Originally Posted by
Metric Man
I keep good records of my rides with average and max HR attained for each ride and I'm having a difficult time keeping my average up. For most of the year I would average 149-152 for a 20 mile ride with a peak of around 168, but lately it's becoming difficult to keep my average above the 139-141 area. I can still manage the max range no problem, and my average speed is actually going up to almost 16 mph (albeit only .5 mph or so) but I can't get the average HR up...am I just in better condition? I just bought Friel's Cycling Past 50 book and I'm about 2 chapters in so I hope to find more info in there. Any thoughts?
Read Friel. There are a lot of other 'trainer books" out there that are also good, but he is one of the best, and you'll understand the basics based on that book.
I think you are spending too much time working that hard, and too much can break down your body. Friel will explain periodization, which makes your body stress itself and then grow back newer, stronger stuff, such as BUT NOT LIMITED to muscle tissue. Recovery is a training step, as is riding hard. Typical periodization often involves riding a sequence of three weeks of progressivley harder and longer effort, then a week that has less effort and more rest (recovery). Even the professionals need this, not just us old f*rts.
We might say "I don't race, I'm not in training," but the fact is your body doesn't know you didn't beat it up in a race, it just knows you beat it up. Serious training for racers is not just for racers. It can help us grow our abilities, too.