Myfirsttrek

I went on a pretty intense climb today. When i got home i checked my max heart rate, and it hit 225! Is this high? What do you guys usually hit on a climb?

YATES

i'm surprised your heart didn't explode

redal

My max today says 225 also. However, I know it was at 225 for about a minute or so while I was getting some interference. I was going about 15 mph at the time on a flat road. The highest that I saw today while I was riding hard was about 195. 225 is really high and for most people probably an inaccurate reading.

KevinF

225 means one of two things:

1) You are some sort of genetic freak. Hitting anything over 200 is unbelievable
2) The powerlines or something were interfering with the wireless transfer between your HRM and the heart rate sensor itself.

I'm betting on #2. My wireless speedometer flips out every now and then and claims I'm hitting 80+ mph for a second or two before calming back down. I'm betting HRM's are subject to the same interference.

Myfirsttrek

I have worn this HR monitor at the gym several times before using it on a bike. Its a Polar F11(I am waiting for my bike comp) and Polar claims that it does not get affected my other signals. I have hit over 200 a few other times on my Bike, but nothing higher then 206. I am 24 years old, and fairly fit.

I am probably going to go with #2 as well. I hope.. I did feel a little faint at nearing the top of my climb.

orcanova

Could have been interference, or could have been true. If you are using a HRM, do you know what your threshold and MAX HR are? If not, you should get a proper stress test to make sure nothing is wrong.

I have a pretty high revving heart. My buddy has a low one. We were competitive with each other and of similar ability when we trained together and raced duathlons. On a given run, he would be about 20 beats lower than me, when we were both going full out. We live in different cities now, but we rode together recently in the mountains, 10 years later, and still 10 beats apart, at somewhat similar levels of fitness (I'm a bit more conditioned at the moment).

When I was training and racing I had a stress test done at a hospital in the pulmonary department that my father was the chief of, with two pulmonary therapists running the test. My AT was determined to be 184 BPM at the time. I would break 200 BPM in the final sprint to the finish line of my races. But that was me, at that time. I don't think I could get near that now.

If you are seeing those values in full out efforts, and you don't think its interference, its probably best to get a stress test, if not for piece of mind. Especially if you were feeling faint.

yak

My Garmin 305 will jump up to 225 when it loses the signal or gets a weak signal. I solved that problem by using a little aloe gel on the chest strap.

ProFail

My max is 202, but I'm young. I did feel like I was about to die though.

orcanova

Try not to confise the OP. MAX HR does not mean the maximum you ever hit, MAX HR is a physiological value that can be determined in a stress test.

gr@sshopper

I've been in the 200's before - sprint intervals during track season. And I thought I was going to die with my veins popping out of my neck.

bdcheung

99% sure it was interference of some sort.

FrankBattle 

+1%

I am 100% sure. I too have hit 225 before. Exactly 225. And I thought I was going to die. Next time out on the same route, I was actually a wee bit faster, better rested, and it was a more respectable 181.

J.Lockdown

225 is crazy and I believe not healthy to hit. Taken everyone is a little different but if u are in the 200+ range you are working to hard. If the reading is accurate I would suggest getting your self look at because that seems a little to high to work at. My average heart rate when running at high speeds for long distances is around 180 max. I have gotten to 195 before but I had to slow down due to my chest starting to hurt a lot.

Heart rate above 200 for long periods of time and do long term harm so I would make sure it actually is not that high for long periods of time.

Houston

I have used a Polar S810 since it came out, and it too has posted 225 bpm, exactly 225 bpm. I believe that this is the max that it can differentiate. Every time it happened to me was after my workout and after I started my truck to ride home, but still had the transmitter on and the receiver still recording. I've always assumed that it was interference from the alternator.

milnerpt

Im wondering how the monitors calculate HR.... as in what interval they record a reading and then determine a BPM.... just like taking your HR, you only check it for the first 6-15 seconds.

You can easily hit 225 if you are throwing PVCs, which can be common at high intensity... and if there are a couple back to back between beats.... but I would assume it is only lasting very momentarily. If you stayed at 225, you got bigger issues. seriously, go see a cardiologist.

Crash716

225?...what are you like 12? I am 34 so anything over 195 is working real hard...i can hit about 203 at the end of a race but pretty sure 225 would deliver me to the hospital.

You don't by any chance have a polar do you?

jaxgtr

I hit 218 a couple of weeks ago when riding against a massive head wind 20+. We don't have climbs here, just wind. I was a little shocked when I read it and thought maybe is was an error until I hit 224 about a minute later when a gust of 30 hit me. I decided I did not need to try and maintain the speed I typically ride and stopped for a minute or two. HR never fell below 160 after that point and I felt like crap for 2 days.

Myfirsttrek

Alright, you have all convinced me. It had to be interference. Thanks for consoling me!

geraldatwork

Mine has hit 225 also. It is some kind of mistake. The highest I can go is about 185 which for a 60 year old person is high enough. Occasionally it will just go up to 225 then go back to 165 or wherever I really am.

Reynolds 

I know quite a few (young) people who hit over 200 - it's high but nothing unheard of.

J.Lockdown

It would think its possible it reads 225 if it has an error. Such as if it cant calculate your current heart rate it will go to the max that it was programmed for.

Also at 200+ you can still function it is just not very healthy to do for long periods of time.

aham23

HR readings from any cycling device can be prone to error. from loose flapping jersey to power lines. take it for what it is. later.

orcanova

Don't be convinced by what you read here...seriously. If you are working out hard enough to think you might have hit that HR, you should get a stress test just to certify you're healthy.

I have hit 210 several times during races, when I was younger. But I had a stress test to verify I was fine.

Its like a checkup. You get a stress test when you are a young-to-mid adult athlete. You get a colonoscopy when you turn 40. Its just something you do.

JBS103

I can do 200+ on a full out effort (I've never seen anything over 205 out of myself, though). 225 sounds like a dog fence or something.

fordfasterr

213 is my recorded max.

I have been able to consistently hit 210 on sunday rides, and I'm still slow and out of shape !