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got this problem while wating in grid at tours and pros, when i should be alert and heart rate moving up i just feel like takeing a nap.   i am takeing 25 mg of atenolol for blood pressure which is a small dose,, but it does lower my heart rate and makes it hard to get it up,, on the tread mill when my heart rate goes up the blood pressure goes down, so i am thinking of not takeing the atenolol for the weekend,, seems like i read that 120 beats per minute is best for alertness,,,,,anyone else have this problem,, i am sure lehman will have a helpfull answer

Hi Larry, you crazy mother.....

Anyway-------here goes.....

I don't think an arbitrary reading of 120 beats per minute or bpm is relevent.  Some people depending on age, genetics, or cardio vascular condition will have widely divergent heart rates.

I recommend maybe

1)  Music that pumps you up before taking your run

2)  Talking smack to your fellow competitors

3)  Screaming loudly in grid

4)  Get really pissed off about something 

5) Try imagining yourself stopming on the skulls of your competition, and then getting really, really mad as the blood coming out of their head ruins your new driving shoes

6)  Read the Andy Hollis blog......oops sorry I mean the SCCA.com offical press release from the last national event......(any event will do)

 

How's that Larry ?

 

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Trying to get faster

I've been recording my heart rate at some events this year, that reminds me I need to pull it off and look at the data.

Off the top of my head, my heart rate before a run will be around 130, during a run it will peak at 175 or more

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I am Chris Hammond.
Going2Colorado.com

175 during an autocross run !

That's messed up......

If I was at 175 during a run I think I would collapse.

My resting rate when not in good shape about 55 beats per minute.  (sometimes I entertain myself for free, and stick my arm in those blood pressure thingies in pharmacies and supermarkets...for fun, and I try to simulate almost stopping my heart and totally relaxing with some shallow breathing, and seeing just how low I can get my blood pressure to go)

Anyway......the treadmill at the steepest incline at 3 mph or so will get my heart up to like 140 bpm......a full flat out 1 mile run----I wouldn't be above like 175--(not sure)--hard to believe that in 60 seconds you get your rate up to 175 !

PS---chris---you should only think of running events where a portable defribullater (sp ?) is on site-----but don't worry, in a pinch I think a lot of guys carry jumper cables in their trucks

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Trying to get faster

ok lehman your my personal trainer at toledo, this is probably a little before most of your time but i rember gordon cooper falling asleep during count down while sitting on top of a redstone rocket ( the mercury project)

i just put the blood pressure cuff in the clipper so we can do some readings,,, maybe lehman could take me for a ride just before my heat, i am sure that would wake me up

wow... you learn something new everyday...

I NEVER ever considered this kind of thing ..then again, I never consider my overal sense of " in shape" I'm in either...

I sometimes DO listen to agressive music to get me revved up for local evnts.. i'm amped enough at tours that it's not needed... finishing last at each event is excitement in itself.

 

 

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Brian Huber
06 Cobalt SS-SC (retired to DD Duty )
02 Z06 ( Whole new ball o' wax )
#??SS

For my age/weight my max heart rate is somewhere in the range of 185-190bpm.

Here's some of my data from the Atlanta National Tour.

http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/activity/5777976

Or from the second day of the doublecross

http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/activity/5777977

If I skate for 25 minutes my heart rate will get up and stay up

http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/activity/5869136

 

I don't know much, I'm just trying to collect data so I can see if I get in shape if my heart rate falls to a lower value when I'm racing, though I haven't been exercising enough between races.

I'm sure Hollis can probably weigh in on some of this topic.

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I am Chris Hammond.
Going2Colorado.com

Chris Hammond:

For my age/weight my max heart rate is somewhere in the range of 185-190bpm.

Here's some of my data from the Atlanta National Tour.

http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/activity/5777976

Or from the second day of the doublecross

http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/activity/5777977

If I skate for 25 minutes my heart rate will get up and stay up

http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/activity/5869136

 

I don't know much, I'm just trying to collect data so I can see if I get in shape if my heart rate falls to a lower value when I'm racing, though I haven't been exercising enough between races.

I'm sure Hollis can probably weigh in on some of this topic.

MHR is calculated in a number of ways, but is still MAX HEART RATE...like in sustained, physical activity, right at the point of negative. Getting above 170bpm in an autocross is pretty darn high...Your MHR might be in the 185 range, but that is for a very cardio intensive sport, like running. I guess adrenaline is a big component in increasing heart rate in autocross (I'm no doctor, and didn't stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night...), but that still seems high. I am a cyclist, soon to be 45, and only see 180+ at the end of longer, 8% plus climbs when I've been on the pedals...and, it takes a good time to recover and get back in the zone...I can't imagine getting over 120-130 autocrossing. Of course, MHR is a theoretical, so YMMV (like most things in life...).

I do know that autocross, at times, does have an effect on my mental state of being...but, that's another discussion...

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In slow, out fast.
In fast, out backwards.

it might not be your heart rate, it might just be lack of oxygen to the brain making you sleepy. i'm not kidding.

 i'm no doctor, either, but if you're nervous/excited, you take shallower breaths. this lack of oxygen makes you yawn/feel sleepy.

i, too, have taken a nap in grid. i'm a 29 year old female in very good health, and take no prescription drugs at all.

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Carrie
'89 STS2 CRX Si (Thanks Ian!)
'88 STS2 CRX Si (it's heeeeee---eeere!)
'93 ES MR2 in L1 on occaision (Thanks Jerry!)

