Measure of Fitness...Heart Rate Recovery

posted Fall 2008

For those interested there is a method to evaluate cardiovascular fitness which is similar to a stress test. This fitness test is as follows:

1. Accelerating through running, biking, or other method to an anerobic level (a pace you can do for only 20-30 seconds... such as a full sprint)
2. Measure the heart rate with a monitor at the end of the sprint.
3. Recover for 60 seconds by walking or biking slowly (do not stop moving!)
4. Measure the heart rate after 60 seconds and subtract that number from the peak.

Caveat: This is not for those with suspected heart issues. Don't attempt this without your Doctor's approval.
The key:

POOR less than 12 Beats Per Minute (BPM) recovery
FAIR 12-20
Good 20-30
Excellent 30-40
Over 40 is outstanding.

The recovery rate is important because this is a measure of the soundness of our cardiovascular system and not just our heart health.

A recovery rate of greater than 35 BPM indicates almost no risk of sudden death from heart disease!

12 or less increases the risk dramatically. People with this issue need to consult with their Doctor before exercising!

"After following over 5,700 men for 23 years, researchers concluded that the faster your rate drops after exercise, the lower your risk of dying of a heart attack. To perform the calculation, first take note of your heart rate at exactly one minute after you've finished your workout. Then, take that number and subtract it from the maximum heart rate you reached during the workout. If the difference is more than 35bpm, there's a good chance you do not face an increased risk.

If, however, it is less than 35bpm, the study suggests there's need for caution. Specifically, if the difference is between 31-35bpm, your risk is increased by 40 percent; 25-30bpm, risk increase is 30 percent; less than 25bpm, risk increase is 110 percent."

Did this test after one hour of my leg routine. Spiked heart rate to 160 on treadmill by running at 12 MPH at 3 degree elevation for 20 seconds followed by 40 seconds at 7 MPH. Jumped off the belt...slowed belt to 2.3 MPH...lowered elevation to 1 degreee and timed 60 seconds. Heart rate dropped to 122 from 160 a drop of 38. Confirmed a second time!

Coming Back from a Break in Training

posted winter 2009

I recently took off about 2 1/2 weeks from lifting and upon return CHANGED up my routine without cutting back the reps OR the weight from the previous session. Mon: Chest and Back, medium cardio; Tues: Recovery; Wednesday: Legs and hard cardio; Thursday: recovery.....Legs were really sore, Friday: legs sore! Played Golf, Sat: Legs still sore! Played golf. Sunday legs still sore.

By MONDAY legs were ok back to normal workout..

Lessons learned!

1. After 2 1/2 weeks off we feel great,
2. But should cut sets by eliminating the top weight set during the "comeback" week.
3. NEVER start a new routine after being off for 2 1/2 weeks

Hard Work

posted about 1 year ago

Hard leg day today:

High Impact Interval Training: 40 minutes of spinning on my own...10 minute warm-up then series of 2 minute sprints followed by 2 minute recovery ending with 3 minute warm down.

Leg strength work: 2 sets of 15 reps

First Superset: Step ups followed by side steps. 25 then 30 pound dumbells...one leg up same leg down switch legs (needed to catch breath for a second between legs as HR got over 160).

2nd Superset: single leg squats no weight, and 80 and 85 kilo on prone hamstring machine.

Finished with yoga...tree pose and another yoga strength/balance

Foam roll before and after....
Summary: 1:20 minutes in my zone; 129 BPM HR average; Max. HR 163 during step ups; 952 calories

Next week changing routine to get ready for heavy lifting in NOV.

Less of the Gut from Hell...

posted summer 2008

12 Days have passed since starting the supplement regimen and the difference is apparent.

My sinus situation suffered a slight set-back on day 6 with what appeared to be polyps returning. I felt worried that some serious swelling was taking place. Didn't affect my sleep pattern as Data A was above 20.

