I previously posted to this thread on the commuting Forum,
” Commuting with bike computer.”
Originally Posted by
Jim from Boston
In the past, I have posted in reply to the free spirits who ride for the simple joy and disdain computers, “Riding without a computer reminds me of those who say they are ‘Spiritual, but not religious.’.” Recording mileage and speed data is very motivating for me to train...
Though IMO continuously monitoring real time HR is TMI, I do also use cadence as a training tool.