Heart monitor, does it make sense?

[h90]

My speed and cadence computer doesn't work too good. I thought of replacing it with one with heart monitor.

I always opposed heart monitor, as I thought I better go with my feeling than monitor my body parameter.

What are your thoughts? What can I do with a heart monitor? What benefits does it bring to me?

How it can improve me? Does it show me....hey you do only 150, you could do 160? Than how it would know that I can do more?

As profile: I didn't bike for 15 years and just restart, very performance focus (even the performance isn't that great I always want to improve and beat myself).

Please comment......

(when I was young I was always looking down on these midlife crises guys with all the expensive gear on the bike but performance like a turtle, now I am one of these myself, just where is the youth, here, on 800 km I didn't see one serious biker and no young one at all here in the south....)

[moonoi]

Depends what you're going to do with it.

If you are using it for training and to improve your endurance and recovery then it is a necessity. As you need to know what zone your heart is in to be most effective.

Even if you don't use it for that, it can be interesting just to see over time how you improve.

For example at the moment I'm averaging 30bpm less for the same effort, comparing with last year.

I find a mix of training by heart and training by feel is the best methodology, but that's just my opinion.

The key thing is not to get fixated on the data during the ride.

Edited May 9, 2015 by moonoi

[villagefarang]

I find it interesting to see how much time I spend in say zone 3 or zone 4. Some days more one than the other but I only really look after I get home. If is helps you with motivation, monitoring improvement or knowing how hard to push, then use it. If it gets in your way and you find it annoying, then skip it.

[moonoi]

I use a Mio Link optical HRM, here's an advertorial (I would say most applies to any type of HRM though) to help you decide if monitoring your heart rate will be useful to you or not. All of these ones are easily available in Thailand as well btw.

http://www.clevertraining.com/blog/top-reasons-track-workout-wearable-mio-hrm/

Edited May 9, 2015 by moonoi

[chiangmaiexpat]

It makes sense if you are serious about cardio and endurance training... definitely more sense than cadence tracking. You could make guesses about what zone you are in, but these guesses are often wrong. So if you are committed to a training program, a heart rate monitor is a sensible investment.

Cheers, CM-Expat

[h90]

Thanks everyone, I think I should get one.

now I don't know if I should buy an independent one.or one for my bike computer.

Perfect would be if there is a device I can have on the wrist like a watch, normally but when on the bike it connects with a bike computer and the mobile phone.

But I might want too much.

Can anyone recommend a specific product or brand? Or warn about others? I don't mind spending a bit more, but I really hate half working devices (they always angers you but aren't bad enough to put into the trash bin)

Chiangmaiexpat: I think cadence tracking is very important for people who start, as many people tend to pedal too slow. If you are later used to the fast cadence it might become relative useless. I for the beginning focus only on the right cadence, just to get used to it again.

[Maeklong]

Even just for normal riding, having a heart rate monitor is a good idea. I usually ride with one, both on road and off road when mountain biking.

Now I know when I am breathing deeply on a hill climb, even with out the monitor, approximately how fast my heart is beating.

Another benefit in a hot country like this - you need to be concerned about heat exhaustion and heat stroke.

A fast heart beat, either strong or weak, is a sign of heat stroke.

So if you are monitoring, and your heart is beating too fast for your activity level, it's time to take a break and cool down.

Which HR monitor to buy?

I recommend the Wahoo TIKR.

http://www.wahoofitness.com/devices/wahoo-tickr-heart-rate-strap-1.html

It's not as easy to find as the Runtastic (which is made by Wahoo), but I recommend finding it instead of Garmin or Runtastic.

Garmin supports only Ant+, meaning you can't use it with a smartphone unless you have a dongle.

Runtastic supports only Bluetooth 4.0, so it works with iPhones and top smartphones but, not with Garmin.

The latest version of the Wahoo TIKR supports both Bluetooth and Ant+, so you can use it with your bike computer and your smartphone, as well as other bike computers that support Ant+, like Polar, Cateye, etc.

Edited May 10, 2015 by Maeklong

[moonoi]

Thanks everyone, I think I should get one.

now I don't know if I should buy an independent one.or one for my bike computer.

Perfect would be if there is a device I can have on the wrist like a watch, normally but when on the bike it connects with a bike computer and the mobile phone.

But I might want too much.

Can anyone recommend a specific product or brand? Or warn about others? I don't mind spending a bit more, but I really hate half working devices (they always angers you but aren't bad enough to put into the trash bin)

Chiangmaiexpat: I think cadence tracking is very important for people who start, as many people tend to pedal too slow. If you are later used to the fast cadence it might become relative useless. I for the beginning focus only on the right cadence, just to get used to it again.

The Mio Link and Mio Fuse do what you are asking for. The Fuse is mentioned in the link I posted above, but also contains step counting and sleep monitoring features. The Link is a pure out and out wrist mounted HRM that transmits both ANT+ and Bluetooth. Love mine, had it a year, much more comfortable than a chest strap and more reliable too, only problem is you have to recharge it after every 6-8 hours of use, the traditional chest strap type just use a CR2032 button battery and last for months....... Edited May 10, 2015 by moonoi

[moonoi]

A Mio Link looks like this btw......

