Heart Rate Monitor Reading

bazzer86

Looking for a bit of feedback on the above.

I got a Garmin Forerunner with heart rate monitor strap over the last month.

Have used it twice since, with the following readings;

1. Ballyhoura- 16.29 miles- Average Heart rate- 153BPM (83% of max)
Max Heart rate- 183BPM (99% of max)

2. Up Keeper Hill- 10.5 miles- Average Heart rate- 155BPM (84% of max)
Max Heart rate- 184BPM (99% of max)

I'm 28, and feel that may be overdoing it.

What I would like to know is;
Would those rates be above the average
How accurate are those heart rate monitors
Would people experience those types of rates on tough climbs (total climbing of 585m & 600m respectively on the above 2 cycles).


Please note I am not looking for medical advice or anything like that.

Thanks

nilhg

Hard to comment really without a bit more information, how was your max HR calculated or found? 184 doesn't look high for a 29 year old but AFAIK there really is no hard and fast rule for max HR it varies alot between individuals.

How long did you sustain the max HRs on those climbs, and how did you you feel while you were doing it? In my experience I'd know when I'm at my max and wouldn't be able to sustain it for very long.

easygoing39

I'd see the same data myself,Im 17yrs older than you and I'm not worried.

mossym

for those climbs, how hard an effort were you pushing? if you were at 99% of max you should have been in a world of pain, and your body would have been screaming at you.

i'd be very surprised if a) you hit 99% of your max HR, and b) your max hr is 185.

when i started out i'd fairly regularly drive my hr into the 180 range on hills, and that was off a max hr of 193.

Pinch Flat

Fwiw my max heart rate is 187 bpm( I'm 43) - Did a 100km flattish cycle on Sunday averaged 150 bpm. So 80% of max.

biketard

Hey bazzer86, those numbers don't look particularly out of the ordinary. I start to go into the red zone at 180 and can keep that going for a (very) limited time. The highest I've measured recently was 191. I'm 44, btw.

sconhome

Pinch Flat wrote: »

Fwiw my max heart rate is 187 bpm( I'm 43) - Did a 100km flattish cycle on Sunday averaged 150 bpm. So 80% of max.

How did you get 187bpm? You really need to do a test to be certain as anything default of watches are based off the Maffetone method of 220-age for men and that is generally inaccurate for people who are relatively fit.

Cycling up Keeper Hill would be a good way to find out what your max is. Depending on the effort you put into your recent ascents and the duration you may find your Max HR is closer to the 183 / 814 mark.

Worth having a go at these tests http://www.cycling-inform.com/how-to-test-for-your-cycling-max-heart-rate

Pinch Flat

AKW wrote: »

How did you get 187bpm?

220 minus 50% of my age brings me down to 188bpm. Some fitness websites say you take away 5% of your body weight then add 4bpm for a male.

Edit - I am not a health professional nor is this medical advise. A doctor that specialises in sports medicine would be best disposed to advise on this.

sconhome

Pinch Flat wrote: »

220 minus 50% of my age brings me down to 188bpm. Some fitness websites say you take away 5% of your body weight then add 4bpm for a male.

Never seen that formula before.

You have adjusted for bodyweight & added beats? As the formula would have you at 198 /199 max HR.

Pinch Flat

AKW wrote: »

Never seen that formula before.

You have adjusted for bodyweight & added beats? As the formula would have you at 198 /199 max HR.

http://www.cycling-inform.com/how-to-test-for-your-cycling-max-heart-rate

puts it at 214 - 0.8 of you age, so same ball park (179 bpm - even lower!). Mind you, I'm no expert and the only way to be certain is to have a physio / sports medicine professional test it and advise what it is.

There seems to be a lot of different ways of working it out - my Garmin also works out Max HR based on my age / weight that I input in to it. Must have a look later and see what its set at, but I had 180 plus change in mind.

manwithaplan

I am 43 and the max HR I have recorded is 205. My lactate threshold HR has been tested and is 184. Anything that uses your age, weight etc is just plain guesswork.

OP, don't worry about it. Just ride your bike with the strap for a couple of months and you will have a good idea of how your HR responds to training and how it corresponds to perceived effort. When you do a bit more cycling, you can look at introducing more structured training. You won't kill yourself by riding hard up a hill but just do what feels reasonable for the moment.

PaulieC

Did you check where your Max HR was occurring ? in my experience (running), the Garmin HR straps tend to spike very early in the exercise session i.e the first mile or two until you start sweating and the readings become more reliable.
WRT the average HR on your rides, I'd say they are quite within normal range for a hard session.

tunney

Did anyone try RTFMing?

Or failing an "M" RFAing

Leroy42

tunney wrote: »

Did anyone try RTFMing?

Or failing an "M" RFAing

Yeah, the cheek of someone coming onto a site which is designed on the basis of 'experts' in their field helping out those looking for answers.

Of course the information is available elsewhere but the whole nature of this site is that people can quickly ask questions and receive real world answers.

