[buddha belly]

I was hoping this is the place to ask this. First I will say that this is the first time in my life, documented by treadmill electronics, that my pulse rate has improved from my exercise.

I have noticed that when I do an exercise class, either muscle step or a combo class without weights, but with lots of squats and sprints, and then do the treadmill, that my pulse rate is much lower on the treadmill.

Is this because I am dehydrated or what?

Also when I go to the gym on the weekend, my pulse rate is much higher than it is, when I go after work. Any ideas why?

Thanks for any info you can provide.

(One more thing, is it actually possible to lose a buddha belly?)

Buddha Belly

[Meg]

Hi Buddha! To answer your second question first, YES it's possible to lose a buddha belly! As you lose body fat, the excess fat will all come off - eventually even your trouble spot, which I'm guessing is your belly. But don't give up if it seems like your belly is the LAST place that the weight is coming off! Lots of us lose that horrible trouble fat last of all. I carried my fat in my butt and thighs and thought it would never go away, but the last 20 pounds came off 100% from those areas. But for a long time as I was losing weight, I was shaped like a bowling pin.

About heart rates and exercise - I'm not sure what you're asking? Are you wondering why your heart rate is higher in a class than on the treadmill? If that's the case, it's because you're working harder in the class than on the treadmill. Your heart rate is simply an indication of how hard your heart is working to get oxygen to your tissues. I can certainly imagine classes - especially with squats and sprints - that require a lot more exertion than the treadmill. Personally, I have a tough time getting my heart rate up at all on a treadmill unless I'm running or walking very fast on an incline. Even a 4 MPH walk doesn't do much at all for my heart rate, so I don't use it as cardio. Anyway, that's all heart rate is - an indication of how hard you're working at whatever exercise you're doing.

Could your higher heart rate on weekends be due to doing different exercises? Or could you be working harder on weekends because you have more energy than you do after work?

Congrats on the improvement in your heart rate (resting, I assume?) As your heart becomes more conditioned through exercise, don't be surprised if you have to work harder and harder in order to elevate your heart rate. It's a good thing for your heart to become more efficient, but you'll need to increase the intensity of your exercise in order to raise your heart rate into a cardiovascular zone.

It sounds like you're doing great with the exercise - keep up the good work!

[buddha belly]

Thanks for the response Meg.

Actually the exercise I am talking about is walking on a treadmill at 4 miles an hour and a 5.5 incline.

On the weekends my heart rate goes up to about 147 or even higher sometimes.

When I do the same thing after work it usually is in the 130's.

But when I do the same treadmill routine after one of the classes, my heart rate is like 122.

The work is the same, but the heart rate is different at all of those times.

Actually, I don't think my resting heart rate has gone down very much, just on the treadmill - I have had to increase the speed and imagine I will have to start increasing the incline more - cause I can't walk much faster I don't think. (I have only take my heart rate sometimes on the grocery blood pressure machine, and it may have improved slightly)

[Mel]

The only other factor that I can think of is caffeine. If you have a cup or two of coffee on the weekend morning then head to the gym, your heart rate may be a bit higher assuming you don't drink coffee all day long.

The level of dehydration after an exercise class shouldn't cause your heart rate to be lower, BUT it may affect whether the sensors in your monitor or the treadmill monitor (not 100% accurate, probably) are picking up a good signal. Severe dehydration causes an increase in heart rate because your heart tries frantically to pump a smaller volume of blood throughout the body to keep your tissues oxygenated.

Mel

[marbleflys]

I have HTN and was placed on meds to stabilize it. One of them is known to keep your resting HR lower....but as I've lost weight and been consistent w/ exercise, I'm weaning off the beta-blocker....and without the med, my resting HR runs quite high (102, 114, 125 BPM) until my body adjusts.... although my BP is normal....