<p>Iloveagoodbrew - My “daytime” job is not exercise science related either but I have had the good fortune to train with some pro level trainers/coaches, both for weight training and cycling, at various times in my life and have always been involved in personal performance athletics. Like you, I have also been a voracious reader of lay and scientific literature related to exercise physiology, nutrition and training.</p>
<p>As to the metrics, at the age of 54, my measured max hr is 194, LT HR is 160 (VO2 3145 ml/min), AT HR is 167 (VO2 3386 ml/min) and Max VO2 HR is 190 (VO2 4450 ml/min). I will be undergoing power based testing in a few weeks and it will be interesting to see what my various wattage numbers are at the various thresholds are and compare my heart rates at the wattage thresholds with the HR thresholds previously measured. My immediate training goals are to push my LT and AT HR’s up higher towards my VO2 max HR while increasing my wattage at HR’s below my thresholds.</p>
<p>If you are interested in a great book on HR training, both general theory and application to specific sports, take a look at “Performance Heart rate Training” edited by Edmond Burke. It is a well spring of very interesting and practical science based and lab and field tested info.</p>
<p>I’m late to this thread. To the OP, I will tell you how I lost the 20 pounds I gained during freshman year. I did not “diet,” but I made sure I ate properly. That meant lots of fruits, vegetables, whole grains. I stayed away from sugar, snack foods, empty calories, fats. I liked to party, so I either drank white wine diluted with lots of diet 7-Up or scotch & water — in retrospect, I could have actually NOT had any alcohol! But the real key for me was EXERCISE. I ran several miles almost every day, used the weight machines, played intermural v’ball/b’ball/softball, walked stairs instead of using elevators, etc. It took awhile, but I dropped from size 14 to size 8. It wasn’t hard to keep it off once I got it off. I am still a size 8 30 years later (it just doesn’t look quite the same as it did back then!).</p>
<p>Just be aware of your diet, put exercise into your routine, and have patience. Oh, and I suggest throwing the scale out the window. I found that it was much easier to manage my weight after I stopped obsessing about the day-to-day fluctuations.</p>
<p>I want to reiterate the point that exercise alone is not a cure all. My husband has gained over 40 lbs since we were married. He works out over two hours a day, three days a week…hard, sweaty workouts. He can out-hike, and out climb me by far. But he’s also quite overweight. He pays no attention to what he eats. He won’t even do the little painless things like using low cal salad dressing and taking the skin off of chicken. He has big psychological issues with food (thanks to his parents) and because of that, he will be overweight no matter how much he exercises.</p>