Looking for cardiac athletes. I belong to a couple online groups of athletes who all have had some sort of heart surgery. Bypass, stent, pacemaker, valve replacement, or aneurysm. They are mostly runners, but many cycle, ski, climb mountains, play team sports, etc. We wrote a book about our experiences. I'm wondering if anyone knows of any swimmers who have come back to competition after heart surgery.
www.amazon.com/.../1500159638
I had a mechanical aortic valve replacement 25 years ago and continued to do road and track races and shot put. I only recently got more serious about swimming and wonder whether there are any others.
... ended up at a local Ohio State University Urgent Care and then to the emergency room within 25 minutes. Triple bypass surgery the next day ... I am much slower than before my Heart Incident ... I am facing aging, of course. But, my heart is now clear from major blockages ... I'm just wondering if I can ever get back to where I was before my Heart Incident.
Skip, here are two news reports on athletes who did OK after heart-valve replacement:
- www.nba.com/.../five-years-open-heart-surgery-thankful-20170109
- www.nbcnews.com/.../
(A few years after surgery, this swimmer finished his college career with a 50-yard free of :21.59 and a 47.72 in 100 free).
And, getting closer to home, I know a 65+ swimmer who scored several top-ten times within a year of his valve-replacement surgery. Mind you, he’s been fast all his life, but he swam events that are, literally, heartbreakers; he’s recovered both speed and endurance. His workouts include a 1650 every Monday and sets of 10 pull-ups all the time: he’s working strength and endurance (Skip, you suggest you’re stuck on a plateau; have you tried short speed swims that reflect the principle that, "if you want to swim fast,you have to swim fast," as a complement to the longer swims you describe? Before you try that, please do study how you can do that safely, without another trip to the ER.).
You mentioned age in addition to medical issues. In the past four years, my time in the SCM 50 back has slowed by 2.6 seconds. Though I spent a lot of time visiting doctors during those years, some of this decline was likely the result of age. Consider the case of one of my local age-group competitors, who four years ago was finishing within a few tenths of a second of me in theSCM 50 back. Last year, his time in SCM 50 back also had slowed, and he finished within :00.01 of my time. In other words, nearly all of us in the 65+ age groups are getting slower.
One of the reasons we’re slower is we’re losing “heart power.” Before my surgery, I ran 5-Ks in the mid- to high-20-minute range, with an average pulse of 155 to 165. Today, I’ve plateaued over 30 minutes, with an average pulse in the 130s or 140s. Over many years, there’s been a strong correlation between my running times and my pulse: when my heart is stronger, I run and swim faster. My lower level of “heart power” doesn’t have much impact on my 50 back, but it’s killed my 100 back, and my 200 back has gone from a race to a journey. About 20 years ago, I was in such poor shape, I was having trouble running a full half mile without stopping; it took me more than seven years to rebuild my fitness to the point where I could swim fast, and I think that’s what it’ll take to once again swim a fast 200. Hope that helps...
... ended up at a local Ohio State University Urgent Care and then to the emergency room within 25 minutes. Triple bypass surgery the next day ... I am much slower than before my Heart Incident ... I am facing aging, of course. But, my heart is now clear from major blockages ... I'm just wondering if I can ever get back to where I was before my Heart Incident.
Skip, here are two news reports on athletes who did OK after heart-valve replacement:
- www.nba.com/.../five-years-open-heart-surgery-thankful-20170109
- www.nbcnews.com/.../
(A few years after surgery, this swimmer finished his college career with a 50-yard free of :21.59 and a 47.72 in 100 free).
And, getting closer to home, I know a 65+ swimmer who scored several top-ten times within a year of his valve-replacement surgery. Mind you, he’s been fast all his life, but he swam events that are, literally, heartbreakers; he’s recovered both speed and endurance. His workouts include a 1650 every Monday and sets of 10 pull-ups all the time: he’s working strength and endurance (Skip, you suggest you’re stuck on a plateau; have you tried short speed swims that reflect the principle that, "if you want to swim fast,you have to swim fast," as a complement to the longer swims you describe? Before you try that, please do study how you can do that safely, without another trip to the ER.).
You mentioned age in addition to medical issues. In the past four years, my time in the SCM 50 back has slowed by 2.6 seconds. Though I spent a lot of time visiting doctors during those years, some of this decline was likely the result of age. Consider the case of one of my local age-group competitors, who four years ago was finishing within a few tenths of a second of me in theSCM 50 back. Last year, his time in SCM 50 back also had slowed, and he finished within :00.01 of my time. In other words, nearly all of us in the 65+ age groups are getting slower.
One of the reasons we’re slower is we’re losing “heart power.” Before my surgery, I ran 5-Ks in the mid- to high-20-minute range, with an average pulse of 155 to 165. Today, I’ve plateaued over 30 minutes, with an average pulse in the 130s or 140s. Over many years, there’s been a strong correlation between my running times and my pulse: when my heart is stronger, I run and swim faster. My lower level of “heart power” doesn’t have much impact on my 50 back, but it’s killed my 100 back, and my 200 back has gone from a race to a journey. About 20 years ago, I was in such poor shape, I was having trouble running a full half mile without stopping; it took me more than seven years to rebuild my fitness to the point where I could swim fast, and I think that’s what it’ll take to once again swim a fast 200. Hope that helps...
