TONYA Re: Need help with measuring progress for 2008 goal

[Guest guest]

I thought I read somewhere that a 15 min mile is good. Jen Tonya - wrote: ,In the gym, I use either a 3 Minute Step Test or a 12 Minute Walk/Run. For the 3 Minute Step Test you need a 12 inch high step. If you have steps in your home, usually 2 of them is close to 12 inches. You

then step up and down for 3 minutes and take your pulse at the end. It is a recovery pulse, so a HRM isn't recommended. Basically, just take your pulse for 1 full minute starting within 10 seconds of stopping the exercise. I use a general chart for determining results where 79 to 87 beats is excellent, 88 to 120 beats is good, 121 to 134 beats is fair, and over 134 beats is poor. But there is a much better chart in my ACE book at home if you want it. I reassess people every 6 to 8 weeks and usually see a 2-5 beat reduction every few months. The 12 Minute Walk/Run is done for people who can't do the step (Knee issues for example) and is done on the treadmill. Basically, it is set at 0 incline (flat) and you go as hard and fast as you can for 12 minutes. Since most people don't set the speed to really push themselves to their max here, it isn't as accurate a test as the step test in my opinion so I only do it as a last resort. The grading for it is based on how far you go in

the 12 minutes. 1.25 to 1.5 miles is considered excellent, 1.15 to 1.24 miles is good, 1.0 to 1.14 miles is fair, and anything under a mile is considered poor. Now to do a mile in 12 minutes, you have to maintain a 5 mph speed. Since most people don't, you will rarely get someone who gets on the chart on this one (1 mile), but you can compare your distance now with your distance every few weeks and see improvements. Generally, though, its not much on the improvements because again, even reassessing, people don't push to their max here.Hope that helps!-----Original Message-----From: "nancydewolf" [nancydewolfsbcglobal (DOT) net]Date: 01/16/2008 09:16 PMTo: exercisevideos Subject: Re: Need help with measuring progress for 2008 goalIt's taken me until January 16 to solidify a 2008

goal but that's better than waiting until December 16th I guess! Last year I was working very hard to tone flapping in the wind muscles that had been revealed after I lost 25 pounds. I did cardio too but wasn't really working hard at it and now, while I still see a huge improvement in what I can do cardio-wise than I could a year or two ago, I wantto work on that more this year (while continuing to work on strength and flexibility too) I want to see my cardio endurance improve for general health benefits and to help with weight maintenance but need to attach metrics to this so that I can really know I've improved and by how much. I have a heart rate monitor and I'm sure that will be useful but I'm not entirely sure how, in terms of my goal.So... I'm reaching out to all the veteran exercisers and personal trainers. How can I assess my current cardiovascular fitness (and am I even using the correct term) at home? How

can I know it has improved? What is a reasonable expectation in terms of improvement (and can that even be answered without knowing my current level) and of course, how do I measure the improvement and how often should I reassess it? I was thinking I could do a workout that is challenging but not impossible for me now, measure my heart rate during it and then do it again every few months to see what changes I might there might be but I'm not sure if that is really going to help. I'd prefer it if there was a more consistent, reliable way to measure than that seems.Thanks for any help!