Hitting a wall at 160bpm

[User76022]

What i found out about iron levels is that the more you sweat (cycling ) the more you lose iron so perhaps an iron tablet every third day or so may be good to maintain good iron levels, thats what i have started on any way.

If you are eating right and there are no underlying medical conditions, it's unlikely you are iron deficient.

You don't lose much iron in sweat.

If you were iron deficient, it would probably present in other ways like general fatigue all the time, dizziness etc.

 

[Bonefish Blues]

Measure it!

Forgive me and my ignorance*, but what does that mean?

*Hence the question...

 

[fossyant]

Iron doesn't come out in sweat... it's a diet issue. Everyone is different, but I can still hit 185 bpm at 48 years old - I saw it at about 205 when I was early 20's chasing a club mate in a TTT training session - needless to say I didn't hang on long... I've had clubmates that were 'younger' than I am now not hit much more than 160 max, so it's only relevant to you.

 

[fossyant]

With me, in more recent years, my issue has been haematocrit. Had a bit of an issue a few years ago, and I felt like crap. Had full blood counts done, and Testosterone and haematocrit were low - felt like poop. It was down to a farked up snip and additional invasive surgery. Got onto Testosterone replacement and I slowly started feeling normal again. Testosterone was still low, about 3/5ths what it should be, but it had improved from 1/4 of the norm (normal is about 20nmol, I was 5, and I'm around 13-14 now). Haematocrit hit a low of 40 nmol, but it's now about just under 50 - which is at the upper limit, and I have to be careful - normal range is 40-54, pro cyclists are allowed 50. I feel loads better and can actually get oxygen into my lungs.

All my other blood values were fine.

You do need a full blood count...

 

[rogerzilla]

The last thing middle-aged British men need are iron supplements. Ironically (see what I did there), iron is added to WHITE bread by law because, back in the day, the population was felt to be iron-deficient. And who eats white bread the most? Fat middle-aged men at risk from a heart attack.

 

[fossyant]

The last thing middle-aged British men need are iron supplements. Ironically (see what I did there), iron is added to WHITE bread by law because, back in the day, the population was felt to be iron-deficient. And who eats white bread the most? Fat middle-aged men at risk from a heart attack.

what what, my Warburtons Toastie is no good....

 

[lane]

Forgive me and my ignorance*, but what does that mean?

*Hence the question...

I provided a link to measure your threshold HR which is a better option than measuring max HR and a link to a website with a lot of relevent info. But max HR can be tested as detailed in this link.:

https://www.cycling-inform.com/how-to-test-for-your-cycling-max-heart-rate

 

[Ming the Merciless]

Iron man is not just a film. It is based on a real story.

 

[HLaB]

Iron doesn't come out in sweat... it's a diet issue. Everyone is different, but I can still hit 185 bpm at 48 years old - I saw it at about 205 when I was early 20's chasing a club mate in a TTT training session - needless to say I didn't hang on long... I've had clubmates that were 'younger' than I am now not hit much more than 160 max, so it's only relevant to you.

It does come out but in doses like 5 parts per 1000 so nothing really to worry about. (I hope you're not eating ) I think my downfall was a build up of blood/haemorrhoids (perhaps caused by a car impact) then a few years later the loss of them overnight. Combined with too many cups of tea/coffees with my meals stopping me absorbing iron properly to make up for it.

I remember when I was younger easily hitting 200bpm + on every ride but a club mate of mine who was 10 years younger and a far superior climber max was in the region of 176bpm

 

[User76022]

The last thing middle-aged British men need are iron supplements. Ironically (see what I did there), iron is added to WHITE bread by law because, back in the day, the population was felt to be iron-deficient. And who eats white bread the most? Fat middle-aged men at risk from a heart attack.

Ironically, the added iron is, according to some scientists, completely useless to us anyway. I'm no scientist so I might have got this wrong but it goes something like this. Iron that is added is just food grade iron filings. Iron in its ferrous form. Apparently iron in this form simply goes in one end and out the other. Iron in the form we need is different (don't ask me how, I watch documentaries and read stuff but I don't always understand it). This is iron that is bound up in natural food, ie good old fashioned fruit and veg and meat. Not iron filings.

