HRM accuracy

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ive been riding for some time now and just recently started using a HRM. i have some idea about staying in a certain % of my max hr and whatnot, but when i was using the HRM, i stayed at 175-180 bpm for my 1 hour ride, and got up to 203 on two or three pushes. im 21 yrs old so my max is around 200. it just seems like either the HRM was reading too high, or i was just riding too hard, but it didnt seem like it at all. i was almost taking it easy. my fitness level is fairly good. im not out of shape or anything, but im just starting back into riding after the summer.

edit: the HRM i was using is a Timex that i bought for like $60 USD

ive been riding for some time now and just recently started using a HRM. i have some idea about staying in a certain % of my max hr and whatnot, but when i was using the HRM, i stayed at 175-180 bpm for my 1 hour ride, and got up to 203 on two or three pushes. im 21 yrs old so my max is around 200. it just seems like either the HRM was reading too high, or i was just riding too hard, but it didnt seem like it at all. i was almost taking it easy. my fitness level is fairly good. im not out of shape or anything, but im just starting back into riding after the summer.

edit: the HRM i was using is a Timex that i bought for like $60 USD
Can you explain what do you mean by "i'm 21 yrs old so my max is around 200"? Do you mean the max calculated doing 220 - 21 ?

Can you explain what do you mean by "i'm 21 yrs old so my max is around 200"? Do you mean the max calculated doing 220 - 21 ?
yep, i know its not always teh most accurate way to determine my max but it read 203 for a few seconds

yep, i know its not always teh most accurate way to determine my max but it read 203 for a few seconds
This could mean that your heart is a little smaller than the average one, so it needs more beats to push blood through your body. Anyway, do you have the chance to repeat the test with another HRM? Please keep in mind that electrical field such as the one you find near railways or under high-voltage cable can alter the HR reading.

yep, i know its not always teh most accurate way to determine my max but it read 203 for a few seconds"Not always the most accurate way"? That is the understatement of the year. The formula you used tells you pretty much nothing about your personal maximum heart rate. All that formula does is give you some average over the population of people of a given age. Your own maximum heart rate could be a lot different from that average, without indicating much about your health, fitness, etc.

There are 50-year olds that have a 200 MHR, and there are 20-year olds with an MHR of 180.

P.S.: Measuring heart rate is a fairly simple process, so, absent external disturbances, just about any HRM will be spot on. You can probably trust the 203 you have seen, noting that your true MHR is probably a few beats higher than that still.

I have a Polar F11 heart rate monitor, and it works like a charm, unless I wear one of those synthetic dedicated cycle shirts, they havoc with the monitor. It raised the reading from 140 BPM to 200BPM. soon as I change back to a cotton shirt it works fine. I tested this like 20 time and its definately the shirt interferes somehow

This may not be your problem but something to look for

ok so my max is a little over 200 then. i know thats probably not great for fitness and performance. will it decrease as i get better/exercise more? im just now starting to ride regularly after 2 years of trying to get into the sport.

The general Max HR formula doesn't work for a lot of people. I'm 32 and have done two Max HR runs with my Polar HRM (once running on a treadmill and then again earlier this week on my indoor cycle trainer) and both times have found my max HR to be approximately 171 bpm. This is way below what the formula would give me. You might just have a higher max HR than what the formula gives.

ok so my max is a little over 200 then. i know thats probably not great for fitness and performance. will it decrease as i get better/exercise more? im just now starting to ride regularly after 2 years of trying to get into the sport.
A max HR of 200 is fine for fitness and performance; Lance's was around 203 so you're in good company. Unfortunately, HR, max or resting, doesn't tell us anything about fitness.

Your max HR likely won't change much as you ride more; if anything, it may increase a bit as fitness improves. Then, it will slowly decrease with age.

The formula is not accurate, and usually. EG, I'm 60, with a max of 182.

My max is 210 & Im 40, been like this for 15years, I can hit this on a regular basis, so Max HR is no indicator of fitness. Nobody mentioned how to go about finding your max HR, when your fresh just sprint as hard as you can (about 20sec) until you cant go anymore and see how high your HR goes or drill it up a hill until you cant go anymore and there you have it.