Maximum heart rate

[Pammie]

Hello

I am a runner that is my main sport, but there is something about the erg that appeals. I'm looking to start up again as i'm just recovering from an injury and hoping to combine the two

As a runner i am interested in heart rate training so train easy on my easy days so that i'm able to be recovered enough to do the quality sessions

I understand however that my MHR as a runner will be different as a rower, i take it that as rowing is a low impact sport like cycling so chances are my MHR won't be as high as it is when i run

I know of MHR tests to do as a runner but what kind of tests can i do on the concept 2 so i can workout at the correct intensities

Many thanks

[Cyclist2]

The C2 UK website has a protocol for finding your max heart rate on the erg. Here is the link:
http://www.concept2.co.uk/guide/guide.p ... ical_tools

[M. Podolsky]

Perhaps I don't understand your question, but if it's really about max HR, then the activity is irrelevant. Your MHR when running will be your MHR when erging.

[hjs]

Hello

I am a runner that is my main sport, but there is something about the erg that appeals. I'm looking to start up again as i'm just recovering from an injury and hoping to combine the two

As a runner i am interested in heart rate training so train easy on my easy days so that i'm able to be recovered enough to do the quality sessions

I understand however that my MHR as a runner will be different as a rower, i take it that as rowing is a low impact sport like cycling so chances are my MHR won't be as high as it is when i run

I know of MHR tests to do as a runner but what kind of tests can i do on the concept 2 so i can workout at the correct intensities

Many thanks

Erging is low impact on the joint's but it is certainly not low impact on the hart/lungs system, If you are see to the movement you will see high hartrates if you do a hard workout.

[Pammie]

Cyclist2

Thanks that link was what i was looking for.

i

[Nosmo]

Perhaps I don't understand your question, but if it's really about max HR, then the activity is irrelevant. Your MHR when running will be your MHR when erging.

No, on the erg it should be slightly lower then running. Swimming it will be lower yet

[Pammie]

Thanks Nosmo that was my understanding

At least i'm not going mad

[M. Podolsky]

Perhaps I don't understand your question, but if it's really about max HR, then the activity is irrelevant. Your MHR when running will be your MHR when erging.

No, on the erg it should be slightly lower then running. Swimming it will be lower yet

I understand that with similar effort your HR may be higher when running than it is when erging, but if your HR maxes out at 180 when you run, I don't see why it would max out at less than 180 when you row.

[Cazneau]

I can get my heart rate up to about 188 if I run up a steep hill at the end of a moderately long run. On the erg, I can get it up to about 179 if I sprint at the end of a 6 to 10k row. On the bike I can spin to exhaustion and not get my HR anywhere close to that--maybe in the 160s. Same with swimming.

To the poster who says MHR is always the same, this may be a semantics debate--what exactly do we mean when we use the term "Maximum Heart Rate?" The reality is that every form of exercise uses a different set of muscles, and some exercises require the heart to push more oxygen into more muscles than others. Plus, body position while engaged in physical exertion seems to have some effect, as does the relative fitness level for an individual in that particular exercise. Larger, more fully developed muscles require more oxygen than puny ones. So it stands to reason that a heart-fit runner might have trouble getting their HR to the same levels they do running when they are engaged in an exercise they are less accustomed to.

[M. Podolsky]

To the poster who says MHR is always the same, this may be a semantics debate--what exactly do we mean when we use the term "Maximum Heart Rate?" The reality is that every form of exercise uses a different set of muscles, and some exercises require the heart to push more oxygen into more muscles than others. Plus, body position while engaged in physical exertion seems to have some effect, as does the relative fitness level for an individual in that particular exercise. Larger, more fully developed muscles require more oxygen than puny ones. So it stands to reason that a heart-fit runner might have trouble getting their HR to the same levels they do running when they are engaged in an exercise they are less accustomed to.

I agree with everything you say after the first sentence. But there is a maximum rate at which your heart will beat, and HR-based training uses this limit - not what you can achieve during a particular activity. Using an extreme example, walking is one of my favourite exercises, but it wouldn't make much sense to train based on heart rates recorded during walks. And if you want to get the same cardio benefit from an AT row that you would get from an AT run, you should use 188 as your MHR when calculating the AT HR range. If this turns out to be 175 and you can't reach that while rowing, then rowing isn't the right exercise for you (for this cardio goal).

I'm surprised that you can't hit MHR on the erg. Row at your 2km best pace + 5 seconds for as long as you can. You should see MHR in under an hour.

[Cazneau]

I'm surprised that you can't hit MHR on the erg. Row at your 2km best pace + 5 seconds for as long as you can. You should see MHR in under an hour.

It could be psychological. I have been running for years, but am still relatively new to regular rowing. Perhaps mentally I'm more prepared to hit my pain and misery threshhold with running than I am with rowing, and I'm actually giving less than my max effort in rowing.

[Nosmo]

It is well established that body position has an effect on Max heart rate. Running will be higher then erging or cycling both of which ar ehigher then swimming. Once you are moderately used to the exercise and if you are reasonably fit you should be able to hit max heart rate.
If your max is 10 bpm lower on the erg then running it may be because your max is just that much lower on the erg.

[sheehc]

But there is a maximum rate at which your heart will beat, and HR-based training uses this limit - not what you can achieve during a particular activity.

HR based training is not based on acheiving your MHR. It is based on acheiving various percentages of VO2max or lactate levels, and using HR as an non-invasive indicator of these levels. As such, it is not important that you hit the exact same HR in each activity, but that you hit the same level for which HR is serving as a proxy. Spend 5' on google or pubmed and you will find proof of these concepts. Moreover, depending on one's cardiac history (not necessarily cardiac disease though), orthostatic issues can cause significant differences in HR based on position and this must be accounted for as well.

Pammie: if you are new to erging it's unlikely you will hit a true MHR. When first learning technique, the body generally just can't hit a real maximum effort. Try out a MHR test, but repeat it in a month or so when you become a little more efficient. Odds are the HR will go up.

[Pammie]

Thanks Sheehc
have been an occassional erger (if thats the right phrase) normally when i can't run. Did a slow 5km row yesterday but i wasn't trying hard think the highest max i got to was 125. Just wanted to make sure i lasted the distance.

Hoping to replicate running in some form some long stuff and some shorter fast stuff

[M. Podolsky]

HR based training is not based on acheiving your MHR. It is based on acheiving various percentages of VO2max or lactate levels, and using HR as an non-invasive indicator of these levels.

Thanks for the information. I feel foolish for responding to a question I obviously wasn't qualified to answer, but at least I ended up learning something.

Would a high VO2max mean that you can train at HR levels higher than the bands recommended by most HR training programs?