LTHR from races.

walney

I have recently returned to cycling (1year) after a long break.

I have started to take my riding a little more seriously with the intent to race cross. I have managed a couple of races okay this year.

I train with heart rate but lack any real structure!

I have friel's book and note he states LTHR can be taken from a 25mile TT. Would an hour cross race give a simial result?

From RPE it certainly feels much like an hour at threshold like a 25. Or is LTHR not really sustainable for an hour?

Alex_Simmons/RST

Walney wrote:

I have recently returned to cycling (1year) after a long break.

I have started to take my riding a little more seriously with the intent to race cross. I have managed a couple of races okay this year.

I train with heart rate but lack any real structure!

I have friel's book and note he states LTHR can be taken from a 25mile TT. Would an hour cross race give a simial result?

From RPE it certainly feels much like an hour at threshold like a 25. Or is LTHR not really sustainable for an hour?

HR responds differently to highly variable efforts than it will when the effort is quasi-steady state. It may be however that it comes up with a similar HR average, or it may not.

Just do some long interval efforts at around TT effort level, that should be enough to get a reasonable idea. After that if the levels don't seem quite right, just adjust them up/down to suit.

bernardmcdonald

It's been a while since I raced, but I never had an average HR from a cross race that was even within 10 bpm of my measured threshold.

Do the timetrial effort if you absolutley need to know. If you are racing properly in cross you'll get a number that is way to high.

cyco2

Using TT pace to train for CX will get you fit to do TT. CX needs something a bit more brutal like lots of accelerations from different HR levels. Cross has rarely a steady state condition in it like a TT. So, you should be in and out of the saddle every few seconds. How long you spend at it per session depends on your ability, fitness and recovery rate. Even a few sessions during the week before a CX will aclimatise your body for the stress of a Cross race at the w/e.