Heart Rate Goal While Walking on Treadmill

I had a heart attack on September 8, 2009 and a stent put in on the following day. My cardio doctor told me I should be walking 30 mins per day. I just ordered a treadmill that has a built in heart rate monitor.

What should my heart rate be while walking? What is too high of a heart rate while walking.  I'll call my doctor and double check, I'm just wanting to get an idea.

Thanks for any/all feedback.

[Flycaster305]

It depends on what drugs you are taking.  If you are taking a beta blocker, you may find that it is difficult to get your heart rate above 100 bpm.  If not, I believe the formula is 220- your age X 80 %... maybe 85 %.  Do ask your doctor.

I looked at your profile.  Congratulations on the fantastic weight loss!  You deserve to be very happy about that, it will help your heart.  

[ed34]

Every country or heart foundation seems to have its own formula but in actual fact they are all just very rough guidelines. Cardiac rehab in the UK says 220 - your age is your maximum. If you are on beta blockers they say subtract a further 30. The trouble is, everyone is very different because our hearts are not the same in efficiency. For example, I have an EF of 70% and so it will find work easier than someone with an EF of 30%. This kind of thing is not in the equation. Athlete cyclists often have a resting heart rate of just 36bpm and can exceed over 200 when racing. I'm not suggesting you aim at this of course, I'm just showing the great range that is possible and so how can you possibly have a general rule covering everyone.
When I started rehab after my bypass, they calculated my rate max to be 140. However, it was impossible to keep the thing below 186. As soon as I  started simple exercises it would literally jump to 186 and to be honest it felt great, like I could handle a marathon. When I stopped exercising it would drop to 70 in under a minute. My surgeon argued this showed high fitness levels and rehab should not be concerned.
If I was in your shoes, I would just go to a level where I was having to breathe a bit harder, but not gasping and keep that as your normal level until your breathing feels very easy. This is when you can slightly increase the machine until you have to breathe a bit harder again. If you feel any chest discomfort, slow down because it's obviously too fast.  Listen to your body, it's the only way. If your heart rate is 180 and you are breathing ok, and have no discomforts then that's fine.

[Fae617]

Thanks for your answer and taking the time to look at my profile. I am very happy with my weight loss, because this time, I'm losing weight by eating healthy, not some fad diet again.  I will contact my cardio doctor and ask him Monday.

[Fae617]

Hi there and thank you for your response also. Again, I'll ask my cardio doctor Monday, but this gives me some idea and I don't feel totally lost now.  I'm only 2 months post HA and still have so many questions and fears. I am taking beta blockers along with a whole slew of other meds. Blah! I'm hoping that this treadmill I purchased will help me further on my goal of becoming healthy.