Strava Premium v Cycle Computer / Heart Rate Monitor?

[TerryTibbs]

No idea why we are even talking about cadence. Do you want to get faster/fitter - or do you simply want your cadence to increase? Assuming you want to become fitter/faster - what do your '3-5 rides a week' look like at the moment? Do you have any plan or structure currently?

Assuming your original aim is unchanged - ie to ride faster around Richmond Park - then gadgets on their own are probably not the answer. But adding some more effort or structure to your existing rides, probably is the answer.

I am not sure if I entirely understand why I'd want to increase cadence to increase on its own? I simply want to become fitter and faster, is that not the goal of every cyclist?

As I said, I am going round the park 3-5 times a week and trying in most instances at maximum effort. I have seen my time go from 22:00 to 18:51, though of course my time varies each time I go. I would like this time to get faster. I am asking you, what technical aids, if any might help me in this pursuit.

Any suggestions are most welcome. @Jasonbourne @S-Express

 

[TerryTibbs]

I have Strava premium which I use on an iPhone 6. I pair it with a Wahoo Tickr HRM (Heart Rate Monitor) which supports both ANT+ and Bluetooth, so it has the flexibility to be paired with a cycle computer, phone, or laptop. I don't tend to use the HRM more when I'm on Zwift than out on the road with Strava, but I am familiar with Strava Premium and the heart rate based metrics it can provide.

At the end of the day, both a cycle computer (I'm thinking Garmin/Wahoo Elemnt) and Strava Premium will collect the same data (i.e the output from the sensors). In your case this would be a recorded heart rate, position/route, and speed. It's really what you do with that data that's important, and I think that is what S-Express is getting at.

Strava will give you a free one month trial of Premium, so I'd suggest getting a HRM (the Wahoo Tickr is about £40) then starting a trial to see if you find it useful.

One feature of Strava Premium when you use a HRM is fitness/freshness scores. As you train you will see your fitness score increase, and your freshness score decrease (because your body is getting tired). It is using the data from your sensors to give you some meaningful numbers that can show you in an easy to understand way how fit you are and how fresh you are. You'll feel these differences too, but "feel" can be deceptive!

If you want to take the training more seriously you will need a training plan - there are free plans available online which you could follow. Just going out and riding will improve your fitness and will almost certainly improve your lap times around the park, but if you use a training plan you will see bigger improvements. British Cycling have some training plans which you might find useful.

Here is a link about Strava's "Suffer Score" and fitness/freshness:
https://support.strava.com/hc/en-us/articles/216917077-Suffer-Score-Premium-
https://support.strava.com/hc/en-us/articles/216918477-Fitness-and-Freshness-Premium-

I use some of the training plans on Zwift to train on my turbo which is good fun, and I can see the results in my improved FTP (Watts) and ability to ride harder for longer on the road. In your case, you could use a British Cycling training plan (maybe a TT one) with your HRM and see the improvements in your lap time around the park.

Dear Burning Legs,

Thank you for your comprehensive answer. Might you expand on the strava premuim feature in relation to heartbeat, does it say 'go faster' in certain segments when it knows you can do better for instance?

Is there any benefit to a cycle computer over / in conjunction with strava premium? THis is really the nub of my question, given that there is such a plethora of information out there it is quite hard to actually pin down what is best.

Thank you very much for the time taken to get back to me.

 

[S-Express]

I am not sure if I entirely understand why I'd want to increase cadence to increase on its own? I simply want to become fitter and faster, is that not the goal of every cyclist?

That's as I suspected. Let's not mention cadence anymore.

As I said, I am going round the park 3-5 times a week and trying in most instances at maximum effort. I have seen my time go from 22:00 to 18:51, though of course my time varies each time I go. I would like this time to get faster. I am asking you, what technical aids, if any might help me in this pursuit.

Technical aids will not help you go faster on their own. Varying your rides a bit will help, as will varying the effort levels within your rides. If all you ever do is go out and smash yourself to pieces on every ride, then that is not particularly structured. Try some steady rides, with a couple of 5min or 10min intervals in the middle, with appropriate easy periods in between. Longer and shorter intervals are also worth considering, but it's difficult to suggest duration and effort levels without knowing how long you are out for each time.

Or join one of the faster group rides around there, that will also bring your speed on.

 

[TerryTibbs]

That's as I suspected. Let's not mention cadence anymore.



Technical aids will not help you go faster on their own. Varying your rides a bit will help, as will varying the effort levels within your rides. If all you ever do is go out and smash yourself to pieces on every ride, then that is not particularly structured. Try some steady rides, with a couple of 5min or 10min intervals in the middle, with appropriate easy periods in between. Longer and shorter intervals are also worth considering, but it's difficult to suggest duration and effort levels without knowing how long you are out for each time.

Or join one of the faster group rides around there, that will also bring your speed on.

