Thanks @bbarrera. You are correct in that I don’t have a power meter. Secondly, I’ve become complacent with my local trails, so as I ride, I have a tendency to get mentally distracted and off focusing on my ride and effort. This wasn’t as much of a problem when I was riding with a partner, but he is out for awhile recovering from an injury.
So my goal is to be more effective solo. I didn’t realize until recently that my LeZyne Super GPS can be setup to display all kinds of HR and Power data, so I configured it for HR. Now I’m just trying to get my zones setup accurate to my fitness level so I can monitor it on the trail. I know it may seem silly, but if I can see what’s happening, it will give my brain something to do and focus on that’s related to the ride. Professionally I’m a software engineer and game developer, so numbers, statistics, projection data are common thought processes for me. Therefore, I’m thinking that if I ‘entertain’ my brain with this data in real time, I’m more likely to keep my focus on the ride rather than “Did I leave the stove on?” or “What am I gonna make for dinner?” kinda nonsense.
On the flip side, my local park will be close for all of November and part of December for hunting season, so I’ll resort to a TR 8 week program. For now, I’m just trying to get through the next 6 weeks or so without loosing fitness.
Basically I’m planning of fighting AD/HD distractions one heart beat at a time.
It’s not - it’s just misused. It estimates what the average max HR is vs age, for a population. In absence of any other data, it gives you an idea of where the max may be. Using a population average to determine the characteristics of a single individual is certain to cause “a lot of people a great deal of worry”. It’s like buying size 9 shoes because that’s what the average person wears. It has the highest chance of fitting of any size, but that’s no comfort to the guy with large feet who will wear them.
Sorry you’re correct - I should have said the application of the extremely valuable 220-age thing is total bollocks.
Just do a search in the forum for “Will my heart blow up because my heart rate got to 200?” see how many results come up if you don’t think it causes angst.
Hence-forth 220-age will be known as “220-age ±13%” (changed from 10 as I don’t think that was accurate enough)
Generally, cyclists have plenty of other data however. Much better to ignore the formula completely and use your own data. That shoe will always fit better unless of course you are naturally a size 9.
Not sure if the ramp test will determine your max heart rate. Mine is 195 (hit during a seated sprint finish of a Zwift race), but I’ve never gotten past 188 during the ramp test.
It sounds like in your ramp test your legs are limiting you but your cardiovascular system has a little more to give. If you lift your cadence you might be able to shift a bit of the workload to your heart and lungs and hang on for a little bit longer.
