HR and Climb

Climbing is not my forte but I have made a noticeable improvement by training specifically on hills. I do interval training with 1 min, 2 min, 3 min, 2 min, 1 min repeats. One cannot help but go borderline anaerobic when climbing. I think it would be unrealistic to try and keep your HR at 150-155 which is probably within your aerobic region. What you really need to be training is pushing your lactic acid threshold higher by any means possible. Interval training (particularly on hills)is one way. You will get to the stage where climbing with a higher HR (160-165) will not leave you gasping for breath.

Regards, Al

i think you should stop looking at your hr and just ride up as quick as you can. being able to tolerate lactate will make you a better rider

Thanks for the advices.
What I should do now is to keep climbing and try to tolerate the lactic acid treshold to the max or as long as possible before taking any interval.
Is this correct.?

Quoted post said:

Originally posted by Kiara2K
I was trying to keep my HR contant at 150-155 during mountain climbing (MTB) by slowing down my pedaling.
But when the hill become stepper and with other obstacle like roots and rocks, I have to pedal harder.
This is when my HR will jump up to 160-165 which is almost 80% of my max HR.
At this rate my legs become weak and I have no choice but to stop and gasping for air. I will have to wait until my HR goes back down to 135 before I can continue.
Am I doing the right thing by stopping everytime my HR goes more than 70% of my max HR when I do my climb?
How can I improve in my climb?
I have just been riding for a month and I ride twice a week.

Forget about your heart rate when you're climbing. Starting out and depending on your aerobic fitness, your heart will go crazy!!! It is like this for everyone. Since your heart is an involuntary muscle, it's really difficult to tell it to slow down. When training, forget about the HRM percentages in the beginning. As you get more time on the bike, your heart will start to work efficiently, putting you in the HR percentages often recommended in training guides. The neat thing about the body is that it is self tuning. Give your heart time. It will make the neccessary adjustments. So in the beginning...just ride. Concentrate on your form and always remain aware of how you feel. [THIS IS OFTEN THE MOST IMPORTANT AND MOST OVERLOOKED TRAINING ADVICE WHEN CYCLING. TRUST YOUR BOBY!] If you're about to fall off the bike and pass out, chances are you're pushing your body too hard. The moral of this post is to LISTEN to your body. Every heart beats different and you can't expect your body to fit a cookie cutter mold. Best of luck! It only gets better and easier from this point forward.

P.S. For bad lactate build-up...try training using Cytomax in your water bottle. It works like a dream and is my secret to training success because I can go longer and more importantly stronger. Also, go buy some Carboom Gel to take before you climb a steep hill. It will not only keep you from bonking, but will help you recover on the way down.

Best Wishes,
Vector7