Any resources for interval training ? And support for working out?

[Heart2.0]

I have been doing small intervals , 3 minutes walking , 1 light jog for 20 minutes then walk 20 more
On a tread mill. Then I increased the speed .1 for the jog, then a few weeks later added another
Set of intervals and 5 more minutes walking.
So slow and gradual increases. My pulse is dropping! My low blood pressure is almost as low
As it use to be ! But I still get a heart 'pinch ' if I push it. So I am listening to that pinch!
140 pulse is too high for me right now. I have to stay under 130 to have a long work out.
I include weights and two other aerobic machines 10-12 minutes each.

What do you know about intervals? Is there a place to read about it as it pertains to us?
I am still at a supervised gym in a hospital but not monitored ( unless I felt bad) but I get
More support to work harder here with an exercise physiologist than I did at cardio rehab with frail
People and nurses. That was uncomfortable to say the least.

Still feel sad and angry about my body betraying me! But less and less.

How about you? Are you struggling to get back into shape?
I still have to rest a whole day here and there with an achy heart feeling. Any one else?

 

[Paleowoman]

My cardiac rehab nurse got me doing interval training right at the start of rehab just over two months after surgery. Interval training consisting of 2 mins of very strenuous exercise, 30 secs gentle exercise, 2 mins strenuous, 30 sec gentle and so on for 20 mins, then some walking, then the interval technique again for 20 mins so that there's a total of about a 50 minute program three days a week with brisk walks the other days. This was mostly using whole body exercises. My ankle got damaged after a couple of weeks and so he switched to me doing upper body weight lifting with some whole body exercises which didn't involve my ankle, using the same interval technique. I'm now a few months on and discovered that the principles and timings of this interval technique are very similar to the interval technique that Dr Al Sears uses in 'The Doctor's Heart Cure' http://www.amazon.com/Doctors-Heart...=UTF8&qid=1405838148&sr=1-3&keywords=al+sears His book does not address cardiac rehab after surgery but I found it so similar to the technique my cardiac nurse used that I've found it useful. I wear my heart rate monitor all the time to guage my heart during the sessions.

As others have said in another thread, I still get problems with recovery, still get very tired even though I'm six months from surgery, and still not as strong as pre-surgery. A cardiologist friend told me this was 'normal' after such major surgery.

 

[Heart2.0]

Thanks paleo ! I shall look into that book. That is certainly a different ratio 2min :30seconds.
It takes my heart 2 minutes to drop back down so 1:3 seems more comfortable but
I will read up on it. I sure wish I could talk to a cardiologist at Kaiser who knows!
Thanks for your response , it is a place to start.
I think I will wear my monitor more often to avoid ending up feeling so awful like today.

 

[pellicle]

Hi

That is certainly a different ratio 2min :30seconds.
It takes my heart 2 minutes to drop back down so 1:3 seems more comfortable but
...
I think I will wear my monitor more often ....

well not that I'm a specialist, but my own method has been to *always* use my HR monitor or at worst take interval measurement of my HR (using a stopwatch). I decided that on release from hospital my surgeon said "walk walk walk and then do more walking" ... every time I saw him he asked "how far have you walked this week".

I asked and was told that its not BPM that's the issue its Blood Pressure. So if I wanted to get to 160 then it was not a problem as far as my surgeon saw it.

I subscribe to "saw tooth" pattern with the top of the scale being where I stop or ramp down. I change my "peak" as I feel my fitness improves. For instance in the first month it was 140 then it was 150 then by a 6 months it was 160.

When I first got home I was walking on flats and eventually I was brisk walking on up hills.

I either stop entirely or slow down when I hit my peak and wait for the bottom point of 120 before I go on.

My recovery time (time to get back to 120) is my fitness indicator.

My other indicator is duration to get feeling tired. It was 20 min, but by last year became 3 hours (and then I needed *food*).

Its a simple system, and a good starter method.

Best Wishes

 

[Paleowoman]

Thanks paleo ! I shall look into that book. That is certainly a different ratio 2min :30seconds.
It takes my heart 2 minutes to drop back down so 1:3 seems more comfortable but
I will read up on it.

That was the ratio that my cardiac rehab nurse had me doing, Dr Sears has a more flexible interval which is adjusted according to how things are going and changes as you get more fit, but the principles of doing intense exercise for short lengths of time and short 'rests' in-between is the same so that the heart goes fast then slower, fast then slower and so. According to the rehab nurse it's the changes in heart rate which help the heart get stronger and you can measure it with how quickly your heart rate recovers. Just seen, there's quite a few other books on high intensity interval training on Amazon too !

 

[SumoRunner]

1) The place to read about it as it pertains to people like us is right here. You will not find a better source than talking to others who have been through it.

2) Post-op depression is also normal, sort of like post-partum but not as severe. Nobody talks about it much but when you mention it, we all go "Oh yeah, that too". You'll come out of it in a few weeks.

 

[joel1947]

I have not had surgery yet (August 19), but have trained. It is always a struggle as you age (67) between the "no pain no gain" and the "don't be crazy" schools of thought. Intervals are the best, but unless you are exactly like the person in the book, you may do better with different intervals, and as you get more and more fit, the best intervals for you will change as well. Once you are in great shape you will not be able to get your heart rate up to where you want it. Even with 4+ regurg and am 80% blocked LAD I do not have the strength to get my heart over 150 or so. 20 years ago I could easily get it to 180.

I do not know how long you have been at it, but you will get your cardio-vascular system to where you feel really good about what you can do. My problem has always been my legs. I can push so hard and hit the wall. My suggestion is to try varying intervals and see what works best. And take care of your muscles with enough protein and hydration. Good luck and keep listening to your heart. You know best.

 

[epstns]

There is one other place where you may find some additional information. That is the web site cardiacathletes.com which is dedicated to folks who have or have had various heart issues and continue to remain athletically active. I don't spend much time there, but the folks there can probably offer more examples and ideas for you.

 

[Paul1401]

How long after your op are you ? I had mine back in 2001, and these days follow a military training type routine.