It’s getting cold outside and relatively warm days when you can ride outside will be fewer as we head into December in Colorado, my base for the next two months. Although I long prefer to ride in warmer climates this time of the year, like Australia, Bali, or Colombia, staying put I’ll be Zwifting. The Zwift app is certainly a great training alternative to inclement weather. But honestly, I both love it and hate it. I love it because it allows me to stay in shape, and even get in a better shape, if I so chose, that is. I hate it (not really) because it makes me ride hard (some would say “suffer”), as I realize how out of shape I really am. Riding a Zwift bike, the app monitors your Watts, speed, heart rate, and RPM; more accurately, the app converts your heart rate data into virtual Watts or power output, and the more power you’re putting into the pedals, the faster you ride. You can choose from countless routes with some amazing graphics. But more about the Zwift app is another story. In this post, I am interested in the relationship between VO2 Max and Heart Rate, namely as related to physical fitness, working out, and specifically on how it can help us train more systematically and monitor our progress.
VO2 max and heart rate are two important physiological measurements used to assess cardiovascular fitness and performance in athletes, including cyclists. Understanding the relationship between these two metrics can help cyclists optimize their training and improve their overall fitness.
VO2 max, or maximum oxygen uptake, represents the maximum amount of oxygen that an individual’s body can utilize during intense exercise. It is a direct measure of aerobic capacity and is considered the gold standard for assessing cardiovascular fitness.
Heart rate, on the other hand, is the number of times the heart beats per minute. It is a more readily available and easily monitored metric than VO2 max, but it is not a direct measure of aerobic capacity. Heart rate can be influenced by various factors, including exercise intensity, environmental conditions, and individual genetics.
Relationship between VO2 max and heart rate
There is a strong correlation between VO2 max and heart rate, particularly at higher exercise intensities. As exercise intensity increases, both VO2 max and heart rate rise. However, the relationship between the two is not linear, meaning that the increase in heart rate is not directly proportional to the increase in VO2 max.
VO2 max and heart rate in cycling
Cyclists rely heavily on their aerobic capacity to perform well, as cycling is a predominantly aerobic activity. VO2 max is therefore a crucial factor in determining a cyclist’s endurance and ability to maintain high power outputs for extended periods.
Heart rate is also an important metric for cyclists, as it can monitor exercise intensity and ensure that the cyclist is training in the appropriate zone for their goals. Heart rate zones are commonly used in cycling training programs, with each zone representing a specific range of intensities that target different physiological adaptations.
How VO2 max and heart rate manifest among cyclists
Elite cyclists typically have higher VO2 max values than recreational cyclists. This allows them to process more oxygen during exercise, which translates into better endurance and performance. For example, a professional cyclist may have a VO2 max of 80-90 ml/kg/min, while a recreational cyclist may have a VO2 max of 40-50 ml/kg/min.
Heart rate responses to exercise also vary among cyclists. Experienced cyclists typically have lower heart rates at a given exercise intensity than less experienced cyclists. This is due to adaptations in the cardiovascular system, such as increased stroke volume, which allows the heart to pump more blood with each beat.
Optimizing training using VO2 max and heart rate
By understanding the relationship between VO2 max and heart rate, cyclists can optimize their training to improve their cardiovascular fitness and performance. VO2 max training typically involves short, high-intensity intervals that push the cyclist to their VO2 max. Heart rate training involves monitoring heart rate zones and ensuring that the cyclist is training in the appropriate zone for their goals.
In addition to using VO2 max and heart rate for training, cyclists can also use these metrics to track their progress over time. By monitoring changes in VO2 max and heart rate, cyclists can assess the effectiveness of their training and make adjustments as needed.
Your specific training zones reflect your own level of fitness. You can use either your heart rate (BPM) or your power output (Watts) data to establish your training zones. For the last three weeks, I have been training focusing on shorter rides, around 15 km to 30 km only; all done Zwifting*. I spend most of my time riding in Power Zone 2 – that’s Power Distribution 100-125 Watts. Riding in Power Zone 2, my Heart Rate Distribution stays mostly in Heart Rate Zones 4 (124-138 BPM) and 5 (140-170 BPM), although of course it drops throughout the rides even below 100 BPM (Zone 1 / Recovery Zone). As long as I can hoover between 130 and 170 beats per minute, I ride in Power Zone 2 and that’s the optimal workout effort for me and most cyclists. While in my Heart Rate Zone 2 (95-110 BPM), AKA Endurance Zone, I could ride for hours, in Zone 3, AKA Tempo, I can stay only for around 20 min to an hour, hence that’s why Zone 3 works well with my shorter rides. Perhaps in a month, I will mix in longer rides, but not now. In Zone 4, AKA Treashhold Zone, I can stay only a few minutes at a time, and in Zone 5, AKA VO2 Max, that becomes a few seconds to 2 to 3 minutes maximum.
Spending most of your time training in Power Zone 2 is said to be the best zone to ride in to improve your cardiovascular fitness, and that’s what it’s all about. Hopefully, I can keep it up for at least two months and I should see some benefits when I ride back outside, and ride 30 km to 80 km and more again. Fact is, your VO2 Max goes down as you age, beginning already at age 30. While it’s best you keep up training, getting older will continue working against you and your VO2 Max will keep dropping (about 2% per year after age 40), and the best you can do is to keep slowing the decline.
*”Zwifting” refers to riding a stationary indoor trainer bicycle using Zwift.com app. Before you can consider signing up, you will need to get a Wahoo KICKR CORE, a Direct Drive Bike Resistance Trainer (paid link). Note, the Kicker Core comes without a cassette (although you can buy it also with one included for a higher price.) That said, cassettes are relatively inexpensive, such as, for example, SHIMANO cs-r7000 Sprocket Cassette (paid link). The beauty of riding an indoor trainer like Wahoo KICKR is “watching yourself” ride, or rather an animation of you and your ride, whatever the route you select using the Zwift app, on the screen of your laptop or a tablet in front of you; the easiest setup is to get a Tablet Holder Bike Handlebar Mount Clamp (paid link). And for a better stability, and because you will definitely sweat when you “Zwift”, and will need to mop up after each ride, 🙂 you will also need a Bike Trainer Mat (paid link) under your Kickr! More on “Zwifting” in another post, but getting into riding an indoor trainer, whether you may entertain the idea of mounting your regular bike on your Kickr, or you plan to buy a cassette to install on it, invest in an inexpensive sturdy and stable Bike stand you’ll need for doing all your bicycle maintenance, repairs, and upgrades.
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