Exercise after going of Metoprolol

[chaconne]

I just had a 4 month post-AVR check up with my cardio. He said I would probably be able to go of Metoprolol after 6-8 months. I take 12.5 mg in the morning and evening, which is a small-ish dose. I notice that when I accidentally miss a morning dose, my HR is 10-20 BPM higher when I run. When I go off the drug, will I have to re-adjust to the new HR and get in shape all over again? I'd be interested to hear from anyone on a training regimen who went off Metoprolol.

 

[TheGymGuy]

I need to bookmark this topic as this would be of great interest to me once I am done with Surgery and recovering and on/off Metropol.

 

[tprice54]

Well, there is no simple answer, BUT, I'll try! The BB keeps your HR low, so no matter what, that is the limiting factor in your exercise. Once you are weaned off them over several days, it will take a bit longer to get used to not having them. Your HR will go up, no doubt. But, you will be able to get more into your HR zone, and your HR will no longer be a limiting factor. So, you will atually be getting in BETTER shape!
Hope this helps!

 

[epstns]

Tom - I hope you're right for all of us. My metoprolol dosage has been cut in half since surgery (from 100 mg/day to 50). Since the reduction I have noticed that my heart rate elevates higher and sooner than it used to, and I'm having a rough time getting back to pre-surgical exercise levels. When I go from walking at 4.2 mph to jogging at 5.5 mph, my heart rate jumps from around 125 bpm to about 160. Before surgery when I jogged, it would stay in the 150's. This is all complicated by the presence of my pacemaker, which is programmed for a range of 60-150 bpm. When my rate goes over 150, I'm self-pacing. (Won't know what percentage of time I'm using the pacer until next interrogation. We adjusted it last visit.) The BB sure makes it tough to get back where I was, so I've been just power-walking and riding the Airdyne bike.

 

[johnp]

I was on torpol for years, and i would say my HR was about 10 bpm slower than without. I learned to live with it, maybe even tolerate it better, and in time I was almost able to get my HR up to pre-med levels if I really pushed myself. Not so sure that was a good thing.

Now, after MVR surgery, I am on toprol and an antiarrhythmic called flecainide. My HR is now a good 20 bpm slower at rest and exercise. I plod along and most everyone passes me on the running path, I used to be the one passing everyone else. But beyond this, I feel great.

I've worn a HR monitor for years and I am very much in tune with my running, breathing rate and heart rate.

I doubt you will need to "get back into shape," but I would work it slow and get used to the feeling post meds. I would guess you will feel much better and have much more stamina.

 

[tprice54]

Steve, I would make an appt. on your pacer and see what can be done. There are units that can accomodate higher rates for exercise. We have had quite a bit of discussion on this very thing over at cardiac athletes....
A higher heart rate during exercise is not necessarily a bad thing, depending on your heart issues. It will not adversely affect your valve.

 

[JeffF]

I am on 50 mg and I am about to start working out again @ 3 months post-op. What what would be the danger in staying on the Metoprolol forever?

 

[tprice54]

Jeff, no danger whatsoever. Some people need BB's forever due to rhythm issues, and that's fine. It would not be my drug of choice just for BP issues. A BB chemically limits your HR. Thus, any strenuous exercise is usually slower and more exhausting. BUT, you still can exercise, and it should not stop you, just your results will be different on the BB's.

 

[Mentu]

By five months, Metoprolol was driving my resting heart rate into the low 50s and on the worst days in to the upper 40s. This left me feeling like a slug so my cardio agreed that I could stop taking it. I found that, initially, my heart rate rose into the 80s but since then it has settled at 70 for now. Beta blockers do work but I have felt much better after leaving them behind.

Larry

 

[epstns]

Tom - I really don't worry that my HR goes up to the 160's when I run. While my pacer is set for a range of 60-150 BPM, I am not 100% paced any more. I presume that under load, if my heart exceeds the 150 BPM pacer "limit" that I must be naturally pacing, and that's OK. I just don't feel that I have the same level of conditioning at that rate versus pre-op. I imagine that I could work my way back into shape, except that my knees complain so much. If I run for a few minutes today, I'll be in pain tomorrow. Probably not worth it, so I'm looking for other ways to crank up my routine.

Of course, on these first few nice days, when I see all the runners outside, I wish I could join them. Just not in the cards any more, I guess.

 

[normofthenorth]

I think I was on the same dose of Metoprolol for 3 months post-op, and I came off just as my Cardio Rehab class was starting. I was mostly walking before and after then, started jogging later -- and doing much more strenuous things like (2-on-2!) competitive beach volleyball MUCH later. In that sequence, I really didn't notice a big difference when I dropped the BB, but maybe that was because I was still only walking, not running.

AFAICT, I've returned to my (several years) pre-op CV fitness levels -- which is probably a good trick for somebody approaching his 67th birthday, too!

 

[chaconne]

Thanks everyone!

The comments are helpful. I rode some steep hills on my way to work today and did good. I still am slower than pre-AVR. This might be a combination of my own caution, the BB, being out of shape, and my heart still re-adjusting to the new valve. The encouraging thing is that every week or two, I notice that I can go faster and farther on the bike and running.

I accidentally skipped a night dose of the BB earlier this week because the little half-pill stayed in the container. I didn't seem to notice much difference in my HR as a result.

 

[tprice54]

Good, just keep at it! One thing I noticed was my improvement was not linear at all. It would take jumps, then level off for weeks, then see a jump again overnight....

 

[jordan]

I was on 150 mg metoporol when I left the hospital (75 morning and evening). After my last cardio check-up, they ordered my scripts and when I picked them up I thought there was a mistake. My cardio cut my dose in half to just 75 mg in the morning without telling me. Last week, my resting heart rate was in the low- to mid-40s. Right now, sitting in my office at work, its 50 bpm. I'm going to push to have my cardio end my metoporol prescription next week when I have an appointment. I want to be off of it since it is a limiting factor in me improving in running and cycling.

Although, I won at my regular poker game last weekend. Everyone joked that it was because I was on performance enhancing drugs. They claimed the metoporol was calming me so well that I could bluff without a tell.

I'm interested in seeing what the real impact is of metoporol in my running/cycling. I'm already leaner now (12 weeks post-surgery) than I was at the end of my racing season pre-surgery. I equate that to a heart that is actually moving blood properly.

 

[bocco]

I'm on metoprolol myself and sure hope to get off of it as soon as possible. I would like to be back to light lifting and cardio after 8 weeks. We'll see how that goes. The other impression I'm getting about metoprolol is that it won't be doing my sex life any good either.

 

[SumoRunner]

I'm on metoprolol myself and sure hope to get off of it as soon as possible. I would like to be back to light lifting and cardio after 8 weeks. We'll see how that goes. The other impression I'm getting about metoprolol is that it won't be doing my sex life any good either.

Never understood that one. I've been on it since 1987 and it hasn't hindered mine a bit.

 

[bocco]

Never understood that one. I've been on it since 1987 and it hasn't hindered mine a bit.

I was on Atenolol at one point and the pharmacist warned about it causing ED even in the small dose I was taking. I never had any problem with it. Funny how BBs seem to effect different people differently.