Running out if gas on my bike

bikes

by Tracey_E - 2017-10-04 09:43:54

Do you know what kind of rate response you have? Most of them are dependent on motion to activate, which is great for most any sport ... except biking. If you run up the stairs or jog, does your rate go up? 

bike

by Peebs - 2017-10-04 09:48:30

I have an accellorameter

motion

by Tracey_E - 2017-10-04 13:55:05

accelerometers are triggered by motion. You can ask them about adjusting the sensitivity so it goes up more quickly but sometimes that makes it annoying other times because our rate jumps up needlessly, and with biking there's a limit to how effective it will be because the chest doesn't move much. 

Running out of gas on my bike. Part One

by four against six - 2017-10-14 00:05:06

Part One:

I am experiencing the exact same problem. I have had AV node ablation and am 100% paced with a CRT-D type unit from St. Jude. (a bi-ventricular pacemaker that includes a defibrillator). The sensor is an accelerometer. Have been a serious cyclist for forty five plus years. 

I did some research on pacemakers before recieving the implant and read that the accelerometer is not a good sensor for cyclists as it responds to upper boly movement to raise the heart rate to meet the workload and there is very little of this in cycling (at least, if you ride with good technique) 

I expressed this concern to my EP before implant and told him that I had read that a pacemaker equipped with a "closed loop" or "continuous loop" sensor is much better for a cyclist. (I beleive Boston Scientific makes these). 

He felt that it was imperative that I be implanted with a unit that also had a defibrillator and that the accelerometer was the only option for a sensor in this type of device.

Running out of gas

by Peebs - 2017-10-14 00:28:18

we just adjusted my pm to 165 max....55 min

quick response to demand with medium re bound.....works great on the bike.....pacing 90 to 140.....with slower drop...did some climbs today..had to massage my pm a couple of times to speed it up...overall very satisfied

However ..there are issue to be worked out when I’m sedentary. When I get up quickly from a chair or walking around...it produces a lot of pace

Running out of gas on my bike, Part Two

by four against six - 2017-10-14 00:30:35

Part Two:

When I became strong enough after the implant to resume exercise, I found that my worst fear had been realized; that being that  the sensor would not detect that it needed to raise the heart rate to meet the workload. In oher activities, especially those that involve moving and twisting the torso such as sit ups and torso raises and some exercizes with free weights, the sensor works better. 

On my bike, because upper body movement is minimal, the heart just chugs along at about seventy two beats per minute despite my every effort to increase the workload. I have a severely damaged heart and a low ejection fraction due to a large MI in 2006 but just a year ago I could manage about a twelve MPH cruising speed on the flat and could manage forty mile rides. Now I am reduced to about four MPH. I can barely get out of first gear.

Needless to say, I am heartbroken (no pun intended) by this and extremely frustrated. I see no other option but to give up the sport  I love and try to be satisfied with some other activity that will be more compatible with the unit that I have implanted.

Any comments or advice would be greatly appreciated.

Sincerely, four against six

Running out of gas on my bike

by Peebs - 2017-10-14 00:38:17

I’m lucky in so much as I have a strong heart with electrical problems so I have some options.

If needed my next move was an electric bike.....check them out...they are very cool....you still pedal and the motor gives you the extra power you need.....

Good Luck