too much science...
you know riding a bike is a pretty simple thing. There's no magic. You sit on the seat, you pedal, you move forward. It's so simple they have a saying, "it's like riding a bike..." Anyway, for the last 5 years or so, I have been a slave to my heart rate monitor. After every ride, I'd look at the numbers, average hr for the ride, max hr for the ride, how many calories I burnt. I think it even gave me my taxable income for the year.
Even worse, I had an excel spread sheet all set up, once I got home I'd diligently input my numbers for a ride it the sheet and it generate a value for the ride, to give me an indicator of how hard I worked. It averaged my weight for the week, and for a short time created launch codes for nasa. BLAHHH!!! TOO MUCH INFORMATION. FOR GOD'S SAKE I WAS A LIBERAL ARTS MAJOR !!!!
and so after feeling dirty for longer than I care to admit, I finally came to my end. No more HRM. How does this help me? When I get passed in a race, either I can chase the dude down, or I get dropped. I never looked at my HRM and pressed a button and had a turbo boost or something, I never looked at it and had is say, "dude, your taking it too easy... step it up buddy..." It always tells me what I already know, I'm suffering, and my HR is high. I have had enough. I put it in a box last night, it's gone. I did get a new watch, that tells time, and the date, and it has a stop watch, so if you need to know what time it is, or the date, or how long I rode my bike last night, I can tell you that gladly. Please just don't ask me what my average heart rate was for the work out..
9 comments:
I think HR monitor can help you make sure if you are in a hard enough zone for something like intervals or that an easy zone for true recovery.
Good for you freeing yourself from all that excel data..AFter 5 years you can go by how you feel.
I stopped wearing a watch about two years ago..my battery died and I procastinated getting another one. It was very liberating and I can glance at cell phone for time if I really need it.
I think I went to a high school prom with the polyester dude on the car !
"...or you'll kick them in the nuts with your poimty-toed stillettos?"
is that what the ellipses is replacing??
It's time for a Power Tap! I too used to be religious about the HR numbers but finally reached the point where I could tell you my HR without the monitor so I quit using it. On the other hand..........I've felt the past year or two that my training has lacked the structure I built around the HR monitor. I am now probably very guilty of "going too easy on hard days and too hard on the easy days." Hmmm.........maybe it IS time for a PowerTap.
Andrew
Screw science. I pitched my heart rate monitor years ago. Science is great for training and improving, but riding is more fun without it.
I would have never owned another cyclo-computer if it wasn't for the "cue-sheet" type races that require them. I used to just run a watch ziptied to my stem so I could see the time.
Now you need to pitch your suspension forks and any remaining derailieurs. Less is more! I'm only runiing one crank now. Luddites rule!
I set myself free from it this year too. I do miss it during intervals, just to see where I am. But I'm pretty sure I don't need it to tell me when I'm reaching Max HR. There's usual a nice hunk of vomit on my top tube by that point.
Later
Hey I do have a turbo hrmbutton and I'll glady take any unused hrm because I could always use more turbo tedlogic2
Excel spreadsheets are cool. I created crazy ones to track my blood work and eating patterns while I was on chemo. Then I realized, wait... if I'm well enough to be on this computer than I should get my ass outside on my bike, on a rock or in an art studio. So the excel spreadsheets were tossed out the window. Being a nerd and tracking what you do can be fun but actually doing it is funner.
yep -funner.
Did someone once market the phrase "just do it" ?? hmmm.
It is good to be free from excel!
How much for your HRM ?
You should take it to the Ebay Auction Store in Newark Delaware called "Eqwik Sales". They are selling all kinds of bike stuff, you bring it in they sell it! Check-em out! www.eqwiksales.com
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