I changed the timing of the supplements. The Candida killers and Caprio (acid to raise acid levels in gut to kill bad bacteria) are taken with breakfast and afternoon snack. The probiotics taken with my post workout shake and dinner. The reason is that the breakfast group is to kill off the bad stuff and the next group is to reintroduce the good bacteria. Seems counter productive to have them at the same time.

The results are really encouraging. My ............... are looking normal for the first time in forever...with the same diet. Inflammation is MOSTLY down except below. Sinuses are great...only slight amounts of mucus!

I'm sore today from sleeping oddly and from a hard workout two days ago. My body probably needs a little more rest. The issue is my right neck and the pain to the right shoulder blade. Yesterday was worse with some spasms in the right back neck area. Was able to play 9 holes of golf with some restriction of movement. NO Motrin...

HDL and LDL Cholesterol History

My HDL (good stuff) is higher than my LDL (bad stuff). This is quite rare according to Cardiologists interviewed for the PBS series on Heart Disease in America called "The Hidden Epidemic."

The combination of little alcohol and good nutrition gives a good outcome!

In 2004 my HDL was 88 and LDL 84
In 2007 my HDL was 84 and LDL was too low to read....
October 2009 my HDL is 89 and LDL is 101
In 2000 my HDL was 57 and LDL was 135 before lifestyle changes....

Health Update

posted November 2008

Sleep apnea is a serious condition. Risks of heart attacks and strokes at elevated in people with this problem.

2 years ago my Sleep doctor described my Apnea as Moderate. I couldn't use a mask because of chronic sinus problems. Recent tests show my apnea to be "mild." I monitor my sleep weekly with a watch called "sleep tracker" which my Doctor endorses.

The improvement from moderate to mild occurred after I've discovered that I am sensitive to dairy. Earlier this year I was found to be intolerant of gluten protein....and have celiac disease. Eliminating dairy resulted in improved sinuses which improved my breathing at night. My sleep Doc gave me a device to prevent me from sleeping on my back...(the worst position when suffering from Apnea).

I'm very much a believer of exercise and healthy eating as a way to overcome my issues. I'm seeing a pHD who runs a "Metabolic Clinic." She is helping me understand and holistically treat a "leaky gut."

GI tract issues, food sensitivities, unhealthy eating, and lack of exercise all contribute to issues such as sleep apnea. I'm still working on getting my "system" balanced, but I can say that I feel better WITHOUT MEDS than I have in many years.

The Gut from HELL!

posted Fall 2008

Wow, my gut has been messed up for so long! But I'm getting it back under control....

After years of taking anti-biotics and eating way too much sugar my gut has been severely damaged. I have Celiac disease which means that my body cannot tolerate gluten protein. Gluten and dairy intolerance led to lower intestinal damage which reduces the bodies ability to absorb nutrients. This explains why I eat so much and gain no weight.

The anti-biotics and sugar diet created a GI environment that resulted in High levels of candida fungus near Pathogen and Pathogen levels of bacteria in the GI tract. Pathogen levels are common in people with disease! These bugs are eating many of the nutrients coming from the food I eat! They are depriving me of valuable nutrition. It's no wonder that massive amounts of vitamins helped me feel better!

The bad bacteria such as citrobacter freundii and enterobacter cloacae are overwhelming the good bacteria required for good GI health. The result is nasty bloating and gas not to mention the malnutrition. Calf muscle cramps indicate a shortage of magnesium.

The candida overgrowth causes even more harm because of chronic inflammation. It is a major cause of chronic sinus problems and other inflammation diseases. Rashes, hives, psoriasis, and other skin disorders are often caused by candida overgrowth. Achy joints, fibromyalgia, muscle pain, lack of energy are other causes.

In addition, my body doesn't absorb protein because of the lack of acid in my stomach. Certain acids are required for proper absorption of protein. Protein is the building blocks of muscle. This might explain why I have so much trouble building muscle!

