Tandem Fitness -- Heart Rate Monitors

John & Patti Stewart

One of the things that puzzled Patti and me during the early years of riding our tandem was how we could balance our individual efforts during a ride.  That's not an issue for single riders.  They can gage their own effort throughout any given ride, whether flat and fast or climbing. 

While we have been riding a tandem for about 12-years, it was when we retired in 2005 and had more time to enjoy riding together that we began to address the “balance effort” question.  We happened upon an answer when we decided to set up a training system in our house to stay in ‘bicycle condition’ through the long winters in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, specifically in Truckee, California.  We mounted our two Trek road bikes on trainers, bought several DVD's from the Carmichael Training Center (Chris Carmichael coached Lance Armstrong) based in Boulder, Colorado. 

The DVD's each focus on a particular skill: e.g., time trial, climbing, criterion (http://www.trainright.com/folders.asp?uid=19).  Carmichael introduces each training session with a requirement for attendees to undergo a heart rate test and to have their bikes equipped with a means to determine cycling RPM.  Both the person's heart rate and pedal cadence determine effort in a given environment.  Allow me to explain.

As we all know, endurance and strength over time are the essentials for a satisfying and enjoyable ride, especially when riding for long distances and over varied and sometime difficult terrain.  But how do you know what effort your body will withstand over the period of your ride?  Another way of putting it is, how do you keep lactic acid from accumulating and giving you that “blown legs, I'm exhausted” feeling?  Carmichael's heart rate test is the key to understanding the answer to those questions.  He has set up a way for bicyclists to determine their heart rate, lactic acid threshold; that is, the target average heart rate of a given person that allows for maximum effort while avoiding lactic acid accumulation and the resultant bonking.

Patti and I bought some good heart rate monitors and took Carmichael's test.  It's simple, but it takes effort and concentration.  First, you need to take the test individually on a single bike, and of course, wear a heart rate monitor and have the bike set up to read rpm pedal cadence.  We took our test on our trainers, so for those who are uncomfortable riding a single bike, the trainer set up is the way to go. 

If you are on a trainer, the test goes like this:  Warm up for 10-minutes with an easy spin at 100-110 rpm; then select a gear that is more difficult and that you can stay in for 8-minutes at or above 95-rpm.  The key is to give your maximum effort without falling below the 95-rpm threshold.  After that first set, record your average overall heart rate.  Spin easy again for 10-minutes and then after resetting your heart rate monitor to start again, go into your second set of a maximum effort for 8-minutes at 95 rpm or more.  Again, check your average heart rate over the second set.  Warm down for about 10 minutes. Then take the highest average heart rate you had over a given set.  If you are 35 or older, multiply that number by .90.  That will give you the “floor” heart rate of your lactic acid threshold.  Add three beats to that figure to give you your lactic acid threshold zone.  This formula is for generally flat terrain.  If you are climbing, the multiplication number is .92.  This lactic acid threshold zone will be higher, because you will be using more muscle mass in climbing terrain. 

Here's an example taken from my test.

John’s maximum average heart rate of the two sets = 158 bpm

.90 x 158 = 142 + 3 beats = 145 bpm

142 – 145 bpm is my lactic acid threshold zone for riding flat terrain.

146 – 149 bpm (using .92 as a multiplier) is my zone for climbing

Patti's zones are: 130 – 133 bpm for flat terrain and 134 – 137 bpm for climbing.

The difference in our test results is to be expected given the differences in our muscle mass and physiological makeup.  The main result for us was that we came to understand how to measure our individual efforts on a given tandem ride and, more importantly how to achieve a more balanced performance together during our rides.  This has improved our tandem riding tremendously, both in strength and speed and also in satisfaction and fun.

The test if taken on the road is basically the same as on a trainer, with a good warm up, two hard sets with a relaxed spin between them, and a warm down.  The difference is that instead of time, distance is used.  Each set is a three mile time trial of maximum effort at 95 rpm cadence or over.  The formula is the same.

John & Patti Stewart

A brief note on heart rate monitors might help as well.  There are many on the market.  We bought Polar CS 200's because the brand is a good one and the model had the features we wanted.  It provides speed, average speed, cadence, average cadence, ride time, time of day, current heart rate, average heart rate, maximum heart rate, heart rate within a given zone based on age, gender, weight, and other factors.  The CS 200 is wireless and except for battery changes, they have run flawlessly.  We bought ours in '05, so newer models might have other features, like overall climbing during a ride and GPS.  One “footnote” the wireless on the Polar CS 200 for the stoker works for all but the speed/distance feature because the sensor has to be positioned where it does not have line of sight to the heart rate computer.  The stoker blocks the signal.  So we added a wired Cateye, so Patti could monitor speed and distance.

In sum, we have enjoyed riding tandem since we began in 1997.  The breakthrough we made in learning to use the heart rate monitor and Carmichael techniques to help us balance our biking efforts together move us to a much higher plateau of satisfaction in our riding.

You can contact John & Patti Stewart by email at hotdaddy@hawaiiontandems.com