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Heart Health, VO2 Max, Blood TesT for Heart, etc
Posted on 6/4/23 at 7:07 am
Posted on 6/4/23 at 7:07 am
I'm approaching the big 40 and slightly concerned about my heart.
5' 10
170-175 pounds
13%-15% body fat
gym/walking/cardio daily
8,000 - 10,000 steps daily
Almost perfect diet (meat, eggs, cheese, real milk, fruits and veggies)
I can run 2-3 miles at a time but I would not say my cardio fitness is amazing.
Last December I got an I watch and it keeps telling me my VO2max is way too low and routinely get "low fitness" notifications.
I want to do a deep dive into my heart health but not sure where to start.
What blood tests should I get? What sort of testing should I be asking the doctor for?
ETA: No family history of serious heart problems.
5' 10
170-175 pounds
13%-15% body fat
gym/walking/cardio daily
8,000 - 10,000 steps daily
Almost perfect diet (meat, eggs, cheese, real milk, fruits and veggies)
I can run 2-3 miles at a time but I would not say my cardio fitness is amazing.
Last December I got an I watch and it keeps telling me my VO2max is way too low and routinely get "low fitness" notifications.
I want to do a deep dive into my heart health but not sure where to start.
What blood tests should I get? What sort of testing should I be asking the doctor for?
ETA: No family history of serious heart problems.
This post was edited on 6/4/23 at 7:08 am
Posted on 6/4/23 at 7:39 am to I Love Bama
If you got an Apple Watch, ignore those notifications. The watch doesn’t have the capacity to calculate those things because it can’t measure your respiratory volume, etc. It guesses based on your heart rate and pace.
I mostly walk due to my knees not liking me very much when I run much. But I will throw in a few intervals sometimes of joggining to get my heart rate up. The watch is tracking my activity as a walk, so it gets confused with the elevated heart rates, etc. I always get those alerts and have learned that they are pretty much meaningless for me.
I mostly walk due to my knees not liking me very much when I run much. But I will throw in a few intervals sometimes of joggining to get my heart rate up. The watch is tracking my activity as a walk, so it gets confused with the elevated heart rates, etc. I always get those alerts and have learned that they are pretty much meaningless for me.
Posted on 6/4/23 at 10:36 am to I Love Bama
Huberman Lab
I don’t know if this link will work but it’s Peter Attia on Andrew Huberman’s podcast. Lots of good stuff on the heart and overall health for longevity.
I don’t know if this link will work but it’s Peter Attia on Andrew Huberman’s podcast. Lots of good stuff on the heart and overall health for longevity.
Posted on 6/4/23 at 10:37 am to I Love Bama
quote:
I got an I watch and it keeps telling me my VO2max is way too low and routinely get "low fitness" notifications.
How does it measure this?
Posted on 6/4/23 at 12:47 pm to I Love Bama
Go get a VO2 max test. You can get one just about anywhere. Ideally, you’d get a VO2 max score, a MET score, and heart rate exercise zones. Your VO2 or MET score is directly correlated to longevity and quality of life.
Korr is a leading manufacturer of that testing gear. LINK is for a testing partner.
Once you get your HR zones, you can start training for your cardiovascular health which is what I do. You’ll need a HR strap as the watches are unreliable by 5-10%.
My dad had his first heart attack at 31. He managed to live into his 70’s, but his quality of life was far less than what I’d consider ideal. I promised myself that I wouldn’t end up like that.
Korr is a leading manufacturer of that testing gear. LINK is for a testing partner.
Once you get your HR zones, you can start training for your cardiovascular health which is what I do. You’ll need a HR strap as the watches are unreliable by 5-10%.
My dad had his first heart attack at 31. He managed to live into his 70’s, but his quality of life was far less than what I’d consider ideal. I promised myself that I wouldn’t end up like that.
Posted on 6/4/23 at 2:37 pm to I Love Bama
You can also get some good testing at local athletic facilities. If you’re ever in the Birmingham area, Samford offers affordable ones for body fat and VO2 max. Their specialists will also give you good advice on improving your measurables.
LINK
LINK
Posted on 6/4/23 at 3:24 pm to I Love Bama
You’re only 40, I imagined you 50 with a real estate empire. I heard Peter attia this week making the rounds for his new book. Saying that people with a VO2max in the top 2% were 500% less likely to die than those in the bottom 25% in any given year, a hazard reduction of 5. Diabetes, smoking and hypertension were 1.2 to 1.5. Some measurement of strength was 3.
I think this may be sensationalized a bit as he is known to do. I don’t think these measurements were meant to be compared to one another, I don’t know I’ll let someone smarter than me figure it out.
Anyone know if Pennington biomedical offers of these to the public, I know they have them for their trials?
I think this may be sensationalized a bit as he is known to do. I don’t think these measurements were meant to be compared to one another, I don’t know I’ll let someone smarter than me figure it out.
Anyone know if Pennington biomedical offers of these to the public, I know they have them for their trials?
Posted on 6/4/23 at 10:37 pm to I Love Bama
Your heart will likely be what kills you as cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death by far.
What watch do you have? I have a Garmin and while it does give me VOmax I have to look for it. It does show me resting heart rate that I put more stock in.
My grandfather died of heart disease so this is what I believe will ultimately be my demise. I’m curious to see what info is given here. I have low blood pressure and a low resting heart rate. I’m always told at my annual I will live forever like this, my grandfather was told the same until he had a heart attack.
Other than annual bloodwork and pressure check, is there really anything I should be getting checked by a Dr? I run and bike vigorously over 15 hrs a week and lift 3 days a week.
What watch do you have? I have a Garmin and while it does give me VOmax I have to look for it. It does show me resting heart rate that I put more stock in.
My grandfather died of heart disease so this is what I believe will ultimately be my demise. I’m curious to see what info is given here. I have low blood pressure and a low resting heart rate. I’m always told at my annual I will live forever like this, my grandfather was told the same until he had a heart attack.
Other than annual bloodwork and pressure check, is there really anything I should be getting checked by a Dr? I run and bike vigorously over 15 hrs a week and lift 3 days a week.
Posted on 6/5/23 at 6:38 am to idontyield
quote:
Other than annual bloodwork and pressure check, is there really anything I should be getting checked by a Dr? I run and bike vigorously over 15 hrs a week and lift 3 days a week.
Calcium score if you’ve never had one done.
You can also train to increase your VO2 max. The 80/20 training does that: build an aerobic base then increase VO2 through high intensity.
Posted on 6/5/23 at 7:52 am to I Love Bama
Posted on 6/5/23 at 8:33 am to Aubie Spr96
quote:
Calcium score if you’ve never had one done.
Turnee 40 in march.. had this done. Mine came back 435

