Which MHR?????????

The equation you have used is very unaccurate (often quoted as +/- 10 bpm) and is usualy used in clinical settings for people who can't exercise to 100%.

Use the value you see and adjust it every time you go higher or make it lower if you stop reaching it over a season.

Unfortunatly this doesn't mean your heart is that of a 20 year old, instead it means that your heart can beat to a maximum of 189. This may drop upto 5 bpm as you get fitter. The bigger your heart the longer it takes to fill and empty so the less beats you can make in 1 minute.

Do a max test if you are in any doubts, at home or in a Lab.

Quoted post said:

Originally posted by James Godley
So I'm 31 years old, and my MHR should be around 189.
BUT I was playing on my new turbo trainer and managed, with a lot huffing and grunting, to hit 200!!

I can regularly get my heart rate up above 210, with the highest I've seen being 214, usually while climbing (I'm a sprinter not a climber). It's useful to know, because the heart rates you'll sit on are going to be higher than other peoples. For example, I run an 8km race between 180 to 190 bpm.

And I'm 29, not 6, as the 220-age formula suggests.

Same thing here. I just turned 30. Last year I did a test on the road to determine my MHR and reached 196 (29 yo). As I picked up biking again after a long period of inactivity and have been training intensively the last 6 months, I cannot reach anything over 192 anymore

Niek