Don't know why but picture attachments seem to not work again!

Edited May 10, 2015 by moonoi

[h90]

Thanks everyone, I think I should get one.

now I don't know if I should buy an independent one.or one for my bike computer.

Perfect would be if there is a device I can have on the wrist like a watch, normally but when on the bike it connects with a bike computer and the mobile phone.

But I might want too much.

Can anyone recommend a specific product or brand? Or warn about others? I don't mind spending a bit more, but I really hate half working devices (they always angers you but aren't bad enough to put into the trash bin)

Chiangmaiexpat: I think cadence tracking is very important for people who start, as many people tend to pedal too slow. If you are later used to the fast cadence it might become relative useless. I for the beginning focus only on the right cadence, just to get used to it again.

The Mio Link and Mio Fuse do what you are asking for. The Fuse is mentioned in the link I posted above, but also contains step counting and sleep monitoring features. The Link is a pure out and out wrist mounted HRM that transmits both ANT+ and Bluetooth. Love mine, had it a year, much more comfortable than a chest strap and more reliable too, only problem is you have to recharge it after every 6-8 hours of use, the traditional chest strap type just use a CR2032 button battery and last for months.......

recharge every 6-8 hours doesn't sound good. And I am not sure I want to wear something on my wrist. never wear a watch......But the chest strap type is for sure also annoying....I must think about it.

[moonoi]

I found that the chest strap irritates and you always know it's there. The wrist strap I forget I'm wearing after a while, I think there is another type that straps to your upper arm as well. Suggest checking out the DC Rainmaker site for lots of information and reviews on different types of HRMs and other fun devices

http://www.dcrainmaker.com

[chiangmaiexpat]

Chiangmaiexpat: I think cadence tracking is very important for people who start, as many people tend to pedal too slow. If you are later used to the fast cadence it might become relative useless. I for the beginning focus only on the right cadence, just to get used to it again.

I couldn't agree less. The whole cadence discussion appears nonsensical to me, and there is very little science to back it up. Cadence optimization comes with experience, not with a stop watch, and it differs individually.

BTW, the Mio watch that @moonoi mentioned got "Sehr gut" assessment from the German Stiftung Warentest which means it's probably good. One of the few optical measurement devices that deliver similar accuracy as a "traditional" chest strap.

Cheers, CM-Expat

[h90]

Chiangmaiexpat: I think cadence tracking is very important for people who start, as many people tend to pedal too slow. If you are later used to the fast cadence it might become relative useless. I for the beginning focus only on the right cadence, just to get used to it again.

I couldn't agree less. The whole cadence discussion appears nonsensical to me, and there is very little science to back it up. Cadence optimization comes with experience, not with a stop watch, and it differs individually.

BTW, the Mio watch that @moonoi mentioned got "Sehr gut" assessment from the German Stiftung Warentest which means it's probably good. One of the few optical measurement devices that deliver similar accuracy as a "traditional" chest strap.

Cheers, CM-Expat

We agree to disagree

I doubt I could go at the same speed with 75 rpm I can with 105 for 3 hours. I think as more experience you have as less you need to monitor it, but beginner always pedal too slow. All the Thai biker I see here pedal something like 70-75 and none of them is fast. Slower than me at my 100-105 rpm and I only sat in the office the last 15 years.

All the professionals have high cadence, even these with slow one aren't really that slow. 20 years ago they told with hard slow cadence you use more of the sugar in the muscle instead of fat, so the muscle gets "empty". But that was 20 years ago, might be long proofed to be wrong.

Would be nice to try such a device for a week before deciding. My idea is always to buy a bit more expensive and good instead of buying twice.....Thanks for the information. It helps a lot (but I am now even more confused)

[moonoi]

Chiangmaiexpat: I think cadence tracking is very important for people who start, as many people tend to pedal too slow. If you are later used to the fast cadence it might become relative useless. I for the beginning focus only on the right cadence, just to get used to it again.

I couldn't agree less. The whole cadence discussion appears nonsensical to me, and there is very little science to back it up. Cadence optimization comes with experience, not with a stop watch, and it differs individually.

BTW, the Mio watch that @moonoi mentioned got "Sehr gut" assessment from the German Stiftung Warentest which means it's probably good. One of the few optical measurement devices that deliver similar accuracy as a "traditional" chest strap.

Cheers, CM-Expat

We agree to disagree

I doubt I could go at the same speed with 75 rpm I can with 105 for 3 hours. I think as more experience you have as less you need to monitor it, but beginner always pedal too slow. All the Thai biker I see here pedal something like 70-75 and none of them is fast. Slower than me at my 100-105 rpm and I only sat in the office the last 15 years.

All the professionals have high cadence, even these with slow one aren't really that slow. 20 years ago they told with hard slow cadence you use more of the sugar in the muscle instead of fat, so the muscle gets "empty". But that was 20 years ago, might be long proofed to be wrong.