5'7 155lbs, work out 3-4 days a week, eat a good diet and active.
We proceeded to do ekgs, bloodwork, heart monitor, echocardiogram, and finally a nuclear stress test. Passed all with flying colors outside of my LDL a tad high. It was about 100 and he wanted it around 75. Blood pressure and all was perfect.
Basically dr said keep doin what i was doing. The downside of calcium score is that it doesnt show if it is creating an actual blockage, or if it is inside the walls. If its inside the walls its basically harmless. Doc told me he has seen people with 1500 calcium score, take them in for a heart catch, and arteries perfectly clear. And he has had people with calcium of 0 leave and have heart attack 2 months later from blockage.
Posted on 6/5/23 at 9:53 am to oleyeller
quote:
Doc told me he has seen people with 1500 calcium score, take them in for a heart catch, and arteries perfectly clear. And he has had people with calcium of 0 leave and have heart attack 2 months later from blockage.
Well..... That's disturbing. My score was zero.

Posted on 6/5/23 at 10:24 am to Aubie Spr96
quote:
Well..... That's disturbing. My score was zero
Lol i would rather that than 435.. basically what he was saying was unless you do an actual heart catch, they have no clue whats going on. Anyone can have soft plaque break loose and cause heart attack. He was just letting me know the 435 didnt mean i 100% had clogged arteries, while telln me i still could fall over tomo

Posted on 6/5/23 at 11:30 am to Aubie Spr96
My score was zero.
Mine was also. 42 years old.
Mine was also. 42 years old.
Posted on 6/5/23 at 11:57 am to oleyeller
He’s right about a CAC of 0 and still having a heart attack, that’s usually my statement when people tout a low score, out of the woods card. But the occurrence of heart attack is many times lower than higher scores.
The soft plaque ruptures, and when healing it creates calcified lesions. So it’s not like you have one or the other, if you have calcified, you also have soft. Sometimes the ruptures are larger, some people might deposit more calcium and stabilize that plaque better.
The soft plaque ruptures, and when healing it creates calcified lesions. So it’s not like you have one or the other, if you have calcified, you also have soft. Sometimes the ruptures are larger, some people might deposit more calcium and stabilize that plaque better.
Posted on 6/5/23 at 12:01 pm to Rust Cohle
Yep, Attia mentions in the Outlive book that Calcium score isn't really a good indicator for those reasons.
Posted on 6/8/23 at 9:44 pm to I Love Bama
I believe Dr. David Moll (cardiologist) performs VO2 max test locally. Heard he's done it for a group of Navy Seals
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