heart rate question

[suzieqtwa]

I need your advice because my heart rate over the past few months has gotten real low when I am cycling. I commute to work, and I do longer rides over 40 miles on the weekend days.



My normal average after a vigorous ride was always in the 120s or 130s, with a high around 160 or 170. Now my average heart rate is below 110.



For example, today I biked with Ellen and Darcy. We did a 55 mile loop with lots of head wind and rolling hills, so it was a physically demanding ride. We stopped for a nice lunch. At the end of the ride, both Ellen and Darcy had average heart rates in the low 130s, including the time spent at lunch. My average heart rate was 105.



I don’t know why my heart rate won’t go up when I ride. I’ve examined everything. I’ve taken rest days. I make sure I stay hydrated. I eat enough. I push myself on every ride, and I even experimented with cycling in higher gears.



Can you tell me what is happening?



Suzie

[Zen]

You're not taking any meds, are you? ( probly not, I had to ask)

[han-grrl]

How does it feel when you ride at various intensities?

[suzieqtwa]

No ,I'm not taking any meds...sometimes I feel tired when I'm biking ,I don't give it my all ,but yesterday when Darcy ,and Oxyback (Ellen) ,and I rode, we all stayed together ,and did go up against headwinds ,and hills. I wasn't out of breath or anything ,but I did give it my all. I don't think anything is wrong with my HR monitor ,as I ran 2 miles to test it ,and my avg HR was 132 for 18 minutes? I'm going for a short 15 mile ride now ,and I'm going to try ,and work real hard. I just don't understand why all of a sudden it has dropped so low.

[Mr. Bloom]

If I ran two miles, my heart rate would be off the chart...

Is it possible the reading is simply a result of your physical conditioning?

[DarcyInOregon]

If I ran two miles, my heart rate would be off the chart...

Is it possible the reading is simply a result of your physical conditioning?

I don't that is the answer. Suzie and I have been riding together several times a month for almost a year, including event rides. For all of the rides, we were within a fraction of each other on the heart rate statistics. I say this because we are the same age, except Suzie is lean and I carry excess fat. Then all of sudden, on all of her bike rides, either alone or with Ellen and me, short rides or long rides, her heart rate would not go up. For example, the three of us did an event ride in June, about 73 miles, and the weather was cold, there was constant heavy rain, there were real steep hills, there was wind, there were rolling hills, and so on. Suzie ended up with an average heart rate of around 107 and Ellen and I were in the 130s.

I don't understand why this is happening to Suzie. I told her it is almost like her bike rides are useless because she isn't getting any meaningful cardio. I can go out and walk my dogs on the hills around my home and get a higher average than her bike rides. The top cyclists train via their heart rate. They are in superb condition and they are able to get their heart rates up. So why can't Suzie get her heart rate up?

Darcy

[RoadRaven]

Don't forget that a "symptom" of getting fit is a lower heart-rate when exercising. Like MrS says - is it your increased fitness?

The only other reason where HR doesn't go up that I can think of is when you are getting sick... It will go up as expected but reach a plataeu earlier than you think it should and it doesn't matter what you do, it just will not go higher - mind you, this usually goes hand in hand with an elevated resting HR.

I seriously think it is most likely a sign of your fitness level... you are not sick, you are on mo meds, you have been "pushing" yourself on some of your training rides... I think your body has responded to your requests and increased its ability to cope with stress (ie, exercise) more effectively!

[DarcyInOregon]

I seriously think it is most likely a sign of your fitness level... you are not sick, you are on mo meds, you have been "pushing" yourself on some of your training rides... I think your body has responded to your requests and increased its ability to cope with stress (ie, exercise) more effectively!

It would be nice to assume it is fitness level. But then the question is why does the heart rate not go up on long, vigorous rides? A person can be fit, but when you push yourself and continue to do activity that is more vigorous than what the body is accustomed to, then the heart rate will go up. That is what I am saying, that Suzie is continuing to increase her miles, riding more often, climbing more hills, and for everyone else, despite what level of fitness, their heart rate will increase when they push themselves to do more than what they did previously.

