High Heart Rate

Jimbob3007

Hi All,
Just a query, I'm 17 nearly 18 and I ride my bike a fair bit. Not as much as I want to admittedly due to being mid A-Level exams, I race usually 2 times a week (1 time trial + Friday night track league) and at the moment am Probobly getting 60/70 miles training in a week. I am finding that I have an extremely high heart rate comparing to how I feel when riding and and quite a low HR when at complete rest (42-46). For example I went out and did a 30mile loop around my local roads and didn't really put any effort yet my HR was 160avg..which was 79% of my max, but I felt like I was no way near that sort of %of my max heart rate . More worryingly in my most recent tt I had 194bpm average and a max of 203! Should I be worried or is there someway I can try and lower it?

wongataa

Everyone's max heartrate is different and everyone will have a different heart rate for a perceived effort level. How do you know yours is high? Your results may just be because that is the way you are.

How did you calculate your max heart rate? A formula will not giove you the correct result unless you are really lucky. The only way to find out what it is is to measure it. You have to put in alot of effort to get it as high as it will possibly go. At that point you will feel absolutely terrible and probably want to collapse in a heap.

I think your heart rate calcs need to be redone.

In general your heartrate for a given effort level will reduce a bit as you get fitter.

hypster

Many years ago when I first got an HRM I did several full-on tests to find my maximum HR. I saw 200 on several occasions but never any higher. Using it in events after that I again saw 200 when maxed out on long climbs but again never any higher so I took that as being my maximum HR. I can't be arsed to push myself to that limit any more but my max has definitely come down over the last 15 years or so and is around 185 now. Maximum HR is not a indication of fitness level but it will come down with age.

203 doesn't sound unusually high for an 18-year old and as wongataa says everyone's max HR is different. I have a friend who is several years younger than me and rides like an express train. His max HR is 180 and his average HR is usually about 20 bpm less than mine on the same ride.

I think lactate threshold heart rate (LTHR) is more useful now as a basis for training zones. Whilst still unpleasant to test for, it is easier to test every 6-8 weeks say so that you can gauge improvements in fitness due to training.

ai_1

Yep, as above, your max HR is what it is and unless something has change in the HR you see during a ride then you probably don't have anything to worry about. If you used to typically see a HR of 130bpm while cruising and now see 160bpm for similar performance then I'd be wondering what's going on but if your performance and HR levels are reasonably consistent I wouldn't worry.
Alcohol, event excitment, sickness, tiredness, time of day, nutrition, etc can all have an impact on HR but in my experience the variation is rarely in double figures from what I would regard as typical.

What do you mean by "my HR was 160avg..which was 79% of my max, but I felt like I was no way near that sort of %of my max heart rate"? Do you mean you felt like you didn't feel you were putting the effort in that you normally do for ~79%HR or just not what you would have guessed to be the effort for 79%HR. If you're not basing it on previous experience it's probably not a real issue.

damocles10

In a sprint I used to get up to 211bpm....some people just have faster tickers.

Jules Winnfield

A rough estimate of your max heart rate is 220 minus your age. So if you are 17, a max heart rate of 203 is right. But like someone has already mentioned, everyone is different and the above rough formula isn't always true.

ai_1

Jules Winnfield wrote:

A rough estimate of your max heart rate is 220 minus your age. So if you are 17, a max heart rate of 203 is right. But like someone has already mentioned, everyone is different and the above rough formula isn't always true.

In fact it's rarely spot on for any given individual. It's a median value that's in the ball park for the majority. Max heart rates vary significantly and I don't think there's much evidence, if any, to suggest that either higher or lower max heart rate is better or worse for performance or health.
When running all out my HR can get close to about 199 or 200. I'm 38 so the 220-age formula would suggest 182 which is miles off! Bear in mind there are also several different formulas in use. Some simpler than others and all giving slightly different answers. 220-age is simply the most common one most of us come across. Probably because it's the simplest.

florerider

formula is very rough - my max is 30 higher than the formula gives.

or as I like to think of it I am very young for my age

the test nearly killed me though

Jules Winnfield

Jimbob3007 wrote:

For example I went out and did a 30mile loop around my local roads and didn't really put any effort yet my HR was 160avg..which was 79% of my max

Ok, just say that loop took you 2 hours and your 'average' heart rate was 160bpm, that doesnt mean that you was riding at 79% of your maxHR for that ride (not unless you were purposely training zonally). The key word here is "average". You may have been riding at 200bpm on the ascents and as low as 120bpm on the descents, that doesnt make your ride 79% of maxHR. To ride at specific zones takes discipline because you need to ride at a certain percentage of maxHR for 90-100% of your ride.

I use the Polar scale of set zones when i train with a heart monitor.....



For example, if i want to ride for 2 or more hours in a fasted, pre breakfast state to increase my fat metabolism (that is Z2 which is 60-70% of my maxHR) then my heart rate MUST stay between 105-122bpm for 90-100% of that ride. My max heart rate is 175bpm.

When training zonally, if i want to ride between 60-70% of my maxHR for a certain amount of time, then i make things easier by trying to stay at 65% which i read off my Garmin 510.

