Having cycled casually for many years I tried many different techniques to improve my athletic ability on the bike. Without a doubt the most dramatic improvements occurred when I start to use a heart rate monitor (HRM) during training.

In this article I’ll explain how heart rate training dramatically improved my cycling fitness.

Using a HRM while you ride means you can see and record exactly how hard your body is working during a particular ride. This is incredibly powerful as it allows you to compare your performance over time to gauge your improvement.

The other huge benefit of heart rate training is that it enables you to pre plan how hard you are going to ride during training. This allows you to push your body hard enough to get the maximum benefit while ensuring you do not fall into the trap of over training.

The main time i use the monitor is by making interval workouts where I push myself to a certain intensity for a certain amount of time. This enables me to push myself hard with short rests in between that ensure I do not over train. It is well known that interval training is one of the most effective ways to increase your fitness.

Having used monitors for a few years now I have become very tuned in to my body. I know based on the readings exactly when to back off and ride easy and when to push hard in order to get the most benefit from my training.

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