Heart rate after time off the bike

[N_laplaca]

There is so much discussion on heart rates on this forum, just wanted to add an observation of my own. I recently had a long layoff from riding. Rode only once in the last 10 days due to various reasons.

Got back on today and went for an easy 25 mile flat ride. I have estimated my LTHR to be around 157 based on the 30 minute TT method. Well today my average heart rate for the whole ride was 158. And I was just cruising. I went hard a couple of times but nothing major. The times I went hard it went right up to 172 and I didn't really feel like I was going that hard.I certainly could have gone harder.

2 weeks ago if I was at 172 It would mean I was really busting my ass. My max isn't all that high.I'm guessing that if I would have done a 30 minute time trial and took my average over the last 20 minutes it would have been much higher than 157 like it has been the last couple of times I have done that test.It just seemed odd how much it was affected after that little time off.

Nick

 

[Mansmind]

There is so much discussion on heart rates on this forum, just wanted to add an observation of my own. I recently had a long layoff from riding. Rode only once in the last 10 days due to various reasons.

Got back on today and went for an easy 25 mile flat ride. I have estimated my LTHR to be around 157 based on the 30 minute TT method. Well today my average heart rate for the whole ride was 158. And I was just cruising. I went hard a couple of times but nothing major. The times I went hard it went right up to 172 and I didn't really feel like I was going that hard.I certainly could have gone harder.

2 weeks ago if I was at 172 It would mean I was really busting my ass. My max isn't all that high.I'm guessing that if I would have done a 30 minute time trial and took my average over the last 20 minutes it would have been much higher than 157 like it has been the last couple of times I have done that test.It just seemed odd how much it was affected after that little time off.

Nick

I don't know the answer, but I've experienced exactly the same thing. Again I don't know, but I suspect it may have something to do with being "fully" recovered from riding daily.

 

[velomanct]

There is so much discussion on heart rates on this forum, just wanted to add an observation of my own. I recently had a long layoff from riding. Rode only once in the last 10 days due to various reasons.

Got back on today and went for an easy 25 mile flat ride. I have estimated my LTHR to be around 157 based on the 30 minute TT method. Well today my average heart rate for the whole ride was 158. And I was just cruising. I went hard a couple of times but nothing major. The times I went hard it went right up to 172 and I didn't really feel like I was going that hard.I certainly could have gone harder.

2 weeks ago if I was at 172 It would mean I was really busting my ass. My max isn't all that high.I'm guessing that if I would have done a 30 minute time trial and took my average over the last 20 minutes it would have been much higher than 157 like it has been the last couple of times I have done that test.It just seemed odd how much it was affected after that little time off.

Nick

i experienced that too. it was during the winter i was off the bike for 2 weeks. when i got back on i rode up the steepest hill in town at a heart rate 10 beats above my old max for about a minute. i was riding at my old LTHR for a good part of the ride. i was not any faster, but i did feel rested. i can't make myself take off a week or two at this time of the year, it's such good weather for riding.

 

[nutbag]

Me too.

I had about 2 weeks off with a bad cold, which is my longest lay-off in a few years.

When I started up again, my legs still had strength and felt fantastically fresh from the rest, but my lungs were killing me. Usually it's a more even ratio of leg discomfort to breathing discomfort.

So, it was an unusual feeling for me to have "head-room" still in my legs, but being puffed out. It almost felt like running........yuck

 

[N_laplaca]

Me too.

I had about 2 weeks off with a bad cold, which is my longest lay-off in a few years.

When I started up again, my legs still had strength and felt fantastically fresh from the rest, but my lungs were killing me. Usually it's a more even ratio of leg discomfort to breathing discomfort.

So, it was an unusual feeling for me to have "head-room" still in my legs, but being puffed out. It almost felt like running........yuck

I went for a 55 mile hilly ride today and my performance on this ride dropped off a bit from the last time I did this ride. My lungs felt fine but the last couple of hills my legs weren't feeling too good. I hope to not have to take that much time off any time soon. Nick

 

[Smartt/RST]

There is so much discussion on heart rates on this forum, just wanted to add an observation of my own. I recently had a long layoff from riding. Rode only once in the last 10 days due to various reasons.

Got back on today and went for an easy 25 mile flat ride. I have estimated my LTHR to be around 157 based on the 30 minute TT method. Well today my average heart rate for the whole ride was 158. And I was just cruising. I went hard a couple of times but nothing major. The times I went hard it went right up to 172 and I didn't really feel like I was going that hard.I certainly could have gone harder.

