Cardiovascular Step Test Practice Track.
Click here to download this track.
A few years ago I took an eight month break from playing music. I felt burned out and wanted to try a new career. So, for three quarters of a year I found myself in rainy Portland, Oregon. It literally rained evryday I was there. That was not good for getting a suntan but it did contribute to a lot of flooded rivers. Despite the dangers these rapidly flowing bodies of water pose, people still flock to the enjoyment of the river front. Each year, there is a dedicated team of River Rescue Technicians who stand guard on the banks to help keep people out of harms way. They are a mixture of open water lifeguard, EMT-Basic, and swift water swimmer.
The Portland Oregon AMR River Rescue Team.
I was lucky enough to be able to spend my time in Portland on the AMR River Rescue Team for one summer. However, it was no easy task to get on the team. Before the mandatory swim test, driving test, and EMT test, an applicant had to pass a prescreen physical. Part of that physical was a mandatory cardiovascuar step test. It was timed for five mintues and had strict rules.
The applicant had to step up and down on box that was appoximately 14 inches tall at a pace of 120 steps per minute. Because of my musical background, I immediately recognized the metronomic marking and knew I could easily write a track that fit that criteria. It would help me practice the test before I had perform it for real.
Some of the other rules were: No skipping steps. Failure to keep pace resulted in test failure. The test must last for five minutes with out a break.
I combined all of these into a DAW (Digital audio workstation) and designed a track that not only kept me on pace with 120 BPM, but also guided me through the test. I added the following:
• A count off.
• A robotic voice coaching on when to move “Up (L), Up (R), Down (L), Down (R)”…..
• A modulation up 1/2 step every time you reach 1 minute.
• And a lot of other odd goofy stuff.
I also may have added a slight increase in the tempo beyond 120 BPM, but I can’t find the original DAW file, so I don’t know for sure. Feel free to download this MP3 for your own use to help practice for your own step test. Good luck and hope this helps!
Copyright © 2015. C. Lougeay
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