Much quicker to simply post a quick question and get some answers on this board than read through some of the endless stuff available.

Why are you on the site if this bothers you so much?

mossym

Pinch Flat wrote: »

There seems to be a lot of different ways of working it out - my Garmin also works out Max HR based on my age / weight that I input in to it. Must have a look later and see what its set at, but I had 180 plus change in mind.

wouldn't that in itself suggest it's wrong? everyone that puts in that weight/age combo is going to get the exact same answer. same with those formulas, same weight/age you'll have the exact same HR. which in fairness, is ludicrous

Pinch Flat

mossym wrote: »

wouldn't that in itself suggest it's wrong? everyone that puts in that weight/age combo is going to get the exact same answer. same with those formulas, same weight/age you'll have the exact same HR. which in fairness, is ludicrous

No I think the Garmin (edge 500 I have) works it out based on the users variables, so a lighter / younger rider would be a different Max HR reading.

mossym

Pinch Flat wrote: »

No I think the Garmin (edge 500 I have) works it out based on the users variables, so a lighter / younger rider would be a different Max HR reading.

yeah i get that. but every 35 year old, 80kg male would have the exact same HR. that's the bit i'm challenging

tunney

Leroy42 wrote: »

Yeah, the cheek of someone coming onto a site which is designed on the basis of 'experts' in their field helping out those looking for answers.

Of course the information is available elsewhere but the whole nature of this site is that people can quickly ask questions and receive real world answers.

Much quicker to simply post a quick question and get some answers on this board than read through some of the endless stuff available.

Why are you on the site if this bothers you so much?

Why buy something and not read the manual?

I think I view cycling forum like a train crash - I know the contents are horrific and the questions inane but I cannot stop checking.

bazzer86

nilhg wrote: »

Hard to comment really without a bit more information, how was your max HR calculated or found? 184 doesn't look high for a 29 year old but AFAIK there really is no hard and fast rule for max HR it varies alot between individuals.

How long did you sustain the max HRs on those climbs, and how did you you feel while you were doing it? In my experience I'd know when I'm at my max and wouldn't be able to sustain it for very long.

Ah I partciularly felt in on Keeper, I probably split it into 3 segments and each time I stopped for 30 seconds. It felt like a monumental struggle but its the readings from the first few times using a garmin that gave me food for thought. i.e am I overdoing it and maybe build it up more.

mossym wrote: »

for those climbs, how hard an effort were you pushing? if you were at 99% of max you should have been in a world of pain, and your body would have been screaming at you.

i'd be very surprised if a) you hit 99% of your max HR, and b) your max hr is 185.

when i started out i'd fairly regularly drive my hr into the 180 range on hills, and that was off a max hr of 193.

Ok, thats good to know. Thanks

AKW wrote: »

How did you get 187bpm? You really need to do a test to be certain as anything default of watches are based off the Maffetone method of 220-age for men and that is generally inaccurate for people who are relatively fit.

Cycling up Keeper Hill would be a good way to find out what your max is. Depending on the effort you put into your recent ascents and the duration you may find your Max HR is closer to the 183 / 814 mark.

Worth having a go at these tests http://www.cycling-inform.com/how-to-test-for-your-cycling-max-heart-rate

Thanks, it was the heart rate strap around my midriff that I used. Dont think I inputted my age at any point.

manwithaplan wrote: »

I am 43 and the max HR I have recorded is 205. My lactate threshold HR has been tested and is 184. Anything that uses your age, weight etc is just plain guesswork.

OP, don't worry about it. Just ride your bike with the strap for a couple of months and you will have a good idea of how your HR responds to training and how it corresponds to perceived effort. When you do a bit more cycling, you can look at introducing more structured training. You won't kill yourself by riding hard up a hill but just do what feels reasonable for the moment.

Ya thats a good point to be fair. Should probably be a process of using it over a longer period and see how im responds. I guess not having any experience of using a HRM, when I saw on Garmin that I was at 99% of my max and 85% average, I thought WTF. I know Keeper is a very challenging climb so maybe I should have given that more consideration.

tunney wrote: »

Did anyone try RTFMing?

Or failing an "M" RFAing

Oh, I'm sorry, I thought this was a forum for people interested in certain topics to ask questions and have discussions with other users of the forum? The

Leroy42 wrote: »

Yeah, the cheek of someone coming onto a site which is designed on the basis of 'experts' in their field helping out those looking for answers.

Of course the information is available elsewhere but the whole nature of this site is that people can quickly ask questions and receive real world answers.

Much quicker to simply post a quick question and get some answers on this board than read through some of the endless stuff available.

Why are you on the site if this bothers you so much?

Absalutely, I have some neck asking a cycling related question on a cycling forum in the hope of getting some insight from its users.

spudgobbler

Hi guys,

Which particular model would you recommend to work with an iPhone. A couple of times I was just going to purchase one on Amazon when I looked at the reviews, they all seem to give trouble after a short period of time with false readings, battery failure and not connecting to device.
Could someone recommend an accurate and reliable one please n thanks.