Originally Posted by
Alias530
That's BS. Ignoring environmental factors (getting hit by a car) there are a million other factors. How you eat, how you exercise, genetics, etc.
Even if it's true, those who exercise have lower resting heart rates so if spending time in the red means my resting heart rate is in the 40's (it is), so be it. I'll spend 20-30 mins a week in the red, 6-10 hours moderate, and the rest of the time I'm humming along effortlessly.
Actually it's not BS. And you are correct about the rest of it. That's a big reason that those who exercise live longer. It's probably not quite that simple, and counting heartbeats may be a symptom, not a cause, but for sure a lower resting HR is a good thing. Low resting HR can also accompany the over-stressed heart syndrome, but it's certainly not diagnostic.
My personal experience: I've been training hard for 20 years, starting when I was 50. I was at my peak about 10 years ago, riding ego-busting group rides every Sunday, intervals midweek, the usual, and did experience "stutter." My doc fitted my with a Halter device, but it didn't show anything. I backed it off a bit and that went away. At 70, my HR doesn't drop as fast as it used to, but it's still decent. My resting HR is ~44, standing resting HR ~54, LT ~143. Don't know max, but it must be ~158. I'll see over 150 once in a while. Don't do many intervals anymore, but I still participate in fast group rides, just not as fast as they used to be - we've all gotten older. In endurance events I don't try to come anywhere near LT any more, though I can still take it into zone 5 on centuries and shorter. Eventually it'll be a cartoon: racing down the hallway with our walkers.