Get with the beat

Things move fast in cycling – and we don’t just mean you after following a Cyclist training plan. Where heart rate monitors were once all the rage, now it’s all about power data. But that doesn’t mean you should consign heart rate training to the bin.

‘Using a heart rate monitor has several plus points,’ says coach Ric Stern. ‘It can help you pace your efforts, especially longer ones. If you use it in conjunction with a power meter you can see how heart rate responds to your power output so you can better dial in your effort.’