To say it is fitness level almost implies that Suzie can do more on her rides, like go faster, or go more miles, or climb more hills, that she isn't doing enough. I ride with her, and she looks pretty tired to me at the end of the long rides. There are times when she leads, and times when she falls behind. Sometimes she gets to the top of the hills first, and other times she doesn't. What I am saying is she appears to be just like Ellen and myself, pushing herself as much as she can, but being sensible about it so that she can finish the distance.

On the 73-mile event ride I mentioned, Suzie and I were both exhausted. We had a long car drive home, so I was with her during that time and could see for myself how tired she was. It shows she gives her rides her maximum effort.

Darcy

[Zen]

I don't know. Are you sure the monitor is working? Look at the heart rates of the TdF riders. Even they red line it once in a while.

[RoadRaven]

Darcy - I was writing my reply as you were posting
Good to have some more insider info

If you both seriously think that this is not a result of increased fitness, then I would get a doctor who knows hearts... or a sports doctor who knows sports physiology... to check it out.


EDIT cause Darcy and I cross postsed again! I blame my dialup - connected at 14.4kbps this morning!


I don't agree that to say fitness means she can push her heart more and more...

What I am trying to say is if you continually train at a level where you push your heart occasionally but regularly, then your body responds and makes your heart more efficient. And what she describes in her original post is what happens to me now.

For example:
When I first started biking, any slight rise would have my heart up over 150bpm, often into 170s
Now I can climb 6-8% gradients in a steady training ride and my HR rarely goes over 130bpm
The only time I can get it as high as 160/170 is when I am racing up a hill, or in a time trial race, or doing sprint intervals...

I am not suggesting Suzie do more on her rides, and in fact that can be detrimental to her training - the boys in le Tour/Giro etc... the girls in the World Cup... they do hours of riding a day, yes, but not at the most intense levels

[DarcyInOregon]

I should say I get rides with lower heart rate averages, below 110. But they are the rides when I am already tired, or too many days in a row, or I am not pushing myself. When I am rested and I push myself, my heart rate goes right back up.

For Suzie, every single ride is now below 110, whether the ride is 20 miles or 60 miles. So what can she do to bring her heart rate back up into the cardio range? What do the professional cyclists do who at their maximum fitness level?

Darcy

[DarcyInOregon]

Thanks for understanding my concern for Suzie's well being. Can it be a function of something going wrong with the heart? I hope not.

Suzie says she has a doctor's appointment in October.

Zen, Suzie thinks the HRM is working because she tested it by going for a run, and got an average in the 130s, like normal.

I think Suzie is in great shape physically and yes, she has a high fitness level for her age. But I don't think the reason for the abrupt change in her heart rate is due to fitness level, because since it happened she has pushed herself with more miles and more hills and the heart rate remains low. She doesn't think she can go any faster or push herself any harder, so I don't think fitness level is the cause of every single ride having a low heart rate.

Darcy

[Zen]

Ahh, I wasn't focusing on the word average.
Never mind then.
Does the HR monitor show max HR?

[DarcyInOregon]

Raven, you describe a situation that is gradual, and that makes total sense. But with Suzie, it was like one day her average heart rate was in the 120s to 130s, then the next day it sunk below 110 and never went back up again.

And we challenge ourselves on the longer rides. We change the routes, go longer distances, do more hills, and so on.

I've experienced the lower heart rate on the same hills too. It is very gratifying to see. But for myself, I push myself harder and the heart rate goes back up.

Raven and Zen, what are the average heart rates for all of your rides?

Darcy

[DarcyInOregon]

Ahh, I wasn't focusing on the word average.
Never mind then.
Does the HR monitor show max HR?

Zen, Suzie will need to reply to that question. I asked her that yesterday, and she said it showed 275, so she thinks she had a cross-over from a power generator or another heart rate monitor. Ellen and I both had a high in the 160s. Suzie says her HRM shows a cross-over a lot.

Maybe the answer is she needs a new HRM.

Darcy