Heart Rate Zones etc

NeedMoreGears

I recently attempted to measure my lactic threshold heart rate. I went out hard but steady for an hour, having warmed up for about ten minutes beforehand. I know I was going as well as I could because I did the route about two minutes faster than ever before.

So my average was 145 with a peak of 150 or so (I was trying to keep it reasonably steady). Armed with this new information I reset the levels in my HRM to trigger at Friels Z3, Z4,Z5 (the HRM has pretty limited functionality).

Off I go to the SKT and the HRM recorded the following. Total time 6:30hr, Z3 1:10, Z4 1:50 Z5 2:00 leaving Z1/Z2 at 00:30. I paused the recorder at food stops etc. What intrigues me is that after the LTHR test, I was completely wrecked (even the next day), whereas today having spent more time above threshold, I'm not too bad. The max is saw was 164 and the average was 137.

Hence the question is: is there enough recovery time over the 6.5hrs (plus say 1hr at foodstops) to allow me spend 2 hours above LTHR and another 2hrs close to LTHR or is my LTHR higher than I think it is?

Thanks NMG

seamus

I'm not entirely sure I understand your figures.

If you don't know your max HR it's going to be tough to figure out your training zones, even outside of an LT test.

You say on your test run you maxed at 150, but then on the SKT you maxed at 164?

I would suggest not really trying to guess what your LT is without a proper lab test. Using standard calculators will probably get you closer to your zones than trying to guess your LT.

Best way to get your max HR is to ride as hard as you can. Obviously. 20 minute warm up - you should be well able to chat but lovely and warm and limber. Then five minutes at a decent speed - harder breathing, but you should be able to speak intermittently. Then 2 minutes hard. Hard as you can go. Repeat these seven minutes twice and you should find yourself utterly fncked by the third iteration, with your HR as close to max as you'll get outside the lab. Long hills are good for this kind of stuff obviously as you can really push yourself without having to worry about traffic lights, etc.

Then use this Max HR with Friel's equations to get your zones.

The answer to your question in my experience is that yes, in cycling you can spend huge amounts of time at or above LT and not feel totally wrecked at the end of the spin. But I don't know why.

grahamhyland

NeedMoreGears wrote: »

Off I go to the SKT and the HRM recorded the following. Total time 6:30hr, Z3 1:10, Z4 1:50 Z5 2:00 leaving Z1/Z2 at 00:30. I paused the recorder at food stops etc. What intrigues me is that after the LTHR test, I was completely wrecked (even the next day), whereas today having spent more time above threshold, I'm not too bad. The max is saw was 164 and the average was 137.

I think you need to take this test over 30 min not 1 Hr -
Make sure your rested doing this - dont do it the day after a 6hr bike make sure your legs are fresh

1. 20min warmup
2. Start a 30min time trial
3. 10 min into the TT hit the lap button -- your average HR for the last 20 min is your LTHR
4. Cool down

This is tricky to get right (in terms of pacing) Try to keep some in the tank for the last 7min

Yyou should do this test again in a few weeks.

NeedMoreGears

Thanks Seamus/grahamhyland.

I should have been more specific - when I was trying to establish LTHR, I deliberately tried to keep my HR steadyish. I had tried a test before where I set out hard but found myself fading at the end ; hence higher HR for the first while, which then declined towards the end of the hour. This time, in order to maintain a more or less constant effort, I eased back anytime it went over 150. I was working on the assumption that a steadier effort might produce a more accurate result.

On the SKT up Mahons Falls I hit 164 but I wasn't deliberately trying to test max HR ; my objective was simply to keep moving forward so that I didn't fall over!

I did attempt to measure max HR a few months back along the lines you suggest and got 168 as the reading.

Arthurdaly

I think you need you do another test. You mention joe friel and he suggests that you need to perform and 30 min TT test and record the average HR for the last 20 mins of the ride.

How does the above information translate to the SKT? I rode at threshold for 85% of the mahon falls and pushed into 100+% territorty for the remainder!

Lactate threshold testing evolves over time and requies tweaking. From my experience its a critical number.

Raymzor

This a good post. I got Friels book recently. Interestingly Friel mentions that "knowing LTHR is as important as having the right bike frame size". I have tried to find my LTHR using the two methods he proposes-using the first method of a 40km time trial average heart rate i got 156 avg. Using the last 20 minutes of 30 minute time trial i got HR average of 163 which is a big difference. Maybe i could have tried harder on 40km TT!

out of interest for SKT my times in zone 1-5 were approx 2hrs, 2 hrs, 1hr, 0.5hrs, 0.5hrs. ie 2hrs in z1.

When analyzing the time i have spent in the different zones over the last few months, im spending way too much time in zone 4, 5 and not near enough in zone 1, 2!

No advice in the above but info sharing. It would be nice to hear how Arthurdaly effectively uses the LTHR info

dooverylittle

Raymzor wrote: »

This a good post. I got Friels book recently. Interestingly Friel mentions that "knowing LTHR is as important as having the right bike frame size". I have tried to find my LTHR using the two methods he proposes-using the first method of a 40km time trial average heart rate i got 156 avg. Using the last 20 minutes of 30 minute time trial i got HR average of 163 which is a big difference. Maybe i could have tried harder on 40km TT!

out of interest for SKT my times in zone 1-5 were approx 2hrs, 2 hrs, 1hr, 0.5hrs, 0.5hrs. ie 2hrs in z1.

When analyzing the time i have spent in the different zones over the last few months, im spending way too much time in zone 4, 5 and not near enough in zone 1, 2!

No advice in the above but info sharing. It would be nice to hear how Arthurdaly effectively uses the LTHR info

How are you collecting the time spent in zones data, have you got premium strava membership? thanks.

Raymzor

I have a garmin edge 500. you can set up the zones on the unit. you can then download the info to Garmin Training Centre software which is free. i havent figured out how to do totals in zones for all rides yet!

dooverylittle

Raymzor wrote: »

I have a garmin edge 500. you can set up the zones on the unit. you can then download the info to Garmin Training Centre software which is free. i havent figured out how to do totals in zones for all rides yet!

I use a garmin too, and I have entered my zones, but I have not come across a funtion that details how long you spent in any particular zone.

SomeFool

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055741913

Worth a read, going to try it in late september myself so I can hopefully train a bit smarter!

Raymzor

I dont believe there is a function in the edge 500 that tracks your time in each zone. the Garmin Training Centre software does the calculation