Understanding the use of a Heart rate monitor
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Understanding the use of a Heart rate monitor
So I've been doing a lot of back to back hilly climbs days these last few months and while I've noticed improvments, I been using perceived effort and a HRM to monitor my condition during the rides. A recurring theme Heart Rate is at a comfortable 150-160 but my legs start feeling the burn (my LT though is around 174). Since I have an erratic HRM ad I don't want to blow up I don't push it too outside that level.
As soon as we hit the break I find myself to be fine and relatively fresh. Legs show no sign of me pushing myself too hard so I feel like I've wimped out and not really been riding at an optimal level.
All that being said I'm getting myself a new HRM (As soon as the CS200cad from polar becomes available) but I was wondering how far I should be trusting my HRM. If it says I'm at a comfortable HR should I not take percieved efforts too seriously (as my mind may be going before my body)?
Thoughts appreciated
As soon as we hit the break I find myself to be fine and relatively fresh. Legs show no sign of me pushing myself too hard so I feel like I've wimped out and not really been riding at an optimal level.
All that being said I'm getting myself a new HRM (As soon as the CS200cad from polar becomes available) but I was wondering how far I should be trusting my HRM. If it says I'm at a comfortable HR should I not take percieved efforts too seriously (as my mind may be going before my body)?
Thoughts appreciated
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Just a thought, if you're already planning on buying new electronics it might be worth it to put down the extra cash and go for a power meter. They give a much clearer view into how much work you're doing...
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out of the budget unfortunately maybe something to consider for Christmas .
I'm more concerned about my condition atm anyways (vs. how stong I supposedly am getting).
I'm more concerned about my condition atm anyways (vs. how stong I supposedly am getting).
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Originally Posted by jslopez
All that being said I'm getting myself a new HRM (As soon as the CS200cad from polar becomes available) but I was wondering how far I should be trusting my HRM. If it says I'm at a comfortable HR should I not take percieved efforts too seriously (as my mind may be going before my body)?
Case in point: I'm going through a fatigue phase right now where my HR is actually lower than normal (say by 15-20 bpm at 35 km/h on flat ground) but I can't generate as much power. I feel like crap but if I went by HR alone I'd think I had some reserves. In my case I have to trust my body and not my head.
To determine fitness I look at the long term trends. For example, I ride a fairly consistent set of routes each week. By looking at the trend over the last 4 months with the Polar software I can see that my average HR (for a ride) is dropping while the average speed in increasing.
Just to throw a wrench into my training I ordered a PowerTap this week... I think that's the ultimate window into your training.
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Good point in the fatigue angle but what if I'm rested today, what should I be following?
I'm really not familiar with power tap and as stated previously budget will probalby keep that true for quite some time.
I'm really not familiar with power tap and as stated previously budget will probalby keep that true for quite some time.