 

[davidphilips]

If you are eating right and there are no underlying medical conditions, it's unlikely you are iron deficient.

You don't lose much iron in sweat.

If you were iron deficient, it would probably present in other ways like general fatigue all the time, dizziness etc.

Only way i found out my iron level had fallen was when i went to give blood, my level was 13 (has to be over 13.5 for males) plus i am a vegetarian, had no issues with health and the morning before i went to donate i had just cycled about 70 miles so felt great.

Since that i have been taking an iron supplement about twice a week and have not had any issues at the donation, have no idea what my level is now but they take the red stuff so must be ok.

 

[ColinJ]

Forgive me and my ignorance*, but what does that mean?

*Hence the question...

'Maximum heart rate' is the maximum number of beats per minute that your heart can do. So do the hardest effort you can manage and simply count how many beats your heart does in a minute!

Actually, you probably won't be able to count the beats because you will be knackered and the beats will coming so fast. Stick a heart rate monitor on and see what it says.

I should point out that you will be putting your heart under an awful lot of stress when you do that so it would be a good idea to check with your doctor to make sure that it isn't going to kill you! Do at least 15-20 minutes of moderate warm up exercise first, or more if you need it. It is a BAD idea to go flat out from a cold start.

 

[User76022]

It is a BAD idea to go flat out from a cold start.

True. But it's probably even worse to stop too quickly from flat out.

When you go full on, obviously your heart is pumping as hard as it can. Everyone knows this. But less covered is the fact that the vigorous pumping action in the legs is actually pushing blood back upwards. Therefore between the heart pumping away and the legs keeping the blood going back upwards, your organs including your brain continue to be well supplied. Stop suddenly and now your legs are no longer squeezing blood back up hill. But all your arteries are still dilated just the same, and your muscles are still screaming for energy just the same. Now your poor heart, already maxed out, is working solo to keep your top half supplied. It can't. That's when you go dizzy and possibly nearly faint as your brain goes short. That's generally fairly harmless for most people (falling being the biggest risk), unless your heart is not tip top, because it will try to beat even faster to compensate for the sudden drop in blood pressure.

 

[Alan O]

When you go full on, obviously your heart is pumping as hard as it can. Everyone knows this. But less covered is the fact that the vigorous pumping action in the legs is actually pushing blood back upwards. Therefore between the heart pumping away and the legs keeping the blood going back upwards, your organs including your brain continue to be well supplied. Stop suddenly and now your legs are no longer squeezing blood back up hill. But all your arteries are still dilated just the same, and your muscles are still screaming for energy just the same. Now your poor heart, already maxed out, is working solo to keep your top half supplied. It can't. That's when you go dizzy and possibly nearly faint as your brain goes short. That's generally fairly harmless for most people (falling being the biggest risk), unless your heart is not tip top, because it will try to beat even faster to compensate for the sudden drop in blood pressure.

I had exactly that earlier in the year on a long ride with big hills. I was pushing up the hills as hard as I could and was doing OK, and my HR was high but within reason. But I still needed to stop every now and then as my legs were feeling it, and when I did my heart rate would rise and I'd get a dizzy spell - I only learned about the explanation sometime afterwards.

 

[ColinJ]

True. But it's probably even worse to stop too quickly from flat out.

When you go full on, obviously your heart is pumping as hard as it can. Everyone knows this. But less covered is the fact that the vigorous pumping action in the legs is actually pushing blood back upwards. Therefore between the heart pumping away and the legs keeping the blood going back upwards, your organs including your brain continue to be well supplied. Stop suddenly and now your legs are no longer squeezing blood back up hill. But all your arteries are still dilated just the same, and your muscles are still screaming for energy just the same. Now your poor heart, already maxed out, is working solo to keep your top half supplied. It can't. That's when you go dizzy and possibly nearly faint as your brain goes short. That's generally fairly harmless for most people (falling being the biggest risk), unless your heart is not tip top, because it will try to beat even faster to compensate for the sudden drop in blood pressure.

Ha ha - TELL ME ABOUT IT!