# High Heart rate when riding



## shelpster66 (Feb 18, 2010)

Hello.....I've done a few searches but nothing really hits the nail on the head for an answer.

I've been riding for about a year and put up about 1500 miles in that time. A couple of months ago I decided to get a HRM to see if I was overdoing it on my rides. I would get home and be dizzy and it would take me some time to recover. 

When I start off, I usually keep my HR below 130 for the warm up....after that I start pushing harder and it gets up to the 140-150 range. During the ride it can get as high as 170 and then I have to back it off because I feel like I don't get enough oxygen and I'm sucking air.

The guy I ride with never gets that high with his HR and we're doing the same speed. Keep in mind I'm only doing between 16-20 mph during any of this ride. This is not a race by any means.I feel OK when it's in Zone 4, but higher than that I seems to start fading.

Should I let my HR get that high and train at that level? In zone 4 and 5?

for my age, this was the Garmin's setup;
I'm 43, 190 lbs....in pretty good shape

Zone 3 - 120-140
Zone 4 - 140-160
Zone 5 - 160 -180

I'm going to start to do more intervals during the week and longer sustained rides on the weekends. Opinions welcome.......good, bad ...whatever........even sarcasm.


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## Wookiebiker (Sep 5, 2005)

HR is tough to train by because it's so variable from day to day and person to person.

I have a lower HR than most people I ride with. We can be riding at the same pace and my HR will be 20-30 beats lower than the others around me. I can do back to back days on the same route with the same conditions at the same speed and have a HR that is 10 beats lower or higher than the other because of various other conditions (went hard the day before, deyhdrated, etc.).

What you need to do is find your own HR and go from there...don't worry about anybody elses heart rate you ride with because it's totally irrelevant to even try and compare yours to theirs.

Also consider fitness levels vary from rider to rider...which can mean one rider is working harder than others. I know on group rides my tempo pace is others threshold pace...so going the same speed, I'm not working as hard as they are (though sometimes my threshold pace is others tempo pace and I'm killing myself to stay with them  ).


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## Kerry Irons (Feb 25, 2002)

*Better number*



shelpster66 said:


> When I start off, I usually keep my HR below 130 for the warm up....after that I start pushing harder and it gets up to the 140-150 range. During the ride it can get as high as 170 and then I have to back it off because I feel like I don't get enough oxygen and I'm sucking air.
> 
> The guy I ride with never gets that high with his HR and we're doing the same speed. Keep in mind I'm only doing between 16-20 mph during any of this ride. This is not a race by any means.I feel OK when it's in Zone 4, but higher than that I seems to start fading.
> 
> ...


You HR is your HR, and it has nothing to do with the rider next to you. It looks like you're estimating your maximum by some age-based formula. Recognize that this will tell you your max +/- 20 BPM and so it completely useless. If you want to train by HR, then get your maximum sustainable HR which is similar to anaerobic threshold (AT) or lactate threshold (LT). This HR is what you can hold for the last 20 minutes of a flat out 30 minute effort. Then use the following to guide your training:

Active Recovery - Zone 1	<80% LT
Endurance - Zone 2	80-89% LT
Tempo - Zone 3	90-93% LT
Subthreshold - Zone 4	94-99% LT
Suprathreshold - Zone 5a	100-102% LT
Aerobic Capacity - Zone 5b	103-105% LT
Anaerobic Capacity - Zone 5c	>105% LT


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## M-theory (Jul 16, 2009)

*Interval training*

The majority of your ride should be 'tempo'...in the upper region of zone 2. Approx 135-140bpm.

The occasional foray into zone 5 is what will make you stronger. A few substantial hills along the route will take you into the 170's. Ride tempo between the climbs to recover.

As you get stronger, choose a route with even more hills.


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## lawrence (May 17, 2005)

If this is your H.R. then this is your H.R. As you train and your heart muscle gets stronger, your H.R. should drop. As other posters, H.R. is individual.

However, if your H.R. is high for you, then it could be some serious problems causing it. I had Lyme's disease and without realizing I had it, my H.R. was 10bpm higher than it usually is, 10bpm on flats, 10bpm on hills.


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## fontarin (Mar 28, 2009)

I doubt it's a problem if it's normal for you.

My average HR is fairly high on rides, even though I have a lower resting HR.

Resting = 50-60
Low endurance on rides = 140-155
High endurance = 160-175 or so - I've ended harder 3 hour rides with 170 average HR
I'm not suffering TOO much in the low 190s, though I obviously can't hold that for more than a few minutes, if that.


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## viciouscycle (Aug 22, 2009)

Also, temp, foods can affect HR as well. And for your age, 170 is not high, I can put mine in the mid 180's (Z5) and I have several years on you.


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## Ghost234 (Jun 1, 2010)

OP: I don't think you should be doing intervals yet. Starting intervals at your stage will likely result in no benefit and possible injury. 


I had a similar problem with HR not all too long ago. I would do hard rides with my HR in the low 180's consistently. The way I solved it was doing many more zone 2 efforts. My heart rate dropped like a stone within a month.


