Paying attention in church? Umm...maybe...not so much

Sunday, March 14, 2010

Okay…so I’m in church Sunday morning. Someone’s reading a lesson and I’m doing what you’re supposed to be doing at that time…yeah…I’m checking my resting heart rate (RHR).

RHR is a definite measure of cardiovascular fitness. Aerobic exercise is weight lifting for the heart and builds that muscle the same way bicep curls have me bulging from my t-shirt (okay…maybe not, but nice image of me). My RHR was running around 56 beats per minute when I began this little program. That’s high for me, but certainly consistent with everything about the way I had let myself go. First, I checked it during the gospel (we stand for that) and it was 54 bpm. Then we got to sit down for awhile and I checked it about five more times and it was consistently coming in at 48 bpm.

You’re saying…so what’s the big deal?

Some people ascribe to the theory that the ticker has just so many beats and when they’re used up, you’re done. I’m not one of those people, but if I was…well…here’s the math for my 8 bpm reduction in my resting heart rate:

Resting heart rate reduction of 8 beats per minute calculates to 4,029,600 fewer beats per year using only 23 hours in a day – saving one for exercise.

Subtract the exercising at a higher heart rate (130 beats verses 48 beats at rest) for one hour a day – a difference of 82 bpm, which translates to 1,795,800 a year.

Savings: 2,233,800 heart beats per year is the savings.

I’ve known people to bring their resting heart rate down by as much as twenty beats – so their savings will be…oh…over 5 million a year! If you’re trying to get yours accurately, take it first thing in the morning – before getting out of bed. Take it a full minute and check it three mornings in a row and take the average. Mine runs higher some mornings and this is an indicator that the body may still be recovering from a particularly hard workout or maybe being over-trained and in need of a rest. If I think it’s going to be higher…I don’t check it. Ignorance is bliss and I am one happy man. Anyway, it's another method to confirm that you're training program is working.

Anyway…on to the workout. For starters, my mind is constantly thinking of ways to burn extra calories these days. I needed a cleaner for the DVD player, which means a trip to Microcenter. I figured I’d walk. It was drizzling and around 38 degrees – conditions, as you know, I avoid like kidney stones. But what the hell…

I walked the 5-mile round trip in an hour and fifteen minutes and burned up a bonus 570 calories! How many times do I pass up the opportunity to do these kind of things? Way too often in the past. I’m thinking I’ll start walking to the grocery store to grab a fresh, low calorie dinner every now and again. It’s a couple of miles away as well, but more on that some other day...

I got back home and hopped on the trainer. I’ll walk in that shit, but not ride. The Cavs were on one channel and beating the Celtics while Ohio State was putting some wup… on Minnesota to win the Big Ten Basketball Championship on another, so I had plenty to keep me company for the one-hour ride. Day light savings time is here and so getting in longer evening rides is in my future. Supposed to be better weather tomorrow.

Bike duration: 60 minutes. Hike duration: 76 minutes.

Training Heart Rate: 125 bpm for bike. 75 bpm for hike.

Calories burned during workout: 900 for bike. 570 for hike.