I'm lucky that my cardiovascular system has not been affected. My CRP (c-reactive protein a measure of vascular inflammation) is at the bottom of the scale, which is very good. Many Celiacs with Candida have cardiovascular disease.

All of my blood tests indicate outstanding results because of my healthy habits of exercise and eating right. Without these good habits there's no way of knowing how bad I would feel.

A metabolic specialist who is treating me recommended two approaches...medicine (strong antibiotics...which I now hate) or herbal to treat the bugs and excess fungus in my gut. I chose to go herbal for the moment. I'm feeling great, except for the foul odor! (My wife has to sleep down the hall at times). After about 3 months we should see results.

Here's what I'm taking:

For Candida Overgrowth: Metagenics Candibactin AR and Candibactin BR

For Bad Bacteria: Metagenics Celapro

For Digestion: Metagenics Spectrazyme (enzyme)

Good Bacteria: Metagenics LactoViden and Bifoviden

Supplements to help with nutrient malabsorption: Fish oil, B Complex, Mulitmineral, Glucosamine /Chondroitin, Vit E, Multi-Vitamin, Bromolein, Licorice, Sam-e, and MSM.

The combination of bad bacteria and candida cause elevated levels of toxins in the body. Exercise helps remove toxins. Therefore, exercise is an important part of my treatment.

Things are turning for the better after years of suffering with vertigo, chronic sinus disease, loss of sense of taste and smell, rashes, itchy skin, bloating, gas, joint and muscle aches, and slow healing.

Summer Workout Plan 2008

posted Summer 2008

Monday: Spinning followed by 30 minute chest/back or leg workout

Tuesday: Long easy run 50 minutes at 65-75% of max. then golf in afternoon

Wednesday: Spinning or a chest/back or leg workout

Thursday: recovery

Friday: Intervals either spinning or running; then lifting

Saturday: Golf only

Sunday Recovery run in AM golf PM

Not splitting routine and cardio, so the days I spin and lift my calorie burn is around 1000 in about 1 hours 30 minutes.

On lifting days when I don't spin then I do some cardio...court intervals, etc.

Holding weight at 180 and 13-14% bodyfat

Building some strength...not much...mostly maintenance.

Two days of chest/back and one of legs...following week 2 legs and 1 chest. Varying sets/reps/weights each time. 4 sets of 6 heavy; 3 sets of 10 medium; 2 sets of 15 light. Rotating each time.

Chest back supersets:
Pushups regular 15; on medicine ball hard; toes pointed on swiss ball medium
Seated row.

Pushups on the ball: elevated on platform; 65 or 55 mm ball
Pullups on lat pulldown machine.

Curl to press with one leg raised
skull crushers or cable pull downs

Legs superset:

Step ups
Side step ups

One leg squats: hard on bench with weights; easy on floor; medium bench without weights.

Leg curl machine

Hanging leg raises: hard with straight legs; easy 10 knee lift; medium butt lift

Warming up with foam roll...on hard leg days rolling out legs after.

NO cold plunge or hot tub. Yamuna once a week. Massage every 2 weeks.

Eating gluten and dairy free. Soreness is minimal. Left shoulder "pops" when I do curl to press. No back issues.

Results of Healthy Eating and Exercise

posted October 2007

Participated in Free Wellness Screening at our gym. Free is a senior's favorite word. The results were encouraging:

Age: 58
BMI 23.5
Waist/Hip Ratio: .86 (Under .95 best for men)
Waist: 31"
Weight: 178
Height: 6' 2 3/4"
Sitting heart rate: 56
Blood Pressure: 100/58
Triglycerides: <45 (so low the machine couldn't read)
Total Cholesterol: 171
HDL: 84
LDL: no reading (too low again)
TC/HDL ratio: 2.0 (below 4 is desirable for men)
Glucose: 88

Lowest blood sugar ever. This was 133 before I started my fitness and healthy eating.