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## shelpster66 (Feb 18, 2010)

Thanks everybody.....some great info. 
I understand that many factors come into play when riding and what my heart rate will be. I'm not really trying to compare my HR to the guy next to me as I understand he is probably in much better shape than I am. I am a cancer survivor and have had numerous operations and many months of chemo, but this was many years ago. I just want to be sure that my heart rate being that high isn't abnormal. From what I hear, it's not too far off. I try to stay in the 150-160 range on a normal ride......16-17mph no hills. When I push a little harder to get to 18-20mph, I start hitting the 170+ mark. I don't do this for long because I can't. I guess I just need to keep riding as much as possible. (about 60-70 miles a week)
It just seems like the effort to keep me around 18mph is causing me to go over 170 bpm and I can't stay at that level. I just want my avg speed to go up, not to sprint or race.

could be I just suck......but I do love riding.


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## lawrence (May 17, 2005)

A high H.R. and not being able to get the next level can be several things, lack of training or proper training, ie if you want to ride fast or ride far or ride far and fast, you need to start riding fast, you need to start riding further, and then you'll be able to build up to that.

My higher h.r. was due to Lyme's however during this time, through testing, echocardiogram and ekg it was discovered I had a slight mitral valve leak that the doctor could not hear with his sethoscope and only leaked under when blood pressure rises during exercise. This prevents me from achieving certain speeds. To keep my blood pressure from rising too much "under load", I take 5mg of lisinopril.

I know other riders with valve leaks and some other heart problems and they also had similar problems, not achieving a higher speed. You just pedal and pedal and pedal and it doesn't come, it's not there. You should see a doctor to help you determine if the problem is physical or training.


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## InfiniteLoop (Mar 20, 2010)

ALWAYS advisable for those of us over 40 to stay in touch with our docs on stuff like this. Find a good internist, preferably one who is trained in sports med or is an athlete themselves.

As others said, you sound completely normal and likely just need to loose some weight and get in shape. I've got a decade on you and hit upper 170's and lower 180's fairly often on hills or sprints. My average HR for a 33 mile hilly ride @ 19.5mph average is about 150


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## stevesbike (Jun 3, 2002)

you should first address the issue of being dizzy after you stop riding - how long does it take to recover and how severe is the dizziness?


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## shelpster66 (Feb 18, 2010)

I think me being dizzy is from the heat. It gets in the mid 90's here and the heat index (with humidity) is over 100. me sucking for air when it's that hot makes me dizzy. It usually goes away within a few minutes of being in the AC.

Also, I'm not terribly out of shape.....my weight @ 190 is pretty close to where I want to be. I could drop another 5-10 pounds if needed, and that may eventually happen with the riding. I was at 218 before I started riding.

Infinite loop......I think that is where I'm looking to be is where you are at now....but no hills around here to speak of.....Tampa Bay.....flat as hell.
Made an appt with the doc.....going to have a good physical done

Thanks again to all that responded.


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## InfiniteLoop (Mar 20, 2010)

When it's hot like that I have to pour water (Heed actually) down my gullet, probably about 40oz/hr to keep from getting dizzy. BTW, I was about 205 (5' 10") and now hover between 155 - 165. Life and wife much happier


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## PJay (May 28, 2004)

*high HR, dizzy = dehydration, possibly*

high HR, dizzy = dehydration, possibly

when your body loses fluid due to sweating, there is a lower volume in your circulatory system. To make up for this loss of volume, your heart rates makes what is left in there circulate faster.

this would explain high heart rate and dizziness.

training helps. also, hydrate: drink fluids. before, during, annd after.

if you drink too much fluid, electolytes will leave your body as you urinate, so if you try to really go up on fluid intake, make sure you go up some in electrolytes (in other words, you get to eat chips without much guilt).


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## PJay (May 28, 2004)

*the heart defect thing, too*

my wife can exercise strenuously to a point, then gets maxed out. she has a heart defect, treated by surgery, but it still affects her at the top end. she will feel like she cannot catch her breath, even after resting for a few moments.


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## Crack Monkey (Apr 19, 2007)

shelpster66 said:


> I would get home and be dizzy and it would take me some time to recover.


Heart-rate notwithstanding, this is worrisome. Are you really dizzy after a ride, or just wobbly legs from the effort? Dizzy is not good.

It could be something simple like blood sugar levels being off (are you feeding on the bike?). And it could be something serious. If you haven't had a physical in a while, it might be time to do so.

As mentioned above, heart rate is personal. You'll have to monitor it over time and see what levels are high and low relative to your own baseline. And you can try on of the various threshold tests to set your zones more accurately.

FWIW, my average HR on most longer rides (20+ miles) is in the 150-160 range. My max is in the low 190s, and regularly hit the mid-180s on steep/fast climbs. I'm 33, relatively fit, but could stand to lose 10lbs.


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## HiImSeth (Jun 3, 2009)

Crack Monkey said:


> FWIW, my average HR on most longer rides (20+ miles) is in the 150-160 range. My max is in the low 190s, and regularly hit the mid-180s on steep/fast climbs. I'm 33, relatively fit, but could stand to lose 10lbs.


FWIW, I'm 29 and our hearts appear to operate very similarly. I, too, could stand to lose 10lbs. I've always thought it to be somewhat on the high side, but maybe it is not.


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