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Yep - there's tons of data that heart surgery can have long term effects on a number of hormonal systems. There *isn't* a lot of clear data about what specific effects to expect. Depression seems to be relatively common, as is various types of ED/libido supression. For me, I was fine for...

Yep - the powder I use doesn't have any sugar. The only downside is that it has calcium which tends to block magnesium/zinc uptake. Its all a bit of a balancing act, and I've never run across clear rules for how to to optimize all of those things. Best I can do is to take my magnesium...

Thank you for this suggestion. A powdered electrolyte solution is helping a great deal w/ the pounding heartbeats.

Two more minor things post surgery that were unexpected: - After 3 days of hibiclens and whatever they used in the OR, whatever repopulated my skin flora and fauna was resistant to my old deodorant. I'd put it on, then 2 hours later I'd smell foul like I do on the odd occasion that I forget...

4 months out, and this is probably the worst part of the otherwise successful outcome. Pretty much daily pain from a spot high up between my shoulder blades. Massage isn't helping, and am going to try to get xrays in Jan. It really feels like somehow there's a big tear-away on the spinal...

They took me in a pre-op room to get shaved, hook up some IVs, etc. I sort of remember this because of a conversation about my tattoos. They brought my wife back and we talked a bit before hey then asked her to go back out into the waiting room (very little of which I remember), before they...

Yes - they went over that a lot as they talked about pros/cons. Anecdotally, it's interesting to hear how much better informed I was re: my choices that some friends who've had similar surgeries at lesser hospitals. I'm learning that a lot of people were told "this is what we're doing" <clap on...

Hugely comforting - thank you. Also very helpful: "Agreed. The benefits of exercise are numerous- reducing the odds of developing dementia is one of them. Other benefits are reducing the risk of heart disease, reducing the risk of developing cancer, increasing insulin sensitivity, decreasing...

That's it in a nutshell. It's weird to see my HR approaching the theoretical max when I don't feel uncomfortable at all. re: elliptical - bad hip, bad knee, so the elliptical is just about the best I can do until our local pool opens up again. I don't have specific fitness goals, although...

Fair points all the way through, @pellicle . Cheers and best wishes for a happy and safe holiday season.

@Chuck C Thank you - very useful as always. " My resting HR is now a little higher, since surgery, but has come down significantly from where it was in the months immediately after surgery. " Got it - I'm really only 4 months out, so I'm guessing that my resting HR is still a little high...

Fair point - I conflated the two. ".... compliance is easy given the possible adverse affects of noncompliance ...." Humans being humans, this statement is unfortunately not so helpful in a gigantic variety of contexts. :)

@pellicle For clarity's sake, I'm not on warfarin, so I'm not even tracking my range. "true, but as we've also discussed here that's not impossible and if its the case you know you're going to have these "serious of major invasive surgeries" then you should steer away from warfarin ... call...

There's some significant data indicating that specific SSRI's, SNRI's and some hormonal contraceptives don't play nice with warfarin. (I can post links, but honestly, 30 seconds of googling will get you there.) These can be absolute dealbreakers for some patients. No matter how much we say it...

Any more comments on the value of tracking HRV vs. just HR while you're training? Been doing the elliptical at the gym, and we have one on the way for home. Resting HR between 75-90. While at the gym, if I try to keep the rate at 110 (70% of recommended max for my age), I'm not even breaking...

A couple of minor notes: - re-do's on tissue valves are often TAVR, and based on all other factors with my heart health, my surgeon indicated it was "very likely" that my replacement would be TAVR - I'm at 90 days out and am doing pushups quite comfortably. - YMMV re: 6 months for a sternum...

Alternate opinion here. 56, very active, etc. I went tissue because I'm due for a full shoulder replacement next year, and a very likely hip replacement in the next few. While not impossible, these trickier surgeries and recoveries on warfarin than without. All of the reasons that the...

Not to make light of things, but this is also good advice for job interviews.

Go for it. Candidly, it's easier for me to regulate my heart rate into the desired cardio rehab zone w/ a bag workout than on an elliptical trainer/rower.

I'm right around 90 days post-surgery (valve replacement). I've worked the heavy bag a dozen times in the last few weeks w/ no perceived ill effect. I would go light the first time to see if your sternum feels any discomfort. This might serve as an indicator of how quickly/slowly it's...