Jules Winnfield

Ai_1 wrote:

220-age is simply the most common one most of us come across. Probably because it's the simplest.

This is true. I have read another way of getting your max HR is 210 minus half your age, then subtract 5% of your body weight in pounds. Add 4 for a male and 0 for a female. In truth the only way to get a true HR reading is to have a physiological test done at a sports science type place.

Stalin

Jules Winnfield wrote:

Ai_1 wrote:

220-age is simply the most common one most of us come across. Probably because it's the simplest.

This is true. I have read another way of getting your max HR is 210 minus half your age, then subtract 5% of your body weight in pounds. Add 4 for a male and 0 for a female. In truth the only way to get a true HR reading is to have a physiological test done at a sports science type place.

So you don't think you can do it yourself?

Stalin

Jules Winnfield wrote:

Jimbob3007 wrote:

For example I went out and did a 30mile loop around my local roads and didn't really put any effort yet my HR was 160avg..which was 79% of my max

Ok, just say that loop took you 2 hours and your 'average' heart rate was 160bpm, that doesnt mean that you was riding at 79% of your maxHR for that ride (not unless you were purposely training zonally). The key word here is "average". You may have been riding at 200bpm on the ascents and as low as 120bpm on the descents, that doesnt make your ride 79% of maxHR. To ride at specific zones takes discipline because you need to ride at a certain percentage of maxHR for 90-100% of your ride.

I use the Polar scale of set zones when i train with a heart monitor.....



For example, if i want to ride for 2 or more hours in a fasted, pre breakfast state to increase my fat metabolism (that is Z2 which is 60-70% of my maxHR) then my heart rate MUST stay between 105-122bpm for 90-100% of that ride. My max heart rate is 175bpm.

When training zonally, if i want to ride between 60-70% of my maxHR for a certain amount of time, then i make things easier by trying to stay at 65% which i read off my Garmin 510.

Why do you assume it is so important to stay in these arbitrary zones? The whole idea of these zones grew up as a fashion when heart rate monitors were first invented and marketed. Now people assume they must stay in zones when they use power. The whole idea of training in zones is a myth. Zones are descriptive at best, at worst misleading.

imposter2.0

A 'true' HR reading is not completely necessary. Just use the highest number you have seen as your max. If you ever see a higher number, use that. If you train on % - as opposed to a specific HR number (which most people do), then a precise number is not that important. A few bpm either way is probably near enough.

Stalin

Imposter wrote:

A 'true' HR reading is not completely necessary. Just use the highest number you have seen as your max. If you ever see a higher number, use that. If you train on % - as opposed to a specific HR number (which most people do), then a precise number is not that important. A few bpm either way is probably near enough.

Are you sure about this? The highest number you have ever seen really depends on the effort put in. If you are not accustomed to the sort of effort a maximum heart rate requires you will invariably hit a lower number than true maximum.

To hit maximum you need to be fresh, ride to the absolute highest effort you possibly can, then hold it, then when you are totally spend sprint again. It isn't something anyone would want to do very often.

I agree with you for people who have some sporting background, but someone new?

What really matters is the heart rate you can sustain for a given duration.

imposter2.0

Stalin wrote:

Are you sure about this? The highest number you have ever seen really depends on the effort put in. If you are not accustomed to the sort of effort a maximum heart rate requires you will invariably hit a lower number than true maximum.

To hit maximum you need to be fresh, ride to the absolute highest effort you possibly can, then hold it, then when you are totally spend sprint again. It isn't something anyone would want to do very often.

I agree with you for people who have some sporting background, but someone new?

What really matters is the heart rate you can sustain for a given duration.

Unless everyone starts running off to the local university sports science lab for a free ramp test, then you can only go wth the highest number you have seen. Obviously this should be taken after a maximal effort, as opposed to riding to the shops - unless riding to the shops does involve a maximal effort - in which case, use that.

Stalin

Imposter wrote:

Stalin wrote:

Are you sure about this? The highest number you have ever seen really depends on the effort put in. If you are not accustomed to the sort of effort a maximum heart rate requires you will invariably hit a lower number than true maximum.

To hit maximum you need to be fresh, ride to the absolute highest effort you possibly can, then hold it, then when you are totally spend sprint again. It isn't something anyone would want to do very often.

I agree with you for people who have some sporting background, but someone new?

What really matters is the heart rate you can sustain for a given duration.

Unless everyone starts running off to the local university sports science lab for a free ramp test, then you can only go wth the highest number you have seen. Obviously this should be taken after a maximal effort, as opposed to riding to the shops - unless riding to the shops does involve a maximal effort - in which case, use that.

You don't need to go to a lab in a local university to do basic testing like that.

imposter2.0

Stalin wrote:

You don't need to go to a lab in a local university to do basic testing like that.

I know. I used the comparison in order to make that very point.

Stalin

Imposter wrote:

Stalin wrote:

You don't need to go to a lab in a local university to do basic testing like that.

I know. I used the comparison in order to make that very point.

Shock horror we agree on something.

indjke

OP, all hearts are different)
I'm 10 years older but my max is over 210.
TT HR is usually in 190s.
Endurance rides for several hours at 150-160s.
So don't worry