Re: Study: Moderate Exercise Cuts Stroke Risk

Jim Janney <jjanney@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> writes:

Jason Earl <jearl@xxxxxxxxxxxx> writes:

[big snip]

That's a great theory, but that's not how treadmill fitness tests
work at all. Basically the tests start out slow and at a low incline
and increase both in speed and incline until the person can't
continue any longer.

"Can't continue" is going to depend a lot on how motivated I am that
particular day. Does this measure fitness or pain tolerance? Nothing
to do with the original discussion, I'm just curious.

From my own experience with these tests pain tolerance has something to
do with it. I wanted to get a good score, after all. However, it isn't
as simple as that. The treadmill actually gets pretty steep. I'm not a
treadmill expert, but I am pretty sure that the treadmill I was on got
steeper than any treadmill I have ever used. It sure seemed that way.

It really felt like I went until I reached an incline and speed that I
just couldn't handle for very long at all. That's why I basically
compared this test to a footrace with death picking off the slowpokes.
It's not really that you get wiped out, but that you add 0.5 mph and 2%
of incline every three minutes until you fly off the end. Of course,
it's been years since I actually did one of these, and I may be
misremembering, but that's what I remember. One thing is certain, a
brisk walk for 30 minutes isn't the optimal way to prepare for one of
these tests. By the time 15 minutes is up you are running at 5.0 mph up
an 18% incline. At 30 minutes you'd be running 7.0 mph up a 28%
incline.

I believe with older subjects or subjects with some sort of physical
ailment that it is common to hook the person up to a series of monitors
that may force the person to drop out early, but the basic idea is that
you try and stay on the machine as long as you can. Your fitness level
in this test is based entirely on how long you stay on the treadmill.

This actually has quite a bit to do with the original discussion because
it shows the danger of relying on the sound bites that the researchers
come up with for the newspapers. For example, if you have to have a
score of 15 minutes or better to get out of the bottom quartile then the
*real* bar is that you have to be able to be able to work up to 4.2 mph
at 18% incline, and you have to maintain that pace for 3 minutes. If a
"brisk walk" in the park on a flat path is basically full speed ahead
then the individual is not going to clear the bottom quartile. From my
own experience being obese the incline is almost more of a problem than
the speed. Climbing hurts.

One thing is certain, all of these studies talking about fitness (as
measured by a treadmill fitness test) is making me wonder if my local
Rec center has a treadmill capable of the inclines needed for this test.
I'm curious as to how I would fare.

Jason
.

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