heart rate question

[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