Would be nice to try such a device for a week before deciding. My idea is always to buy a bit more expensive and good instead of buying twice.....Thanks for the information. It helps a lot (but I am now even more confused)

Suggest you watch GCNs What cadence is best experiment. Might surprise you, personally I find I'm better at mashing it, than high cadence. For me I'm faster and have more endurance, I'm at my most efficient at around 75-80rpm.

[malathione]

It's not as easy to find as the Runtastic (which is made by Wahoo), but I recommend finding it instead of Garmin or Runtastic.

Garmin supports only Ant+, meaning you can't use it with a smartphone unless you have a dongle.

Runtastic supports only Bluetooth 4.0, so it works with iPhones and top smartphones but, not with Garmin.

The latest version of the Wahoo TIKR supports both Bluetooth and Ant+, so you can use it with your bike computer and your smartphone, as well as other bike computers that support Ant+, like Polar, Cateye, etc.

Your info is somewhat outdated. Both of my cell phones are native Ant+ capable and work just fine with my Garmin equipment which is, in fact, bluetooth 4.0 capable where its link to your phone is concerned.

As an aside, I use a Garmin 620 (my primary activity is running) with a heartstrap, cadence and speed sensors and IPbike app on the phone. Everything gets uploaded to Garmin connect and Strava and Velohero for analysis as IPbike has a calculated power function as well (perhaps not the most accurate) as well as workout and course navigation. All the sensors are Ant+ and communicate with either my Sony Xperia Z2 or the S5 with display via IPbike. Once I get back home, the same data is then uploaded to Firstbeat Athlete.

The Mio Link and its ilk, unfortunately, do not record your heart r-r intervals very accurately. As such, they are not so useful for an analysis of your state of recovery using, Firstbeat, for instance.

If I were just biking, I might go with a Garmin 810 or 1000 as I like their setup and the fact that they have an option to provide navigation.

[chiangmaiexpat]

I just got this ANT+ heart rate monitor for USD 39.00. Works fine with my Android phone and already delivered interesting results in exercise and sleep monitoring.

[tempthai]

Ditto the Rainmaker suggestion although he does always favor Garmin, then again I do favor Garmin too... You need something on your bars when cycling, on your wrist is useless. I guess the Edge 510 is the best buy if you don;t need navigation even though I preferred the 500 without the touchscreen which doesn't work properly with full sized (MTB) gloves. However they don't sell the 500 anymore in Thailand, I tried everywhere, besides it just doesn't feel right buying something electronic that's already 6 years old. I have used a heart rate strap for many years (many 10,000 k's on the bike as well as many 1,000 k's running) and never felt it annoying at all. Don't notice wearing it at all ever really but that's just me personally I guess. Having said that. heart rate training is a must to improve on your endurance and base fitness (low heart training), VO2 Max, etc. Training Peaks is an excellent and free service that recalculates your heart rate zones automatically over time.

[moonoi]

Ditto the Rainmaker suggestion although he does always favor Garmin, then again I do favor Garmin too... You need something on your bars when cycling, on your wrist is useless. I guess the Edge 510 is the best buy if you don;t need navigation even though I preferred the 500 without the touchscreen which doesn't work properly with full sized (MTB) gloves. However they don't sell the 500 anymore in Thailand, I tried everywhere, besides it just doesn't feel right buying something electronic that's already 6 years old. I have used a heart rate strap for many years (many 10,000 k's on the bike as well as many 1,000 k's running) and never felt it annoying at all. Don't notice wearing it at all ever really but that's just me personally I guess. Having said that. heart rate training is a must to improve on your endurance and base fitness (low heart training), VO2 Max, etc. Training Peaks is an excellent and free service that recalculates your heart rate zones automatically over time.

Garmin Edge 25 just been released to replace the 500, nice and small too.

[tempthai]

It's not really a replacement of the 500 but aimed at a lower segment e.g. it only has 3 data fields per page compared to the 8 data fields of the 500. I like to have one page with speed/distance/time/heart rate/average speed and cadence and a second page I use occasionally (when taking a break most often) with other stuff such as elevation/total elevation/heading/temperature/etc.

[arunsakda]

Garmin has watches now with built in Mio tech/no strap needed.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalkfss

[h90]

Garmin has watches now with built in Mio tech/no strap needed.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalkfss

I bought a polar ft4m.

I like strap because I want to mount it on the bicycle sometimes. I don't like having something on my arm. And I don't like to mount my mobile phone on the bike.

The better bike computer didn't attract me as well as most had GPS which kills the battery and/or were expensive.

So it is the watch.....

But it didn't arrive yet (should come in the next few days) so I can't tell yet how good it is.

[MaeJoMTB]

My last cycle up to Wat Doi Suthep using a heart monitor.

Heart rate (dip just after the middle due to 2 minute rest stop)

Speed and altitude

Trip summary

The heart rate monitor has two uses, shows I have no heart problem, helps calculate my calorie usage.

Good to use once, but not really worthwhile after that.