got a stationary bike looking to improve heart function

[bignbrown]

i noticed im not as fit as i used to be, i get breathless alot esp on stims which i used quite often, my dad got a stationary bike off a friend and i went on it today, 30mins, did about 12 miles or so and feel quite good, how often should i do it? twice a day? work my way up? should i be having it in high gear and pedalling hard or just pedalling casually to get my heart rate up?

also about seat height its about on level with the handles atm as high as it goes, (im 6ft 2), is this ok? dont want to mess my back up or anything.

thanks to any advice.

I was planning on doing some amphetamine tommorow too, is it ok using the bike in the morning? or is that putting extra strain on my heart, i wont be using the amphetamine til the evening

also how long before it will start showing actual benefit?

 

[bignbrown]

wow done maybe up to an hours over the day, maybe 20 miles wow i feel alot better, best to not push it too far as i would of thought that could damage muscles? if i try and keep it at 20 miles a day for a week i think thats a sensible target, 10 miles morning, 10 evening.

 

[mgrady3]

that sounds like a good target
with a stationary bike its pretty easy to work on building up your stamina. [even a non-stationary bike works the same]

So maybe do a week or 5 days or so of 10 morning, 10 evening. then start adding some more, maybe 12 morning 10 evening then 10 morning 12 evening for a few days, etc etc.
after a few weeks you'll see your stamina improving at least for biking and similar cardio actions.

I can't really say how it will affect you+ stims

 

[doppelganga196]

1 way i noticed a definite improvement with cardio (treadmill) was how slow my heart rate had become when i was at rest; (a good thing), i used to feel extra bad if i had anxiety because my heart was going 90 or 100 beats per minute anyway. After weeks of cardio my heart was going slower than my watch!

 

[Fawkes]

i think taking amps sort of defeats the purpose of getting your heart and lungs healthier and, while i'm not medically trained, it doesn't seem like a good idea to put additional stress on your heart.

however, as doppelganga mentioned, your resting heart rate is a good way to measure how well you're improving in your cardio exercises.

average is 50-100 BMP and "healthy" is typically between 60-80. people who are very athletic tend to have lower resting heart rates; for instance, Lance Armstrong's is said to be between 32-34 BPMs.

on average, women tend to higher resting heart rates than men.

after a good night's rest, or once you've been relaxed for at least 10 minutes, check your pulse at your carotid artery. count your beats for 15 seconds and then multiply by 4 to get an accurate read.

after strenuous mountain hiking for at least 90 minutes 6x a week for 4 weeks, my resting heart rate dropped from 86 BMP to 65 BMP. so, while the cardio is different, i'd think you'd notice a difference within a week.