Your max heart rate?

[Loodpyp]

It seems as if you might have one of those monitors that never works

right. I had experienced, hitting 220+ just during a warm-up run. My advise, invest in something worthwhile.

[GIRR]

my max has been up to around 215

[Johan Bornman]

Wow TGIP' date=' so that 220 minus your age rule is total crap?  QUOTE']

 

Yup, you've summed it up perfectly. Saying that your max is this or that because of some formula where you deduct your age and factor in your gender is like predicting your weight or height purely from your age. It ranges quite widely.

 

My tested max in 1990 was 179 and had I believed the formula I would have thought it was 190 and probably killed myself trying to achieve that.

 

Although I haven't tested it formally since 1990, I can pretty much still hit 165 without popping a vein. Had I relied on the formula, my max today would have only been 162.

 

I don't know if this has ever been studied, the exercise physiologists here could perhaps tell us, but I have come to believe that people with higher maximum HRs make better cyclists, all other things being equal.  Is this true anyone?

 

 

JB

[EugeneP]

I heard somewhere that Eddy Merckx's max heart rate was only in the 150's

[Evan Andreou]

196 age 37wolverine2007-10-01 02:45:39

[bruce]

 

I don't know if this has ever been studied' date=' the exercise physiologists here could perhaps tell us, but I have come to believe that people with higher maximum HRs make better cyclists, all other things being equal.  Is this true anyone?

 

 

JB

[/quote']

 

No, not that I am aware.  Fundamentally it is all about delivering the required amount of oxygen to the working muscles.  If you heart has a higher stroke volume (i.e. volume of blood it can pump per beat) then your heart rate can be lower in order to deliver the same volume of oxygen to the muscles.

 

Remember that your heart is also a muslce, and so is made up of muscle fibres.  IIRC there are some unique muscle characteristics with the heart, but in any case - different individuals will have slightly different makeup, therefore impacting their max heartrate etc. 

 

The practical thing that limits us when exercising is lactate threshold, not ventilatory threshold.  So, lung capacity, heart stroke volume, etc are not what is causing the limitation.   Yes, they impose an absolute ceiling on what your potential is as a cyclist, but what impacts our ability is generally lactate threshold.  So, we try to push lactate threshold as close to ventilatory threshold (VO2Max) as possible, but even the best athletes are only at around 90% to 95% of VO2Max.

 

So, in short, our lung capacity and heart stroke volume generally exceed the requirements of the body at lactate threshold.  Cyclist A might have a higher VO2Max than Cyclist B, but if Cyclist B is able to produce more power at lactate threshold, then Cyclist B will generally outperform Cyclist A.  Cyclist A though would have a better "potential" than cyclist B.

bruce2007-09-30 02:21:42

[Racer X]

I am a bit of an odd case. My MHR is 168 and I am 18. This is apparently caused by the fact the I have very wide Lumen in my Pulmonary aretory. Well thats what my doctor said anyway. It seems to be genetic cause my Dad's MHR is 151 and he is 60.

[Chrispy]

193 - 46 years old

[Frosty]

193 - 34yr

[AndreZA]

188 @ age 34. But It did hover between 205 and 220 at the Urban assault because I needed to wee. Dropped right down in the 150s after.

 

 

 

[Johan Bornman]

[quote name=bruceSnip - Snip - Snip -

 

Fundamentally it is all about delivering the required amount of oxygen to the working muscles.  If you heart has a higher stroke volume (i.e. volume of blood it can pump per beat) then your heart rate can be lower in order to deliver the same volume of oxygen to the muscles.

 

 

Snip snip snip

 

The practical thing that limits us when exercising is lactate threshold' date=' not ventilatory threshold.  So, lung capacity, heart stroke volume, etc are not what is causing the limitation.   Yes, they impose an absolute ceiling on what your potential is as a cyclist, but what impacts our ability is generally lactate threshold.  So, we try to push lactate threshold as close to ventilatory threshold (VO2Max) as possible, but even the best athletes are only at around 90% to 95% of VO2Max.

 

So, in short, our lung capacity and heart stroke volume generally exceed the requirements of the body at lactate threshold.  Cyclist A might have a higher VO2Max than Cyclist B, but if Cyclist B is able to produce more power at lactate threshold, then Cyclist B will generally outperform Cyclist A.  Cyclist A though would have a better "potential" than cyclist B.

[/quote]

 

Interesting. When I struggle up hills I often think about this and I always thought it was my aerobic capacity that limits me, I other words, I run out of breath before I start to burn enough to back off.

 

But perhaps I am not identifying the true cause correctly. I'm gonna do some hills this week and determine whether I die from lack of breath or pain.

 

JB

[HomerSimpson]

Was 181 about 2 years ago...managed to get it up to 176 going up a 15% gradient on the MTB last week...no spots before the eyes or hissing noises in the ears yet, so I guess it's still around 180 (at age 50).

[Brakkies Sport Fotos]

194 and im 46

 

 

 

but I'm sur it all depend on how big your heart is.

 

 

 

If you are lucky and got a heart like a rugby ball, it only needs to pump every minute a shot, if you have something like a tennis ball it will have to pump blood ever second.

 

 

 

So, the 220-age is rubbish. i.m.o

 

 

 

popeye2007-10-01 02:25:06

[Wannabe]

Age 42, MHR regularly exceeds 196 (took it to 201 with avg of 183 two years ago when I did a 2:50 at 94.7)

 

Agree with what Bruce says, it is the VO2Max that limits you. not MHR.

[Mudsimus]

I heard somewhere that Eddy Merckx's max heart rate was only in the 150's

 

At the peak of his career about 148bpm.

[bruce]

 

Interesting. When I struggle up hills I often think about this and I always thought it was my aerobic capacity that limits me' date=' I other words, I run out of breath before I start to burn enough to back off.

 

But perhaps I am not identifying the true cause correctly. I'm gonna do some hills this week and determine whether I die from lack of breath or pain.

 

JB

[/quote']

 

Well, the experiment is quite easy - if your heartrate was your limiter, you should be capable of riding at just below your max HR for an extended period of time.

 

I know another person that is adamant that they never feel a burning in the muscles, that their heart and lungs are what is limiting them.  I'm not sure that every individual feels the same sensation when lactate starts to accumulate faster than it can be removed.