Hi, I'm a 57 year old male swimmer with atrial fibrillation taking rhythmol twice a day. (I'm in sinus rhythm most of the time.) I also do a 2,800 yard workout four times a week and aspire to NQT for the 50 and 100 freestyle.
I can't seem to get straight answers from my cardiologist. He says that it is fine to swim, but deeper questions are beyond him.
For example...
Is it OK to really press myself in my workouts?
(I'm out of breath at the end of some of my sets, but who isn't?)
Should I be thinking of long even swims rather than sprint swims?
(I do mile and two mile open water swims, but they're not very exciting for me.)
I'm fighting for breath sometimes during my sets. Is this just a matter of conditioning, or is there a direct link to the a fib?
I have the low side of normal blood pressure. Is there any relationship between blood pressure and whether people are better constituted to be sprinters vs. distance swimmers?
Any information from M.D.s and/or others who have heart conditions would be appreciated.
See you at nationals!
I am 63, developed A-Fib four years ago (it does run in my family), read everything I possibly could about it (including tons of stuff on teachingg hospital sites), and then went to our University Hospital (Iowa) and talked it over with the Director of the Electrophysiology Lab (including my lifestyle concerns - e.g., swimming!). We determined that the ablation procedure would make the most sense, and I had it done a few weeks later (six hour procedure, you are half awake, pretty painless, and actually kind of interesting to semi-observe). They did keep me over night and I was walking all around the hospital during the evening.
I have had no recurrences, do not expect any at this point, and I was biking within four days of the procedure and back in the water in a week (the main thing is the time needed for the incisions to heal).
I would do this again in a second!!
I am 63, developed A-Fib four years ago (it does run in my family), read everything I possibly could about it (including tons of stuff on teachingg hospital sites), and then went to our University Hospital (Iowa) and talked it over with the Director of the Electrophysiology Lab (including my lifestyle concerns - e.g., swimming!). We determined that the ablation procedure would make the most sense, and I had it done a few weeks later (six hour procedure, you are half awake, pretty painless, and actually kind of interesting to semi-observe). They did keep me over night and I was walking all around the hospital during the evening.
I have had no recurrences, do not expect any at this point, and I was biking within four days of the procedure and back in the water in a week (the main thing is the time needed for the incisions to heal).
I would do this again in a second!!
