Today was below freezing and I went out to do some hill repeats. I started with about a 50 meter hill and sprinted about 5 times. I then did about 3x200m hills at about 90% effort. I measured my heart rate at the top of the hill right after each interval. I found my heart rate to max out at about 160 bpm. It will be interesting to do this test in warmer weather. I read that maximal heart rate tests are lower in colder weather. The general formula for maximum heart rate is 220-your age. My testing indicated that my max heart rate was low for my age. I also found that this may indicate that I have a higher stroke volume. Recently I measured my resting heart rate at 44 bpm. These results may indicate that my heart is pumping more blood per beat compared to the average 40 year old whose resting heart rate is between 60-80 bpm.
Here is a quote from the an article in the New York Times
Some people get blood to their muscles by pushing out large amounts every time their hearts contract, he said. Others accomplish the same thing by contracting their hearts at fast rates. As a result, Dr. Hagerman said, he has seen Olympic rowers in their 20's with maximum heart rates of 220. And he has seen others on the same team and with the same ability, but who get blood to their tissues by pumping hard, with maximum rates of just 160.
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