Fitness and weight loss?

Hi all,

I'm a little confused my st Jude is set at max 125 bpm I'm 31 so
My max should be 189, so does this mean I will find it extra hard to loose weight and almost impossible to get physically fit/increase stamina?

Cheers

6 Comments

rates

by Tracey_E - 2011-09-19 02:09:14

If you are finding it hard to get your hr up to 125 that means you probably don't need it any higher. Fast recovery is a good thing. Huffing and puffing is a good thing. If you can get a good sweat going, you should have no trouble staying fit and losing weight if you choose.

Not getting dizzy means your heart is probably not even trying to go higher than 125. What happened to me- my pulse was 130 (that was my original upper limit) but my atrial rate was 150 or so. The pm only paced at 125 so that was my hr. When the heart got out of sync, I got dizzy. And I had one further problem, the pm has a safety measure if your hr suddenly shoots up high- as in if you are in afib- it puts you in an artificial 2:1 block so instead of pacing at 130 it thought I was in afib and put me at 65. Felt great one minute, the next it was instant end of workout, ready to pass out and legs felt like lead. I've never had an episode of afib so they just turned this one off for me.

Talk to your dr about it if you are having trouble working out to make sure nothing else is going on. If the pm reports don't tell them anything, they can put you on a treadmill hooked up to the pm computer and watch. I've ended up doing that several times over the years, things change as we age so any time I start to struggle to do my workouts that's what we do. Keep in mind your heart probably did not get problems overnight so you likely spent quite a while with it too slow and out of sync. It can take some time to get back to normal (or rather your new normal) and get back in shape.

Heart Rate Limits

by J.B. - 2011-09-19 09:09:43


The upper set point dose not limit the rate that your heart rate can go to, that is the point where the pacemaker quits helping your heart beat. The pacemaker becomes a monitor above that point just waiting for your heart rate to drop below the upper set point before again helping again. There is another setting called rate response on a pacemaker that can have an effect on your heart rate when exercising. This may or may not be turned on and you will need to call your doctor about that one.

PM won't slow your heart rate

by biceps72 - 2011-09-19 10:09:58

as I understand it. The PM can only dpeed up your heart rate once it drops below a certain point, in my case = 60 beats/min.

As mentioned your PM has a rate response setting yjat if turned on your heart rate will increase depending upon how hard you are working. You PM senses movement (like jogging or walking) as I understand it.

pacing

by Tracey_E - 2011-09-19 11:09:40

Why did you get the pm? The upper limit may not even affect you, depending on why you have it. As the others said, your heart can go as fast as it wants on its own, but the pm will only pace it as high as the upper limit. Assuming you are paced when you get up high, age has nothing to do with where they set it, it's the condition of your heart and your needs. 125 or so is the factory standard, they leave it there unless you need it higher. If you tire too easily when working out or get dizzy, stop and check your hr. If you find it at 125, then that means you're maxing out and need the limit to be a big higher. It's an easy fix if you need it higher but it's perfectly normal to leave it lower.

And you are paced now, so you can pretty much ignore the charts that tell you where your hr should be! If you are sweating, breathing hard but still able to talk, and going for at least 20 minutes, you are burning fat. Don't worry about what your hr is, only that you feel ok.

Fitness and weight loss?

by SUPERSTARDJ01 - 2011-09-19 12:09:56

Hi,

It was inserted due to complete heart block my lower heart rate was without the PM around 26 asleep and around 35-45 awake, I do find it hard to take my heart over 125 but recover in less than 30 seconds, I don;t get dizzy etc and do sweet and huff and puff.

set about 120

by Hot Heart - 2011-09-22 10:09:50

...............but, still struggle big time to get my hr over 90, even with rate response on. i can be on treadmill for an hour walking fast with it at high incline, and still only about 90! makes me sooooo mad sometimes!

HH

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