Ok, I am a fairly fit 51 year old recreational road cyclist, and although I have never raced, I have often been members of clubs and log 3-5000 miles of riding a year. I slack off in the winter, don't ride the wind trainer much, and gain 15-20 lbs typically.
This year, for the first time, I have been using a HR monitor consistently since the Spring, and am mildly alarmed that what I see seems to defy conventional wisdom for safe HR zones. Over the years I have occasionally worn a monitor, and always observed relatively high rates while riding briskly. At present I have the max HR alarm set at 175 bpm, and on a typical ride of 25-40 miles, exceed that at least 8-10 times per ride. I have a good sense of my body, have a resting HR in the low 50s, and while riding definitely see a correlation between going anaerobic and my observed rates of 172 to 182 (and sometimes higher). Over the course of a typical ride, where my effort is determined by how I feel, not what is on the monitor, I see a fairly consistent average for the ride of 164-166, a range I maintain most of the time when I glance down. The max recorded rate is always in the 182-188 range.
Now conventional wisdom tells me I am riding at around 97% of my max HR, but it is where I am comfortable. As I climb into the 170's and higher, I can feel I am going anaerobic, but I do it regularly, sprinting to make intersections, or to get up a couple of nasty climbs in my area with my gearing. I recover back down into the 160's quickly, and typically remain there for the bulk of my ride.
My question is whether anyone else out there has a similar experience? I value how I feel much more than the numbers on the gadget, but am curious.
Sorry for the long windedness, and this well covered topic in other posts.
John