2 weeks ago if I was at 172 It would mean I was really busting my ass. My max isn't all that high.I'm guessing that if I would have done a 30 minute time trial and took my average over the last 20 minutes it would have been much higher than 157 like it has been the last couple of times I have done that test.It just seemed odd how much it was affected after that little time off.

Nick

What you (and the other posters to this point) have experienced is the drop in your cardiovascular fitness that occurs very rapidly when you take time off from physical activity. A decrease in your blood plasma volume occurs very rapidly, having a significant effect on your heart rate for a given level of effort (ie: watts).
The structural adaptations to endurance exercise (ie: at the skeletal muscle level) are not effected as quickly, so you will find that you can perform at a similar level as before, just with a higher pulse (assuming your lay off of 10 days).
The effects of detraining are spectral in nature (like almost all physiologic functions), so many factors are at play when figuring out just how much fitness has been lost: how fit you were before you stopped; how long you've been training; what you did when you stopped cycling; sickness; etc.

 

[Mansmind]

What you (and the other posters to this point) have experienced is the drop in your cardiovascular fitness that occurs very rapidly when you take time off from physical activity. A decrease in your blood plasma volume occurs very rapidly, having a significant effect on your heart rate for a given level of effort (ie: watts).
The structural adaptations to endurance exercise (ie: at the skeletal muscle level) are not effected as quickly, so you will find that you can perform at a similar level as before, just with a higher pulse (assuming your lay off of 10 days).
The effects of detraining are spectral in nature (like almost all physiologic functions), so many factors are at play when figuring out just how much fitness has been lost: how fit you were before you stopped; how long you've been training; what you did when you stopped cycling; sickness; etc.

I may have misunderstood the original post, but what I've noticed after a breake (2-3 days) is that I can produce the same power at a lower heart rate (and perceived exertion) than before. Interestingly enough, as I start daily riding again, I don't get to keep ALL the "gains" I see. My heart rate eases up if not equal, to a little less than what I was originally at before the rest.

Does this make sense? What's really happening here?

 

[Smartt/RST]

I may have misunderstood the original post, but what I've noticed after a breake (2-3 days) is that I can produce the same power at a lower heart rate (and perceived exertion) than before. Interestingly enough, as I start daily riding again, I don't get to keep ALL the "gains" I see. My heart rate eases up if not equal, to a little less than what I was originally at before the rest.

Does this make sense? What's really happening here?

Well, there are many issues at play here whenever interpreting your heart rate during exercise (hydration, stress, cadence, body temperature, intensity). Keep in mind that your HR is not a good measure of performance because of all of these variables. Yes, you will see *significant* changes in your heart rate following extended time off, large changes in fitness level, or other issues such as hydration, long term fatigue, etc., but small changes from day to day are not meaningfull because of the inherent variability.
If you did see some significant changes in your heart rate after a few days off, it is likely that your long term fatigue/stress levels had/have more to do with it than anything, as this is not long enough to induce any significant detraining effects.

 

[closesupport]

I may have misunderstood the original post, but what I've noticed after a breake (2-3 days) is that I can produce the same power at a lower heart rate (and perceived exertion) than before. Interestingly enough, as I start daily riding again, I don't get to keep ALL the "gains" I see. My heart rate eases up if not equal, to a little less than what I was originally at before the rest.

Does this make sense? What's really happening here?

you just reach a steady state, when your doing it daily you have to be able to maintain it. if you keep your eye on you HRM after about 4-5minutes its settles and sometimes drops slightly. its down to a glycogen & sparing. you just start working a little more efficiently. as long as you refuel and allow things to repair you should begin to see the gains.

 

[Mansmind]

Well, there are many issues at play here whenever interpreting your heart rate during exercise (hydration, stress, cadence, body temperature, intensity). Keep in mind that your HR is not a good measure of performance because of all of these variables. Yes, you will see *significant* changes in your heart rate following extended time off, large changes in fitness level, or other issues such as hydration, long term fatigue, etc., but small changes from day to day are not meaningfull because of the inherent variability.
If you did see some significant changes in your heart rate after a few days off, it is likely that your long term fatigue/stress levels had/have more to do with it than anything, as this is not long enough to induce any significant detraining effects.

Thanks for the replies. The fatigue part makes a lot of sense. I certainly felt fresher after having a day or so off. Realistically I supposed I had been going pretty hard at it every day, and since I just started riding 6 weeks ago, it seems likely I was fatigued.

Regardless I can tell a huge difference since I began riding already, and I don't plan on stopping anytime soon.

Thanks again!