I should add that in addition to cycling round the park as quickly as I can I do a lot of cycling around London, ten miles at least every day.

 

[S-Express]

I should add that in addition to cycling round the park as quickly as I can I do a lot of cycling around London, ten miles at least every day.

Unlikely to be much training benefit in that, tbh..

 

[BurningLegs]

Might you expand on the strava premuim feature in relation to heartbeat, does it say 'go faster' in certain segments when it knows you can do better for instance?

Is there any benefit to a cycle computer over / in conjunction with strava premium?

Strava premium includes a feature called "Live Segments" which indicates when you are starting/finishing a segment (like the loop around the park) and shows your current performance vs your best, the KOM and now also vs your recent attempts. It doesn't use HR data to encourage you, but it can show the HR on screen. You will soon get used to your body and know when your legs and/or heart are at full tilt and can't give you any more!

There are things that a cycle computer can do that Strava doesn't do. The main benefits are turn by turn navigation (on some), but you don't seem to be looking for that, and increased battery life vs a phone. From a training perspective I don't know of any additional features on Garmin/Wahoo but there may be some (I don't own a cycle computer).

My advice would be to get a HRM that works with Bluetooth (for Strava on your phone) and also ANT+ (for cycle computers). Then find a suitable training plan and do the first month with Strava Premium for free. If you don't like it and would prefer to have a cycle computer then don't pay for the Premium membership and buy a computer instead. Nothing lost, but you might be happy with Strava and be able to save the expense of a cycle computer. That's what happened to me.

Finally - this thread seems to have a slightly negative/confrontational tone. I'd like to just take a moment to say well done on your achievements so far - your lap times have dropped so what you are doing right now IS working, and you could just continue as you are and see further gains. Tuning things up with a training plan will get you further and in less time, but don't forget that you're already a lot faster than all those buggers sat at home on the sofa!

 

[TerryTibbs]

Strava premium includes a feature called "Live Segments" which indicates when you are starting/finishing a segment (like the loop around the park) and shows your current performance vs your best, the KOM and now also vs your recent attempts. It doesn't use HR data to encourage you, but it can show the HR on screen. You will soon get used to your body and know when your legs and/or heart are at full tilt and can't give you any more!

There are things that a cycle computer can do that Strava doesn't do. The main benefits are turn by turn navigation (on some), but you don't seem to be looking for that, and increased battery life vs a phone. From a training perspective I don't know of any additional features on Garmin/Wahoo but there may be some (I don't own a cycle computer).

My advice would be to get a HRM that works with Bluetooth (for Strava on your phone) and also ANT+ (for cycle computers). Then find a suitable training plan and do the first month with Strava Premium for free. If you don't like it and would prefer to have a cycle computer then don't pay for the Premium membership and buy a computer instead. Nothing lost, but you might be happy with Strava and be able to save the expense of a cycle computer. That's what happened to me.

Finally - this thread seems to have a slightly negative/confrontational tone. I'd like to just take a moment to say well done on your achievements so far - your lap times have dropped so what you are doing right now IS working, and you could just continue as you are and see further gains. Tuning things up with a training plan will get you further and in less time, but don't forget that you're already a lot faster than all those buggers sat at home on the sofa!

Thank you, unlike some other members you seem to have that remarkably unique ability to read the question posted and give an answer that doesn't attempt to appear snide or simply bringing everyone else down without actually answering the question.

 

[S-Express]

Thank you, unlike some other members you seem to have that remarkably unique ability to read the question posted and give an answer that doesn't attempt to appear snide or simply bringing everyone else down without actually answering the question.

Terry - talk to me - are you expecting the gadgets to work wonders all on their own? If not, which aspects of my replies are troubling you?

 

[TerryTibbs]

Terry - talk to me - are you expecting the gadgets to work wonders all on their own? If not, which aspects of my replies are troubling you?

Without looking to seek further debate, only a fool would believe that any electronic aid on their own would be of any help. None of your replies have been troubling but my original question asked what technical aid may be of help, I think the thread has gone off topic.

 

[S-Express]

I think the thread has gone off topic.

Well yes, but that's not unusual. Ultimately though (leaving gadgets aside), if your objective is to increase your pace around Richmond park (or anywhere else for that matter), then I certainly wouldn't be dismissing my suggestions out of hand...

 

[rche7k]

Terry, I am doing pretty much the same thing as you. I have a couple of routes I like to ride and - on a good day - I check to see if I can beat my previous best time. I tried a few apps on my iPhone - Strava, MapMyRide & Polar - paired with a heart rate sensor for extra fun. They all do roughly the same thing with different levels of detail. Polar doesn't give split times, of example. But I don't use those anyway,

The benefit to me of using a phone app is I can track different types of exercise, not just cycling. So, IMHO, if you are out to enjoy the ride, and just want to see if you are getting faster/fitter, I don't think you need anything else except smart phone and app that tracks route and time.