HR Zones - Guidelines

Nick-NH

There seem to be many schools of thought concerning HR training zones. There are calculations based on % of max HR, or % of lactate threshold, and some based on a combination of max HR, and HR reserve. There are so many, I don't have a clue which to follow / rely on. I'd be very interested in the models people are using.

2LAP

I use the BC 6 Zones of training.

You'll find some info on the coaching section of www.britishcycling.org.uk

But this will help you calculate them...
http://www.abcc.freeserve.co.uk/hrcalc.html

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zaskar

hello 2LAP, is zone 1&2 that important once your an
established rider, suppose you can do 4 hours in
zones 3&4 with no problem. when i ride to many
easy days it makes my hard days harder, it could
be mental because i dont feel the low intensity
has much benifit. (no cycling is called for in the
80-84% range.this is considered"no mans land"-
to high for steady tempo of zone 3 and not hard
enough to stimulate the improvement of zone 4)
this is from a training book i read

zone 1 recovery
zone 2 66-72% basic endurance
zone 3 73-79%higher-level aerobic capacity
zone 4 85-90% anaerobic thres for tt & improved threshold
zone 5 91-100%sprints and anaerobic power

just like the 1st post there are so many differant do this
& that as lances book says differant also.

Cipher

This web site has your basic 'plug & play' calculations with explanations for the various levels of intensity (zones)...

http://www.xsystems.co.uk/machinehe...r_abcc_bcf.html

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J-MAT

Nick-NH:

The best model to use is training percentages off your true maximum heart rate. You can screw around with HRR and other methods, but these values are more problematic/less accurate in my experience.

You can use many different zones as well, but I find most of them to be more "work" than actual benefit. 5-6 zones to me is too much micro-managing of heart rate.

I like easy, medium, and hard. Easy means recovery rides, easy rides, etc. Basically, low power efforts, with pr's not exceeding 70-75% of MHR or so.

Medium means tempo rides, LT rides, TT efforts. Pr's should be around 82-92% of MHR.

Hard means short, hard efforts like 3-5 minute intervals or shorter, with pr's around 92-100%.

Sprints are sprints. Heart rate monitoring is not necessary.

Life's full of complications. Keep your training simple. There's so much overlap of intensities, I find 3 zones to be plenty. The correct mix in relation to your training program is what's important.

Happy monitoring!!!

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