what is a good max heart rate?
- Thread starter JTK6473
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JTK6473 said:
In all honesty it makes no odds what your max HR is in terms of (cycle) training. It is what it is, and changes due to various issues (e.g., fitness -- often decreases as you get fitter, and tends to decrease with ageing).
Your HRmax can't be _accurately_ calculated (if by calculated you mean estimated via some sort of regression equation such as 220-age). These calculations often have a standard deviation of +/-15 b/min, which make them useless for calculating an *individuals* HR (but useful for predicting a group).
To ascertain your HRmax you'd need to do some sort of test that would involve you riding supramaximally -- which would drive your HR to it's limit, such as the test i describe here http://www.cyclingnews.com/fitness/?id=powerstern. However, it's imperative that you are in good health and haven't been recently prior to undertaking such a test (caveats included within the linked text).
I have seen elite under 23's with a HRmax of < 170 b/min. I have also seen elite riders with a HRmax of 200 b/min.
The important thing is to train at various intensities of your HRmax, not to compare your HRmax to someone elses as their is no correlation to e.g., fitness (other than your own personal HRmax may decrease as you get fitter).
Ric
A good max heart rate is YOUR max heart rate. Put your self through the streess test: warm up well then keep on shifting up and keep on cranking your cranks when you get to your biggest possible gear hammer away hammer hammer and hammer with the biggest hammer you can find within your self and when you simply can not hammer any more you will have found your max heart rate. You should not compare your self with others becxause everyone one is different!
He said it. Get up on a hill and pedal as fast as you can. Do it a few times, after a good warm up, and keep record of your max heart rates.MountainPro said:
How do you know that you are reaching your max heart rate? It feels like your veins are pumping battery acid, your legs are on fire, your lungs hurt, and you are gasping for air. A shroud of sweat will be covering you, and you will feel that your head is about to explode.
.... I reach 204 bpm when I feel like that.
Anything above zero is good. In my opinion, I like 200 since the math to figure out the all the training zones would be real easy. 
I've done this sort of thing to get my max, and it's gotten me close (177bpm). But, I guess I'm willing to push my self more in races, so I generally have exceeded it by a few. So, in my last race I hit 181, therefore I'm taking it that 181 is my max hr.huhenio said:
Heart rates vary due to a number of factors, conditions, terain, illness, fitness, if your sick or well, etc, etc.JTK6473 said:
As previous posters have mentioned this will vary from riders to rider.
The best measure of how 'fit' you are is to measure your power output. Try using something that measures power and then compare this over a regular route over time. Most pro riders measure power and only use heart rate monitors as a secondary figure for this.
The down side is that you can get heart monitors for a lot less than power monitors.
The upside is you can get really accurate results that acuratly reflect just how well you are, track this against how you felt on various rides and you get get a spot on picture on where you are.
Having said that as I no longer race and just ride for fun I don't worry about either
JTK6473 said:
The actual number (in your case 173 b/min) makes no difference, as long as you gave a maximal effort.
ric
all those heart rate charts at the gym are just that...charts.
you could go to a specialist and be tested.
but dont sweat it if you are a healthy, virile, nubile, er, i mean vigorous young lady and you hit some high numbers when you work out.
i am an old fart of 45 but on my 45th birthday yesterday i hit 195 during a 60km ride....and i think i'm still alive today.
ok yes i am self serving by posting that number.
hell, i dont ride with a heart monitor. the lactic acid buildup in my legs and the burning in the chest always lets me know when i cant push it any longer at that pace.
the 195 was on the lifecycle at the gym
it was either the level i was at, or the hot POAs across the room on the elliptical trainers.
you could go to a specialist and be tested.
but dont sweat it if you are a healthy, virile, nubile, er, i mean vigorous young lady and you hit some high numbers when you work out.
i am an old fart of 45 but on my 45th birthday yesterday i hit 195 during a 60km ride....and i think i'm still alive today.
ok yes i am self serving by posting that number.
hell, i dont ride with a heart monitor. the lactic acid buildup in my legs and the burning in the chest always lets me know when i cant push it any longer at that pace.
the 195 was on the lifecycle at the gym
it was either the level i was at, or the hot POAs across the room on the elliptical trainers.
Its the resting heart rate that matters. When this is lower and closer to the target it means you have a more efficient heart function. Much better cardiovascular fitness. I don't usually pay too much attention to maximum while working out. The truth is in the resting rate.
Your max heart rate is a better tool for training rather than a gauge of fitness level. A better indicator of fitness or training progress is if you could bring your hr down while doing the same level of intensity in your training. Heart rate variability is also another wt to measure fitness and recovery.
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