I forgot to put in my two cents on the heart rate discussion -- I prefer the perceived exertion method to the maximum/target heart rate routine, because like Sarah I don't feel like I'm working all that hard when I'm at my supposed target heart rate, and I routinely hit the 170s and I don't think I'm overdoing it. I can feel 180 the moment I hit it, because I get light-headed, and then I am overdoing it! So I keep an eye on what the bike says my heart rate is (when it's willing to tell me -- I have an awful time getting the machines to pick up on my pulse) and if it looks like it will get above the mid-170s I ease up a bit.
I think the maximum heart rate schedule isn't as linear as they like to make it look -- one year probably won't make a point of difference in my physiology, but maybe a couple of years that include menopause or some other major health change could make ten or twenty points' difference. (Or maybe we just have our long-lived grandmothers to thank for our stronger hearts!)
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