What is the rule? 63yrs following Half Monty Ftp is 230w cTHR 147 max HR 162. A bit confused should I use the ftp to determine zones of the HR? Just did 3h45 ride keeping power at 75% of ftp but heart is lower than zone 2 given by half Monty test. Sandy help understanding what I should do to get my zone 2 target would really be appreciated.
I’d suggest doing Full Frontal.
1 Like
I’m with @Glen.Coutts . However, to give a somewhat correct answer, FTP determines power Zones, and Heart Rate determines Heart Rate Zones. The two should not be confused or crossed.
1 Like
Remember zone 2 is supposed to be pretty easy; an effort level you can hold almost indefinitely. You can use Power and/or HR as a guide, but for a true zone 2 ride, I would use the talk test rather than strictly HR or power. If you can speak comfortably during the ride, you’re in zone 2. If you’re huffing and puffing a bit too much to conduct a conversation, you’re probably drifting into zone 3. This effort level will change as the duration of your ride increases.
3 Likes
Hi glen, what will that actually add? Thanks
Well did 3:45 hours ride today and I could talk without any panting etc…the hardest thing was keeping power down on route. Live in Normandy France and whilst not the alps it hilly and frequent 4/5% uphill etc…seems like I am almost stooped…guess that’s normal also given I am not tapping into power or heart.
1 Like
Given that, I think you’re probably good for “zone 2”. If you’re ever trying to do “high zone 2”, you can probably edge up your effort ever slightly and find the point where your breathing gets a bit harder. Stay just below that and you should be good to go. Do the talk test every 15 - 20 minutes to make sure you’re still in the right place.
Thanks Simon I’ll try that
2 Likes
There’s quite a few people and certain rider types where HM underestimates their FTP whereas FF is more accurate in these FTP estimations. It will also determine your unique Anaerobic Capacity which is helpful when doing indoor SYSTM workouts that are based on your 4DP.
So, it’s quite possible that your Z2 FTP isn’t quite Z2. That said, as others have suggested Z2 really ought to be your “all day” kinda pace. Your breathing shouldn’t really be laboured and you shouldn’t have any difficulty carrying on a conversation. The top end of Z2 does push that a bit and you may find your HR drifting up as you reach the upper limits of your Z2 range.
4 Likes
You may have to talk to yourself to prevent heading into Zone 3 as well. As soon as you can’t talk freely, back off a bit. And living in an area where flat is hard to find makes riding in Zone 2 difficult.
2 Likes
That’s what gears (and lots of extra ones beyond 1:1) are for.
4 Likes
A bit off topic, but that’s exactly why I get disgusted with Shimano and SRAM for their total LACK of addressing this specific issue with most of their drivetrain offerings. They are TOTALLY behind the curve for non-superhumans (i.e. OLD guys like me, who will NOT be riding an eBike to achieve Zone2 rides.)
They come out with all their 1X offerings, promising the moon, providing (almost) nothing better than what we already had with compact cranks and 11-34 cassettes. Yes, a TINY bit lower gear if you get a 40t crank and a 42t cassette, but that’s not much gained, and NOT enough for very STEEP gravel climbs, where you absolutely need to be seated to maintain traction, and need a spinning gear.
Go ahead. Pull your 34-34 compact up 18-20% grades of gravel when you’re 65. You won’t do it for long.
All Shimano and SRAM needed to do is develop a rear derailleur that handles the bigger cassettes that already exist for MTB.
So I recently went to a spare set of wheels for my DOMANE so I could add gravel tires. Now set up with 700x40 Tufo Speederos.
Switched to an 11-40 cassette, dialed out the B-screw adjustment to allow clearance for the 40t, and it works just fine with the GS rear derailleur that Shimano says is only for up to 34t. I might be able to manage the 11-42t also but am content where I am now.
