Simple question, I think. Is one’s HR max lower on a tri bike or when down in the drops vs. on a road bike, sitting more upright?
If your HR is lower that is an indication that you are doing less work.
jaretj
Because you haven’t learned how to push yourself in your TT bike yet. Just because you are travelling faster doesn’t mean that you can’t push yourself harder. Plus, as a Cat 2 cyclist, almost without exception, I have to be sprinting to reach my MaxHR, whether it be on a hill or in the flats.
For the same speed you are doing less work on the tri bike. Plus, being lower on the tri bike means the heart doesn’t have to pump as much “uphill”.
Everyone here thinks you are saying that YOUR max HR is lower on your tri bike.
It looks to me like you were asking IF someone’s HR max should be lower on a tri bike.
My answer is no.
But if you or someone else notice this, I would speculate that the cause is that your position is too tight in the hip angle to allow full respiration…this then limits the amount of work you can put to the pedals which in turn limits your heart rate to some value lower than max.
Your HR max is one number, doesnt matter what you are doing, running, swimming, mountain climbing, ect…It may take different perceived exerctions to get there in different activities, but max is just that, the maximum # of beats your heart can go…There are other external things that can change this, like illness, drugs, or some other heart anomoly, but I’m just talking about a healthy heart here…
I think you really meant to ask, is your HR lower at equal speeds on a tri bike, and the answer is yes…
Are HR threshold levels lower on a tri bike vs. a road bike?
If your HR is lower that is an indication that you are doing less work.
jaretj
Or that you are more efficient.
If you could go the same speed and was more efficient then wouldn’t you be doing less work?
jaretj
yes, unless you are the king of the Yurt!
If you could go the same speed and was more efficient then wouldn’t you be doing less work?
jaretj
The mechanical work could be the same but the way you produce this work cost less in physiological sense. Imagine that you co-contract agonist and antagonist muscles, i.e. one pulls in one direction and the other one is pulling in the opposite direction. You spend a lot of energy, but the mechanical work is small. Changing position on a bike can change your coordination and make you more (or less!) efficient. Of course there are other factors such as cadence (lower cadence tends to produce a lower HR) and aerodynamics.
I see your point but don’t agree. I can see where that can be a matter of opinion.
jaretj
Wish I could have gone on that weekend with you guys. Thought you were going to the U.P.
jaretj
Are HR threshold levels lower on a tri bike vs. a road bike?
Shouldn’t be…but can if your hip angle sucks. 
BTW, I’m a Clydesdale and you can’t WIN against me! So I want your screen name. it can be an annual traveling trophy for the fastest clydesdale on ST.
I could see where they could be.
jaretj
Are HR threshold levels lower on a tri bike vs. a road bike?\
Your zones and thresholds should be the same, if you are sufficently trained in both…Only diffference is that your mph will be faser in the aero position, provided you are fit properly. The same goes for running and swimming. But you have to be properly trained for each to have that comparison. That is why the really good pros that are great at all 3 sports, will have a pretty much level HR line in their races… I remember seeing Kenny Souzas after race HR’s from duathlons, and you could not see where the runs ended and the bike began, and you could not tell when he was going uphill or downhill either. He had a hell of a natural instinct of proper pacing, and was as well trained as a runner, as a cyclist…Most people are not, and those that do not come from cycling backgrounds, will usually have a harder time with their cycling zones as compared to their running ones…
I dont know how many times there have been threads on here complaining that I cannot get my HR up on the bike like I do running…Just know, it is not your hearts fault…