Expectations

[Sean L]

I am new to this forum and have recently been diagnosed with bicuspid aortic valve that has moderate leaking. Will see my cardiologist this friday.

It appears a lot of people with this surgery are still into running which makes me feel very good. However, I am depressed that it appears I won't be able to do martial arts like I did before.

I have a question about running intensity: Are you able to run at the same pace as you did prior to the surgery?

I run currently and want to know what to expect. With enough time and recuperation, will I be able to run at the same pace prior to the surgery or am I being unrealistic?

 

[hensylee]

in the search button above, look up Mark Wagner and MarkU. Mark Wagner ran all the way across the country - west to east and MarkU participates in those run, swim, bike races. We have a bunch of others who do the same thing, but both Marks come to mind first. You will do just fine.

Welcome to VR.

Blessins........

 

[Mary]

Here's a thread about martial arts after replacement
http://www.valvereplacement.com/forums/showthread.php?t=12495

Here's a thread that Mitral Man ran to track his post-op progress

http://www.valvereplacement.com/forums/showthread.php?t=16322

I don't know if there has been a consensus of opinion from our runners about whether you can run faster after replacement, but they all seem to be trying their best to find out!

 

[BillCobit]

I don't know if there has been a consensus of opinion from our runners about whether you can run faster after replacement, but they all seem to be trying their best to find out!

Results seem to be mixed - some are performing impressively (Stormrev, Mntbiker, Kodi and Adam T come immediately to mind), while others perform more modestly (like me). Others have pointed out that it's psychologically healthy to view post-op life as a second chance not to be compared with the old heart-healthy days. If you realize your former performance, then great; if not, take satisfaction from enjoying the activities you love to the best of your abilities. I can't do anything fast now - so instead I go longer than I ever could have imagined 10 years ago - and derive my satisfaction from that. Mary is right - we are all trying our best to see what we are capable of. At the end of the day, satsifaction comes from knowing you've done your best with the capabilities and circumstances you have.

Good luck to you!

 

[MikeHeim]

I have not yet been able to get back to my old running performance. The best side-by-side comparison of performance is with a half-marathon. My last time prior to surgery was a 1:44. At 13 months post-op, I was able to run a 1:59. Unfortunately, I messed up my back pretty bad and was told not to run for a few months, so I've been unable to continue my recovery. I'm only at 18 months, but other people have said that recovery roughly follows this timeline:

First Year - Resume running, don't worry about times and try not to be discouraged by setbacks.
Second Year - Begin training as you did pre-surgery and basically act as if you were absolutely starting from square one.
Third Year - Full recovery.

My understanding is that there is no reason you shouldn't be able to get into as good of physical condition as you were before surgery.

 

[Cooker]

I think I can run as fast as before I had OHS. I will let you know the next time I have to jump out a window and start running

 

[SumoRunner]

I never really tried to get back to pre-surgery condition and of course now I'm too old to make significant improvements. I'm closing in on 60 so I'll never return to 40ish times no matter what I do.

16 years ago there were no sites such as this one and I had no one to turn to for a query like this. I was totally alone as a post AVR runner "pioneer", so I suppose it's understandable that I was very tentative. Pre-surgery my 5k time was 20 to 21 min. but afterwards I never ran faster than 29. I did go to a few all-comers track meets a couple years post-surgery to see what kind of a mile I might do. I think my best was about 7:20 whereas I used to run close to 6:00.

Mostly what I avoided was interval training and hill repeats, the real high intensity running that used to get me in race shape. I just ran a very casual, easy pace on all runs and only entered races for social reasons.

 

[kodi]

I think a lot depends on your age and level of fitness before surgery and how your recovery goes afterwards. I'm 8 months out of surgery and altho my times are coming down, they are still quite away from pre-surgery. Last weekend I ran a 1/2 marathon (13.1 miles all downhill) in a time of 2:11:03. Last year, pre-surgery and really having problems running my time was 2:02.
Next year I hope to get back to under 2:00.

Reread Bill Cobits post. He says a lot in those few lines. It's really a matter of living and being happy you are.

 

[SteveHWms]

I ride a mountain bike, and I can ride further and faster than I could prior to AVR OHS. I rode about 15 miles over hilly terrain yesterday in 92 degree heat. I don't think I could have done that before. When I think about what I would be like now if I had not had that surgery... well it's hard to have a bad day now.

 

[Philip B]

Going Fast

Going Fast

As others have noted in their replies to your post, how fast you can expect to go post-surgery really depends upon you. Recovery and rehab is a very individual thing and depends upon a lot of indivudial elements like pre-op physical condition as well as psychological elements related to your mental response to surgery.

I'll be eleven weeks post-op this Wednesday and I'm back doing every activity I did before surgery. I'm not a runner, but I'm a mountain biker and golfer. I'm back to playing golf as intensly and as poorly as I did post-op and on the fast track to be close to the same level with my mountain biking. I'll never be great at either activity, but I wasn't great before surgery.

It makes sense for anyone, regardless of whether or not he/she has had OHS, to set realistic training goals for the activities one wants to engage in and pursue those goals. Is it realistic for you to run as fast as you could before OHS? If you want to and are committed to do the necessary training, why not give it a shot?

For what it's worth, a Mexican fishing guide in La Paz once told me, "When your life finally flashes before your eyes you'll only have a moment to regret the things you didn't try."

-Philip

 

[epstns]

. . . At the end of the day, satsifaction comes from knowing you've done your best with the capabilities and circumstances you have.

Bill - You have said it all, right here! This one statement even applies to guys like me, still some unknown distance from VR surgery and watching our times slow. Thank you for the "attitude adjustment!"

 

[67walkon]

Sean, it is hard to know. The tech who did my last echo is a serious, macho road bike rider. I, on the other hand, am a 57 year old semi serious and not very macho road bike rider. The tech guy rides at about 25 mph when he's cooking and I, until my little valve issue, could ride at maybe 18 or 19 mph when I'm "cooking". Of course, I'm probably 25 years older.

His comment was that I would probably be really faster when they replace my valve. When your aortic valve gets down to 1 cm, I guess the blood flow isn't all that great.

I expect to be at least as fast on the bike once I recover. Maybe faster, because the docs won't let me train hard now. My surgery is on July 6, and if everything turns out okay, I plan to ride the bike around 4,000 miles next year and to do the MS 150 ride (150 miles over 2 days), and the Bicycle Ride Across Georgia, which is about 500 miles over 7 days. And maybe a 100 mile ride somewhere in the mix.

From what they tell me, if everything goes well, fitness should be better than it has been!

Just for it!

John