MegaSack DRAW - This year's winner is user - rgwb
We will be in touch
To cut a long story short, I had a big heart attack whilst out cycling in October 2019 (complete blockage of the LAD) which damaged my heart. I had a second, less serious, heart attack in March 2020 and a third in November 2020 and I was back in hospital in January 2021 with chest pain and high troponin although this wasn't classed as another heart attack (the previous 3 had all resulted in stenting, but this time there was nothing left to stent). There are some issues with possible mis-readings of angioplasty images leading to subsequent MIs, but that doesn't actually change anything.
Throughout this I've kept trying to get back on my bike but ending up back at square one. However, since leaving hospital in January of this year I've been pain (and heart attack) free and since March I've managed to get in a fair amount of cycling (various consultants and cardiac rehab. nurses have been fine with this). I'm now regularly doing 2+ hour rides with some climbing and getting properly puffed (and feeling much better for it).
I had an echocardiogram about a month ago and have just received the copy of the consultant's letter sent to my GP; as usual it's full of bobbins I don't understand but mentions that I [still] have moderate LVSD; apparently this stands for Left Ventricular Systolic Dysfunction.
Perhaps it wasn't clever to Google LVSD to find out what it is, but I did and consequently came across a statement that LVSD can lead to thickening of walls and enlarging of the left ventricle as a result of it struggling to compensate for its impaired ability to pump, resulting in eventual tiring and heart failure (effectively your heart wears out).
Everything I've been told and read about heart attack recovery has highlighted the importance of exercise for heart health (I've done 3 cardiac rehab. groups), nobody has warned me against overdoing it (beyond pacing myself) but I'm now a bit concerned about over working an impaired heart, tiring it and hastening heart failure. My main reason for getting back into cycling (beyond enjoying it) is to try and improve my long term prospects.
I've been in 3 different hospitals and seen a multitude of consultants, most of whom just seem keen to discharge me with minimal follow up (3 of my 4 admissions have been during Covid lockdowns) so I don't have a go to consultant for concerns. I do have a face to face appointment in November but in the meantime should I still be pushing the exercise? I don't want to be making things worse.
On the plus side, as I've mentioned, I've been pain and trouble free since January and feel much better because of the exercise. According to the letter my right ventricle is fine.
Sorry for the length of the post, I didn't cut my long story all that much shorter after all!
Not my field but to me exercising but keeping it below the red in the face / gasping for air /heart rate thru the roof level seems sensible IE bimble along for hours and take it easy on climbs
Perhaps it wasn’t clever to Google LVSD to find out what it is, but I did and consequently came across a statement that LVSD can lead to thickening of walls and enlarging of the left ventricle as a result of it struggling to compensate for its impaired ability to pump, resulting in eventual tiring and heart failure (effectively your heart wears out).
That's not really correct. In very general terms, your cardiac output might be reduced compared to others, but if you can maintain the efficiency of the muscles / tissues in your body, then that impaired blood pumping is less of an issue. So more exercise is generally a good thing and you can't wear your heart out by exercising.
...which is what you've been discovering:
On the plus side, as I’ve mentioned, I’ve been pain and trouble free since January and feel much better because of the exercise. According to the letter my right ventricle is fine.
Trust your body and how it feels. And also trust the advice that's been given to you by health professionals (E.g. the rehab nurses), not the stuff you've cobbled together from Dr Google. I understand it's easier said than done, mind.
I can't really give more advice than that without knowing a whole bunch of specifics. If you have questions, you need to ask them of your cardiologist. Speak to the secretary for the Dr who wrote to you. Ask them for an opportunity to speak with the doc at some point.
Thanks TJ, yes I think taking things steady is the way to go, the cardiac rehab. teams seemed more concerned with duration than intensity anyway.
@Superficial thank you for taking the time to respond, I appreciate it and it's very reassuring.
I think that logically I should have realised that, if exercising might harm my heart, someone would have mentioned it and they certainly wouldn't have been promoting it. I suspect that I just got a bit spooked with all the long words.
I apparently have an ejection fraction of 42%, which I think is pretty much the same as it was the day after the first heart attack. I'd hoped that with all the medication and exercise it would have improved a bit, but then I've had 2 more heart attacks since then, so perhaps it's not too bad.
Anyway, thank you both again. I shall plod on and keep things sensible!