Struggling to get my HR up

[Jay_B]

Im still fairly new to training with a HR monitor... been using it for about 2 months now. My training schedule has increased significantly over the last 2 months as well. When i started with the HRM i found it really difficult keeping my heart rate under 80% during a ride unless I made a concious effort to keep the pace and intensity down. I am now finding the opposite where I am struggling to get my HR up to above 80% during a ride and when i do get it up it drops off again rather quickly as soon as i settle into a rythm... Is this just that i have gottien that much fitter now that my efforts have to be that much more intense to get my HR up and keep it up or is it that im not recovering properly?

[rouxtjie]

Im still fairly new to training with a HR monitor... been using it for about 2 months now. My training schedule has increased significantly over the last 2 months as well. When i started with the HRM i found it really difficult keeping my heart rate under 80% during a ride unless I made a concious effort to keep the pace and intensity down. I am now finding the opposite where I am struggling to get my HR up to above 80% during a ride and when i do get it up it drops off again rather quickly as soon as i settle into a rythm... Is this just that i have gottien that much fitter now that my efforts have to be that much more intense to get my HR up and keep it up or is it that im not recovering properly?

that is really the problem with HR based training....the fitter you get, the lower your HR will be for the same efforts. Over and above hitting higher zones...85-90%....90%+ will require greater effort and take longer to reach if you are using it for interval training.

 

In summary, you are getting fitter...

[ChUkKy]

Im still fairly new to training with a HR monitor... been using it for about 2 months now. My training schedule has increased significantly over the last 2 months as well. When i started with the HRM i found it really difficult keeping my heart rate under 80% during a ride unless I made a concious effort to keep the pace and intensity down. I am now finding the opposite where I am struggling to get my HR up to above 80% during a ride and when i do get it up it drops off again rather quickly as soon as i settle into a rythm... Is this just that i have gottien that much fitter now that my efforts have to be that much more intense to get my HR up and keep it up or is it that im not recovering properly?

 

This will assist you

 

[Escapee..]

This will assist you

 

 

 

Exactly what I wanted to post, well nearly..

[Pure Savage]

Sometimes if you are over training and not resting properly then you may struggle to get the heart rate up.

 

But as Rouxtjie said, as you get fitter HR will come down.

 

Also find faster people to ride with, that will up the heart rate.

[MTBc]

how many days a week are you riding? give it 2 or 3 days break and HR should go up a bit easier.

[gummibear]

Wish i had your problem...i just look at my bike and it jumps 10 beats.

[fanievb]

register on trainingpeaks. (its free)

 

the site will work out a threshold HR based on the amount and intensity of your training and will adjust it up and down as you progress

 

it takes a while (and lots of reading) to understand how it works and how to adjust your training but it works for me.

 

once you get the hang of it, you can even start training based on TSS (same as with a power meter) as training peaks works this out based on you HR

 

http://www.coachcox.co.uk/2012/03/30/how-to-plan-a-season-using-the-performance-management-chart

Edited August 5, 2014 by fanievb