It required changing the B-screw setup to switch between my road 11-34 cassette and the gravel set, so after a few times changing out and adjusting, I made it ultra simple and put the 11-40 cassette on my road wheels too. What a great decision. I don’t have the tightly spaced gears (weren’t tight before anyway) but I haven’t missed them, and I sure have enjoyed the extra low spinning gears when I hit the steep road climbs too, which are pretty much all over my area anytime I ride. A 34-40 gear lets me stay in Z2 almost anywhere if I’m willing to relax and hold that snail pace… 
2 Likes
The problem is not that the cassettes don’t offer a low enough gear it’s that’s the chainset’s are too big. I’m running a 40:28 mtb chainset on my Gravel bike with an 11-32 cassette which gives almost the same bottom gear as you.
1 Like
Nice problem solving!
1 Like
SRAM have moved to remedy this/differentiate themselves from Shimano by going for 48/35 and 46/33 for road and 43/30 for gravel, along with up to 36t on their cassettes.
Shimano’s 48/31 GRX chainset also has its place alongside a 32t or 34t largest sprocket.
1 Like
@JGreengrass yes, that works for the low end, but I’m not willing to give up the top end that far. When I do gravel rides, they often are 50% or more on pavement, and I need that top end quite a lot.
I still hold to the need for 2X drivetrains in all cases for anywhere that is mountainous. I didn’t adopt 1X for mtb, and still don’t see any significant gain at all for either gravel or road.
It’s yet another complete overhaul of cycling components that has sold riders short and made huge profit for manufacturers, and made a ridiculous pile of rubble for landfills because old components are so incompatible. I wish I was close to a 3rd world area that still uses some of the piles of new spare parts I still have from 9-speed drivetrains. I’d love to ride through a small town and help replenish bikes for kids that could use that stuff. I’ve donated or sold at pittance prices when I knew some local kids could use the stuff I’d been hanging on to, but I still have more to find a home to place it in.
1 Like
Yes, thanks for reminding me that SRAM did make a better effort with that possible 30/36 combination. I still don’t like the loss of top end, however, which is also not quite as limited as Shimano’s, but is less than it should be. I don’t even like the loss of top end with my 50-34 compact crankset and still am not convinced the gap couldn’t have been better for consumers. If they can manage 17t between the 48/31 now, they could have done that much with the compact and kept a little more top end.
As for SRAM, I personally hate their shifter design, so they aren’t even on the radar for my own bikes. I know many who like them and that’s fine.
I recently got a 1x SRAM Lauf gravel bike, and while the 40/10 top end is definitely a limitation, I haven’t found it all that bad. I can always use more high-cadence work…
I have to disagree about the SRAM Etap shifters. Coming from Campy triples on my road bikes I thought the shifting would be ridiculously unintuitive. It takes a bit of getting used to, but it becomes automatic quickly. I tried the virtual version of the bizarrely counterintuitive SRAM two-paddle-front-shift on my KICKR Bike, and that also seems easy to learn, and a clever use of electronic shifting possibilities that makes them meet my basic criterion for shifters - that I don’t have to fiddle around with up/down levers next to each other when I’m too cold to properly feel my fingers - no Shimano for me. My next road bike will likely be SRAM etap 2x, because I can’t afford wireless Campy…
But everyone has their own preferences and needs, and this gives us something innocuous to debate at coffee stops.
3 Likes
With that 48/31 compact and a 11-42 cassette, you’d need derailleur with a cage to cope with a 48t difference! Even SRAM max out at 42t total capacity, ground clearance is going to be an issue with much more.
I find that I’m only “spinning out” when I’m going down hill with a major grade. For that I’m freewheeling. There’s no need to be going 80 on a mountainous downhill. There’s only one straight downhill I ride and I’ve been that fast looking for some serious brakes as there’s a traffic signal on the middle.
As to my setup 48/35. I find the 35 is in the sweet spot between 34 and 36. The 48 is sufficient to keep me off the bigger cogs I would be riding if I still had a 50 or 52 tooth ring.