| Re: Leg muscle/heart rate question?
gds wrote:
> Maggie wrote:
> <Massive snip>
>>your life and could save your life. Now that you changed your life
>>around, you want to keep living, don't you?
>>Maggie.
>
>
>
> Funny, you go get the test and they find problems and they fix them.
> But where were the symptoms? There's some data coming out that all this
> intervention leads to very little improvement in life expectancy but a
> big improvement in the interventionists bank account.
> Sure, if you have problems intervention works-but there is a lot of
> evidence that the number of surgeries is more related to the number of
> surgeons than to the incidence of desease. (And I hereby lump invasive
> cardiologists in with the surgeon even though they are technically not)
>
My wife, a smoker who won't get on anything less than a fast motorcycle
had a mild heart attack last year and wound up with a stent. It was
found during an MRI or something like that since they could not put her
through a stress test. That one week was $54,000. Just getting s stress
test (and maybe an MRI) is in the low thousands but it doesn't put you
in the hospital for a week. Since you are in the cardio facility if you
do have a heart attack during a stress test you are in the right place.
Getting a stent or 'roto rooter' they go up through an artery or vein in
the groin area and it will be very badly bruised and sore for about a
week. If you need 2 stents have them both done at once since an
additional stay at the hospital will set you back another $50K. As a non
smoker (ever) and an ex drinker (casual but not worth the dui I got
after a party at work) I just do it to the drop over point and I am 56,
5'7", and back up to 160 after these darn holidays. Nobody in my family
has ever died of a heart attack, but high BP and stokes bet most of us.
If I had my choice I would rather go out with a bang on the bike instead
of ****ting my britches at an old folks home.
The stress test (I took one about ten years ago) puts you on a treadmill
and they hook you to all the electronics to monitor and record the
electrical signals from your heart and they will run you up to the speed
where you are about ready to get spit out the back of the treadmill. Oh
and you have to get this barium stuff into you blood so be ready for
either a shot of goo or a glass of chalk tasting stuff.
If you want to be riding well into your hundreds get checked now before
you damage anything. My grandmother went to 100 and only died after
breaking a hip and winding up in one of those damned 'convalescent'
homes. Grandfather, stroke at 72, father stroke at 83 (heavy smoker),
Me, who knows, never smoked, quit my nightcaps, caffeine addict in the
AM, and love biking, hiking and running fast (sprints, not that stupid
jogging). 56 and loving it. Moved a bunch of heavy furniture yesterday
and felt like 18 again (no aches or pains) probably thanks to the
exercise. I couldn't have done that 5 years ago before I got serious
about getting back into shape.
On a final note, if your heart is in question, long, slow steady rides
will get you heart used to the idea that there is work to be done and it
will build up newer stronger veins. Same as a weightlifter has veins
popping out of his arms. You can increase the intensity at about 2 week
intervals until you get to the point where you can do some hard workouts
and get you heart rate up into the 70% to 100% range. Just do it in
steps to be safe. Your resting heart rate should go down, measured in
the morning before you get out of bed. If you have a unit, check your BP
and you wake up temperature also. I wake now with a BP of about 115/75
and an abnormally low temperature (95.2). Fully awake it is 125/85 and
my normal temp is 97.6. Sweat thresh hold is 98.6. Go figure, we are all
different. If it is relevant in anyway I am 56.25 and in better health
that I have been in at least ten years if not when I was 30 and a couch
potato.
I am not a doctor so the usual legal disclaimer goes in, this is just
advice based on my own experiences, and you should see you doctor at
reasonable intervals.
That was my long, but not book length post for the day.
Good luck with all,
Bill Baka, engineer with a @$$@#^* desk job.
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