Cycling Software

  BikePro  Frequently Asked Questions

In case you didn't know  . . .

Here's are answers to some of the most frequently asked questions I've received.   Please let me know if you have any others . . .

Q:  Can you tell me more about Heart Rate Training.

A:  Ok, here's a quick introduction to Heart Rate Training.  It is far from complete, but I've included a number of references to other WEB pages that will provide more details.

Heart Rate Training is basically another name for aerobic training, or aerobics. The principles of aerobic training were first developed by Dr.  Kenneth H. Cooper   while he was serving in the Air Force. He now runs the Dallas Aerobic Center in Dallas, Texas. The primary principle of aerobic training is do perform some exercise that will keep your heart rate elevated for a period of time. Normally twenty minutes is considered the minimum. The idea is to improve your cardiovascular fitness in this way. As you continue to do aerobic exercises over a period of time, your resting heart rate will gradually slow down. This is because your cardiovascular system is working more efficiently, and your heart needs to beat fewer times to circulate the same amount of blood.  What are good aerobic exercises? Anything that you can do that will elevate your heart rate for a period of time. Walking, jogging, and of course, cycling. One of the key ingredients is the duration of the exercise. While twenty minutes is considered the minimum, longer intervals are better -- as long as you maintain a heart rate within your Training Zone . . . more about this later. This is why cycling is one of the best forms of aerobic training. Rides ranging from one hour to all day are not uncommon.  While doing any form of aerobic exercise is better that doing nothing, to get the most benefit from the time you invest, a few training guidelines are needed. These are necessary to insure you are exercising hard enough, but not so hard that you hurt yourself. The primary guideline is your "Training Zone". Your Training Zone is the range in which you should try to maintain you heart rate while exercising.   To determine your Training Zone, you start with your Maximum Heart Rate. This is your absolute maximum heart rate. The standard formula for Maximum Heart Rate is 220 minus your age. Thus, if you are 20, your Maximum Heart Rate is 200. Please keep in mind that this value is appropriate for a person in good health, with no heart problems. If you have heart problems, and do exercises for your condition, forget what I'm saying here, and follow your doctor's instructions regarding how hard you should exercise. After you have your maximum heart rate, you next need to determine the upper and lower bounds of your Training Zone. The lower bound is 70% of your Maximum Heart Rate. The upper bounds is 85% of your Maximum Heart Rate. Thus, if your Maximum Heart Rate is 200, your Lower Training Zone Threshold is 140, and your Upper Training Zone Threshold is 170. To obtain the most benefit from the time you spend exercising, you should maintain a heart rate between 140 and 170. Less than 140, and you are basically riding "junk miles" aerobically speaking. Long-slow rides are good for other general conditioning, but do little for cardiovascular conditioning. Likewise, if your heart rate is frequently above the upper threshold, you tend to over train. This causes your resting heart rate to increase, and is generally counter-productive.    Another important aspect of aerobic training is your resting heart rate. The is your heart rate the first thing in the morning. It is a general barometer of your cardiovascular fitness. An average person, who does not exercise may have a resting heart rate in the mid 60's to low 70's. Whereas it is not uncommon for a cyclist to have a resting heart rate in the low 50's, or even in the 40's. As your cardiovascular fitness improves, your resting heart rate will gradually slow down. For this reason, it is important that you check your resting heart rate the same way every day. For example, you might take it each morning while sitting on the edge of the bed. Only by being consistent will any changes be the result of improved fitness. It is not unusual for your resting heart rate to vary slightly from day-to-day. On the other hand, a sudden increase of 5 or 10 beats per minute could indicate that you over trained the prior day. This is an indication that your have not fully recovered, and should consider a rest day, or at least an easy ride. Rest days are just as important as hard workouts. This is the period in which your body is rebuilding and preparing for future workouts. If your body never gets a chance to recover, your fitness decreases -- this is over training. 

Q: How do I use BikePro to track Heart Rate Training Data

A:  Here's a summary of how to use these BikePro features . . .

BikePro provides features to determine your Training Zone, and to help you track your daily improvements. Here's some ideas on how to use these features.   The first thing you should do is determine your Maximum Heart Rate and your Training Zone. This is done automatically as soon as you enter your birth date on the Personal Data form. This value is displayed in the Maximum Heart Rate field. At the same time, lower and upper Training Zone Threshold values are displayed in the "Target Range: Lower and Upper" fields. Most people should use the standard values for these items. If you have specific values for these items from a doctor, you can enter override value by selecting the Custom option for Maximum Heart Rate, and Target Range. Next, go to the Training Log Defaults form and enter your typical Resting Heart rate.     Each time you make a Training Log entry, BikePro will automatically display your Computed Maximum Heart Rate, Yesterday's Resting Heart rate, your Training Zone Upper and Lower Threshold values, and your Weighted Average Heart Rate. It also displays estimates for your Actual Maximum Heart Rate, Today's Resting Heart Rate, the number of minutes your heart rate was below, above and in your Training Zone, and your actual Average Heart rate during the ride. You can use these estimates if you are not using a Heart Rate Monitor, or some other method to determine these values. Obviously, if you enter these values from a Heart Rate Monitor, they will be much more meaningful. After you've entered Training Log entries for a few days. You can look at the Heart Training Report and Graph to view your progress. 

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