Originally Posted by
Symtex
I am unable to train at any other zone but 4 or 5. When I jump on a bike, I have to spin. My cadence is around 70-80 and that take my HR to at least Zone 4. I'm 41 years old so that means around 145-160 bpm. I want to train to do longer distance but I am uncertain how I will achieved that. I would have to reduce my cadence in the low 50's to get low enough and that would reduce my speed to below 20km/h.
I had that problem, which really isn't a problem so much as a preference that you might wish to control. I take my 29'r on about half my rides, max gearing is 32x12 and controls the speed for the flats, on climbs I'll naturally gravitate to whatever I need for comfort with gears to spare (unless you can spin at 150+ rpm), so it kind of kills the urge. For lower cadence I go for a fixed gear at 51x13 (short rides), the rpm's stay fairly low overall, but heart rate stays pegged (almost impossible to climb slowly with those gears) and the speed seldom drops below 20 mph.