On Mon, 7 Mar 2005 18:26:05 -0500, " Bob Alan" <
[email protected]> wrote:
>When I jog or bike up a long steep hill, I get the highest heart rate
>reading of any type of exercise I do. It's also the same reading I get if I
>jog for long on a tread-mill set to 45 degrees. This HR is higher then any
>of the various max heart rate formulas produce.
>
>Am I correct that the measured max heart rate is the baseline that should be
>used when working out a cardio training range?
>
>Thanks for any advice
>
>Bob
The 220bpm minus your age is only a guideline. We had a discussion here
last month about some people having higher rates than this formula would
predict and one person had some testing done by her MD and found to be
normal.
If the rate you're getting is higher than 220, and you haven't been
training long, it might be worth getting a stress test on a treadmill,
hooked up to a cardiac monitor. You didn't say what your numbers were. Most
people have difficulty ever actually reaching their HR-max. I wouldn't
panic, but check with your sports med doctor.
Normally, as your cardio improves, your resting heart rate will decrease,
and therefore your peak rate will also be lower, but in return, the more in
shape you are the harder you can push yourself... ;-)
If you've been consistently training for a while (~2 years or more, 4 rides
per week?), I wouldn't be too worried about your max HR unless it suddenly
changed. When you're overtraining, the HR can be higher also. The rate, the
formula and the chart below are just guidelines. Often one feels they are
training hard, but when they consult their HRM it's below the threshold
they desired, according to what I've heard.
So even if your HRM minus your age is lower than what you actually
experience training, I believe the formulas below are still valid, i.e.,
VO2Max, LT, and Aerobic Thresholds will all be obtained as a percentage of
your HR-max:
At 86% + of HR-max, and above you are in the VO2Max range (Zone 5)
At 80-85% of HR-max, you are training your Lactate Threshold (Zone 4)
At 70-80% of HR-max, you are training your aerobic capacity (Zone 3)
At 65-70% of HR-max, you are building your endurance base, and (Zone 2)
At 60-65% of HR-max, you are doing recovery training. (Zone 1)
Now bear in mind these numbers are approximations, and to be getting this
level of training you should be -in- that training zone for 30 min to 60
min or longer. Just because you might -spike- a HR of 90% of your HR-max
for a minute doesn't mean anything. IOW, think steady state in those zones.
We all go _Anaerobic_ from time-to-time and at that time your rate may
spike above your calculated HR-max, iirc.
Note, I'm not an MD, and I'm just relating to you what I've read
(Carmichael Training System)
jj