Heart rate?

[adcooper]

I hate numbers.

So...when I work out at Curves, there's a chart on the wall showing heart rate goals. You exercise for a while and then compare your rate to the ones recommended for various levels of workout. I get tired WAY before my heart gets up to the higher ranges! I think for my age range, I'm supposed to be up around 132 BPM. But I can't get there! My resting heart rate (like when I'm lying around doing absolutely nothing) is about 48 BPM. Otherwise it's a steady 60 BPM, all the time.

Someone please tell me I'm getting a benefit from this even if I only get up to 105!! (Where's the sweaty smiley? )

[elizabeth_h]

Hmm...when you say you are getting tired before your heart rate goes up much, what kind of fatigue are you feeling? Out of breath? Muscle fatigue? What happens if you do "interval" type of exercise (e.g., a slow pace interspersed with sprints)? Are you using a heart rate monitor, or just doing a manual wrist pulse check? Are you breathing efficiently? I think someone at Curves should be helping you with this...

[adcooper]

Manual wrist check--not too accurate, I know, but in the ballpark. I think I'm breathing efficiently, but what do I know! The kind of tired I'm feeling is like, "hey this is way too hard to be fun." And if I get my pulse up to around 140, I feel stressed. Heart is working hard, and I can FEEL it! As for interval, that's the best I can do anyway. I like the jogging boards, but if I get aggressive (lifting my knees more is all that takes!) I know my rate shoots up, but it doesn't feel like something I want to sustain--not even for 30 seconds.

Hey, don't I get pathetic points for never exercising at ALL until now? I just turned 52.

[sariditty]

Ann, how old are you so I can do an equation for you on your safe heart rate range. Also, good for me to know for the knitty-gritty equation is weight and height. (You can PM me that if you want to...I know it's 3 things most people don't like to fess up on quite so quickly.)

[adcooper]

Sarah, I'm 52, 5' 10", 145#. What I don't understand is how you can have these one-size-fits-all target heart rates. Some people have a normal rate of 60 BPM, others walk around closer to 80. "Normal" is so variable.

[MariyaJoM]

i don't think you are, but if you are on any heavy pain meds, it will drop your BP. and if you just started to exercise, it may take a bit to get your heartrate up. when i started going back to the gym a few months ago, i couldn't get my heart rate above 140... but i also couldn't do more than 10 minutes on the elliptical or arc trainer. now i am up to 30-40 minutes and can get my heart rate up in the 160s and i feel i am getting more of an aerobic workout (and i sweat like a pig). it helps to go with a friend, and catch up on current events. i also like taking my ipod with some quick beat techno music, it helps keep a good pace on the machines

[adcooper]

Mari, good thinking! But I'm not on meds. I think I'm just a flimsy specimen and it will take a while for me to build strength and stamina. It's wishful thinking on my part to imagine that I can get the benefit without the work, I suppose. It's reassuring to me to hear that you took time to build up to that point also. There are usually chatty people at Curves, so I can visit a little as I exercise, and they do have music going all the time. It's dreadful, but it's music! I should gripe less and work out more!

[MariyaJoM]

here is a saying that has helped me through a few painful days, and some workout days too! i try and remember it when i feeling the burn of my workout. i tell myself it's just discomfort, it is not going to kill you, and it will be over soon. i have done harder things than this, and it will NOT overcome me

so, if you can only do 10 minutes on a machine, push yourself an extra 15 seconds past 10 minutes and really work it! it will feel great and then you know you have accomplished more than the previous day. but, also listen to your body, if the energy is not there and you are having a funky day, don't push it.

"Pain is temporary. It may last a minute, or an hour, or a day, or a year, but eventually it will subside and something else will take its place. If I quit, however, it lasts forever." - Lance Armstrong


also wondering if you have enough energy to get through your workout. are you eating something about an hour before you go? i find if i don't have an egg, or an odwalla bar about an hour or so before i workout, the energy is not there for me, and it is soooooo draining to get through it. i will then usually do half my workout, and then walk and stretch, just to keep my body moving good luck!!

[adcooper]

I had a follow-up appointment with my doctor today. She's great! She says I should hit 135 sometime during a 30-minute workout, but I don't have to STAY there the whole time. Okay. I can do that. It will be hard, but frankly the thing that intimidated me was the (wrong) idea that I had to hit that target and sustain it for 20 minutes.

Also, she thinks my 10% improvement in cholesterol numbers is good, and I should keep up the diet and exercise and look for more improvement, too. Yee Ha!

Also, I did injure a tendon in my rotator cuff, so I'm off to PT for a while. Not a complete tear, but some swelling and inflamation, so gotta do something about that. I'm SO glad we're going conservative on all of this. I feel better already.

Thanks for all the good tips. I'm keeping it all in mind as I pull on my sweatpants!