How can I do structured cycling training with a heart rate monitor? I don't have access to power meters or a center that can measure my VO2 max. How do I determine my max heart rate and heart rate zones? After that, how do I proceed to training?

That’s a great question. Just so you know, I’ve never been a fan of using HRM’s: they are difficult to set up, not very convenient or comfortable to use, and they are not terribly accurate in my opinion, and (again, this is my opinion) are not an effective tool for athletes to optimize their training.

  HR Training   Apr 7, 2024   98  Add to Reading List

Having said all that, and given it’s the only tool you’ve got, here’s my advice:

  1. You can use your HRM to get a pretty good idea of what your max heart rate is - if you can wear it in any competitive events. And you’ll need to do that a few times. From those tests, you can then very roughly estimate your heart rate range for your other training zones using a percentage of the max.
  2. The HRM will also give you a very good idea of what (or where) your L2 (or Z2) range is. That’s your steady state, glycogen sparing, or adipose consuming (fat burning) level of effort (LOE). The remaining zones you’ll have to more or less approximate - and they will change as your fitness changes.
  3. An HRM is really good - the best tool, in my opinion - for measuring recovery. I.e., how quickly your body can recover from extended periods of high LOE: anaerobic intervals or one hour at Functional Threshold Power (FTP). You can’t really measure FTP without a power meter, but people used to know approximately where it was long before heart rate monitors or power meters even existed. Which leads to my last point.
  4. The HRM will only be a guide into the wilderness of self-knowledge. Use it in conjunction with a training notebook to figure out how you FEEL when you are in the various training zones, or at various levels of effort. Only you know how you feel and how long you can sustain, what is “easy”, what is “moderate”, what is “hard”, “very hard” and “very, very hard”, or “STOP! I’m gonna die!!” and how that translates to your experiences. Each of those quoted expressions means something to me, and I’ve been in the last one, briefly, thousands of times and never perished, so hopefully that gives you some idea of what I’m getting at. After a while, I don’t think you’ll need the HRM, because you’ll be able to navigate your way through the wilderness without a compass. Best of luck to you.