Having spent 6 months building up to the 300 mile ride, it was time for backing off a little, which also coincided with a holiday we had booked before I knew of the event. Below is my heart rate variability (HRV) trend for the period leading up to and following the 300 mile ride (21st May);
The taper before the ride saw my HRV rise, and then dip post ride, for it to rise slightly over the 10 day holiday. Unfortunately picked up a stomach bug at the end of the holiday and this is reflected in my HRV dip at the start of June.
But, training had to commence, so it was a case of having a week to ease back in before picking back up on the training plan again next week.
- 7th was 50 mins at Tempo.
- 8th was a 90 min small group ride with equal amount of HR Z2 and 3
- 11th 75miles group ride mostly HR Z2 and 3
The orange readings all coincided with the days when I felt the affects of the stomach virus the most, I didn’t do anything on those days and in hindsight shouldn’t have on the 11th too.
This week continues to be a bit of a frustrating week still feeling unwell and no doubt lingering effects of the 300 mile ride. I only managed 1 session during the week, on the 15th, 60 mins that included 30 mins of tempo. The 18th was a group ride for 2 hours, and then 60 mins on the 19th which included 30 mins of threshold.
My ithlete readings are mostly low
Time to start focusing on some upcoming sportives, Tour of the Cotswolds and Ride London.
- I started the week off with 90mins tempo with 5 x 30 sec hard gear efforts with 3 to 4 mins recovery (20th)
- Followed by a mid-week hard group ride on the 22nd, 35 miles at 19+ mph
- Then 60mins tempo/sweet spot on the 24th
- On the 25th it was a 40 mile ride that included 5 x 5 min hill repeats at V02, remainder in tempo.
The Cotswolds sportive has around 6,000ft climbing in 72 miles, so time to start mimicking some of those climbs.
Profile;
I am a recreational athlete, who has around 5 to 8 hours a week to train (season dependant). I have a family with 2 young children and run a business. Therefore the ethos of my training is to use training principles that elicit the best results in minimal time.
How is the accuracy of pulse measurements? I have seen reviews in the Appstore where the pulse measurements from Polar H7 is inadequate. What is your experience?
We regard the Polar H7 as one of the most accurate sensors. It has been validated and is often used as the reference to compare other consumer sensors. As with all sensors, it needs to be used with care, particularly ensuring that the skin contacts are sufficiently moistened (Polar recommends ECG gel for HRV measurements, but water / weak saline is nearly always sufficient).