Maffatone... day one

12

  1. 79pmooney

    offline
    Member

    Thanks, Jimmy. Yes I know about the variations in HR and using the monitor primarily as a max warning.

    An aside on the value of HR monitors. I rode the Lolo Pass ride seven years ago (when all of my numbers were respectably higher!). A century with several tough climbs going out, then Lolo Pass and two climbs coming home tougher than the ones going out. I set my limit at 154 on the early climbs. Couldn't stay with any hotshots at that RPM. For Lolo Pass I stayed at 164 and felt good. Paid no attention to the monitor coming home, but had enough in the tank for the climbs.

    Oh, on the pass, I shelled a rider 15 years my junior who I'd been pacing a mile from the top. He thanked me later, saying he was hurting and I got him up the climb far faster than he would have done on his own. And I passed a lot of cooked hotshots coming home!

    Ben

    Posted 5 months ago

  2. watermoccasin

    offline
    Member

    //How are you guys calculating heartrates down in the 120's?//

    Punk kids, anyway ;)

    180 - 57 = 123 + 5 = 128
    Unless you use my racing age (cyclocross 58), then it's 127

    Most cx races my average HR is 169-174 depending on the course (45 minutes). I've seen 185 a couple times lately in races where there is a climb more than just a quick pitch up.

    Posted 5 months ago

  3. nightfend

    offline
    Member

    Well I wonder whether an age formula is the right way to go in this instance. My max heartrate is around 188 or so. When I do 40K TT's, my threshold heartrate is around 172 to 175. So it sounds like our HR's are similar watermoccasin.

    Posted 5 months ago

  4. Serotta94

    offline
    Member

    I'm actually surprised he would use the 180 - formula given how inaccurate it tends to be when compared to accurate max HR data, but in most cases I'd bet it will error on a lower target HR so maybe that's okay.

    Back when this first came out I knew and trained with a lot of triathletes and it worked very well with them. In most cases they were doing way too much way too hard so backing off was just what they needed. It helped that in the Ironman distances they were doing, going into the red zone was a bad idea anyway.

    Always assumed that this method would not work as well for events like bike racing that require you to floor it multiple times during a race so I'll be interested in hearing how it works for people here when it comes to race time.

    Posted 5 months ago

  5. jpouchet

    offline
    Member

    Last night had to ride an ancient Lifefitness Lifecycle the kind with the LED display. Did the first 24 minute (yeah that's how they were built, 6 l, 12, 18, or 24 minutes) at level 6 (1/2 max). Kept cadence to 100 and watched HR never get above zone 1. So next 24 minutes pushed it up to level 8 and was just able to hit upper end of some 2. Right at the 125 target.

    That old Lifecycle was an Ego booster. Kept telling me I was pumping out 1,050 watt peak one minute intervals. NOT!

    Anyway, it was nice to spin with a light load while listening to tunes.

    One side note: it did NOT help my golf game today. Not a bit!

    Posted 5 months ago

  6. thinline

    offline
    Member

    Watermoc, I started lower intensity training after my car accident. Worked with a friend that is a Master Instructor for Madd Dog Athletics (think Spinning) and she taught me all about heart rate zones, building an aerobic base etc. I used to go out and pound as hard as I could when I rode, did interval stuff indoors in the winter. My weight was always 200-205 and I never got faster over distances. One winter of focusing on zone 2 and some low end zone 3, staying at 80% max or below with most of the time between 70-75%, I got on my bike the next spring 25 poiunds lighter and faster than I ever had been in the past, and my endurance was vastly improved.

    So, keep at it!

    Posted 5 months ago

  7. watermoccasin

    offline
    Member

    I'm racing a few more cx races this winter but will switch to lower intensity stuff over the winter. I did another hour last night at 120-130... it kind of felt lazy and that I was just putting in junk time but I'll keep with it until Spring and see where I am.

    Most years by the time cx season is done I'm kind of fried anyway and don't do much to maintain so this might be a good experiment to do.

    Posted 5 months ago

  8. cerv

    offline
    Member

    Worth noting about doing these LSD miles is that the S is for "steady", not "slow".
    I do a lot of 140 target heartrate aerobic rides in the winter (which is right around where my maffetone would be). Even more important than focusing on keeping the heartrate from spiking is making sure it doesn't fall below zone on the flats/downhills. You need to stay steady in that +/- 5bpm zone to really see the benefits. I ride with a lot of guys in winter who have a max HR they try to stay under, but then they end up most of the time rolling along at 105 HR on the flats chatting to their riding buddies. Junk miles. It's really easy to let the HR fall coming down a hill, etc. even when you're trying to keep it in zone. Takes some practice.

    Posted 5 months ago

12

Reply

You must log in to post.