Chris's data compared to 2 F1 drivers:  http://www.f1technical.net/articles/1125    

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/motorsport/formula_one/6980337.stm

 

Very fit guys and their numbers are up to 170-200 bpm .  I know it is not the same but the numbers are very high

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Tim R
#80 BS 2009 RX8

very interesting, but i don't think i am nervous it's more like a lethargic type of feeling,, but i will make sure to take deep breaths this weekend, thanks

scarrie:

it might not be your heart rate, it might just be lack of oxygen to the brain making you sleepy. i'm not kidding.

 i'm no doctor, either, but if you're nervous/excited, you take shallower breaths. this lack of oxygen makes you yawn/feel sleepy.

i, too, have taken a nap in grid. i'm a 29 year old female in very good health, and take no prescription drugs at all.

treinhar:

Chris's data compared to 2 F1 drivers:  http://www.f1technical.net/articles/1125    

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/motorsport/formula_one/6980337.stm

 

Very fit guys and their numbers are up to 170-200 bpm .  I know it is not the same but the numbers are very high

You're right, it isn't the same...pretty much apples to oranges, unless Chris is in world class cardio shape.

e.g. Lance Armstrong's MHR, at his peak, was in excess of 200...but his resting rate was 32!! Point being, extremely fit athletes have, and can train their way to, higher max rates and also be able to do more work at higher rates without going negative and generating lactic acid and all the other stuff that leads to hitting the wall. There's also that adrenaline thing...I wonder if those drivers sustained 190+ heart rates or if those were "situational spikes"

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In slow, out fast.
In fast, out backwards.

In Psychology there is something called the Yerkes Dodson law, which basically states that performance of a task increases with arousal, up to a point, and then performance of that task decreases:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yerkes-Dodson_law

More recent research has gone beyond the Yerkes Dodson law and found that the optimal level of arousal actually depends on the difficulty of a task.  If the task is more boring (or easy), arousal needs to be higher.  For example, when you are on a long trip at night you turn the radio up loud, open the window, etc. to increase arousal.

On more difficulty tasks, you need less arousal.  For example, if you are trying to follow specific directions once you reach your destination you will turn down the radio, roll up the window, etc. as you concentrate, read the directions as to where you need to turn, and try not to get lost.

On a difficult task (like a final exam) it's easy to get over aroused and mess up your performance.  This is so common in schools that it's given its own name... test anxiety.

I would hypothesize that autocross is a "difficult" task (car placement and concentration are a must), thus, drivers who learn to control their arousal will do better than drivers who are overhyped.  If your heart rate is 175bpm, you are likely over aroused, and your performance has likely suffered.

It always amazes me to see folks drinking energy drinks before their runs.  IMHO, they are likely going to become over aroused and make mistakes they wouldn't make if they were at a lower, more optimal, level.

Jonathan Roberts (giving a Psych final as I type)

mwood:

You're right, it isn't the same...pretty much apples to oranges, unless Chris is in world class cardio shape.

e.g. Lance Armstrong's MHR, at his peak, was in excess of 200...but his resting rate was 32!! Point being, extremely fit athletes have, and can train their way to, higher max rates and also be able to do more work at higher rates without going negative and generating lactic acid and all the other stuff that leads to hitting the wall. There's also that adrenaline thing...I wonder if those drivers sustained 190+ heart rates or if those were "situational spikes"

 

I can’t find the research data right now because it is from a few years back.  But one of the sports medicine research groups did an abbreviated study of racecar drivers (I believe Indy and F1). Their data showed sustained heart rates above 160 for 1-2 hour periods.  I always found that info fascinating.  So in context to our sport I believe an adrenaline driven peak of 170-180 makes sense during a 50 sec run at your personal limits.  Biological variation, physical attributes, and personality traits will have large affects on the top end.

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Tim R
#80 BS 2009 RX8

jorober5:

...the Yerkes Dodson law, which basically states that performance of a task increases with arousal, up to a point...

...drivers who learn to control their arousal will do better...

 

Mr. Lehman?  I await your riposte with baited breath...

 

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Charlie Thompson
'04 JCW Cooper [STX]
NER Cannon Fodder

mwood:

You're right, it isn't the same...pretty much apples to oranges, unless Chris is in world class cardio shape.

Anyone who has ever met me knows this is not the case :)

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I am Chris Hammond.
Going2Colorado.com

Larry,

A redstone rocket, and Gordon Cooper............hell.......I think you remember Orville and Wilbur.

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Trying to get faster

170 bpm or 160 bpm after an autoxrun

Give me a break-----or your going to give yourself a heartattack.

I don't know about you guys but it takes me like 5 seconds after I come off the course to be relatively calm.  However I do think there is an advantage to be "on edge" or lets say aroused.

 

PS-----now of course if one is too aroused there is the danger of grabbing the wrong stick, and if trying to slam the wrong stick into gear-----tendons could possibly rupture-----causing pain, disfigurement.  However, fear not if they could repair John Wayne Bobbit (sp ?)--------fixing your stick should be easy.

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Trying to get faster

well no but my girlfriends great grandpa who lived in north grove indiana, always told the story about a traveling preacher coming through town with two brattie kids in tow named orville and wilbur wright

David Lehman:

Larry,

A redstone rocket, and Gordon Cooper............hell.......I think you remember Orville and Wilbur.