Ok so the discussion of heart rate training zones has come up on occasion in the exercise and fitness forum so I thought I would share what my 74 mile training ride from today looked like.

I am lucky because my cycling computer is quite sophisticated and allows me to analyze a lot of data it tracks speed/average speed, distance, total ascent in feet, cadence/average cadence (cadence is the RPM my peddles/cranks are turning), average/max heart rate, duration of ride, calories burned and temperature. From this I can get graphs that show how long I spent in each training zone by percentage and also how many minutes and percentage time spent in each 10 beats per minute section of the heart rate scale i.e. 110-120,120-130 etc.

Now my cycling computer uses a max heart rate scale as it is less reliant on extensive testing than anaerobic threshold which most people would not get tested for ( I did and have done 3 of the last four seasons).

My heart rate training zones were calculated by entering my age, gender, weight, and max heart rate (which is188 bpm). The training zones are light (94-112 bpm), light to moderate (113-131), moderate to heavy (132-159) and heavy to maximal intensity (160-188). The zone for maximal fat burning actually sits within two zones. It starts at around 125 bpm and goes to around 150/155. On an endurance ride I need to avoid going into the max zone as much as possible and actually my anaerobic threshold of 174 bpm is my target number to stay under.

Today’s training ride was 74.4 miles and the riding time was 5hr 25min I averaged 14.75 mph, climbed 2222 feet, with a max heart rate of 183 bpm and an average of 139 bpm. I burned around 4000 calories. In the light to moderate zone I spent 1hr 07min, in the moderate to heavy it was 3hr 20 min and in the heavy to maximal it was 58min. I know the times here don’t add up to 5hr 25min but the three zones listed are the critical ones and as you can see the moderate to heavy zone was where I spent the bulk of my time. For endurance this is where you want to be which also is the zone where most of the fat burning is done. So this was an aerobic exercise with minimal time above my anaerobic threshold. There are times when I train at or above that threshold because that is how you expand your aerobic wind base and it is usually in some kind of interval training with calculated periods of time above my 174 threshold.

I know that most do not have access to a device that does what my cycle computer does but there are ways to get a max heart rate and then compute your zones. Heart rate monitors have come down in price and a lot of the heart rate straps will communicate with cardio machines in the gym. I do train by info retrieved and keep an eye on my heart rate throughout my rides as it is an indication of possible trouble. I would encourage anyone who is interested in endurance events either running or cycling to think about investing in a heart rate monitor. If you ride a good cycle computer and there are even wrist computers for runners. Garmin makes one that both runners and cyclist can use and even has GPS.

I hope all this info didn’t bore you but with the questions on training I thought it might be helpful.

Thank so much, Damon! I had no idea such a technology existed in mobile form.
I can see how important the information would be in refining a training program.
Congrats on your ride and we're always interested in your posts! NEVER a
boring word! Thanks so much!

I think my dad used to ride with a computer gizmo. I never did. But, I remember playing with them at my dad's bicycle store when I was kid. Ooops rambling. Knowing and exercising in your aerobic target heart rate is important. For spin class and my workouts... I typically use a heart rate monitor so I can stay in my zone. I am so glad you posted this. A great read and important info. Thank you.