heart rate post avr and cycling

[Jas0n]

i havent been around too much lately, but i always like to start any post by thanking everyone for the tremendous amount of information they lend to fellow vr.com members. im 9 months post avr right now and i have to say, aside from a scar - and the fact that im terribly out of shape - i sometimes forget that i went through ohs. in the last week, the weather has warmed and i decided to buy a road bike; up until now, i was riding mtn only as often as the weather allowed. i havent been training, as i havent had the desire, nor the need, to get out when the weather wasnt perfect. pre avr, i noticed that i always rode at a much higher hr than other riders, regardless of my form. we figured this was due to my leaky valve. however, as i have tracked my hr over the last few days, i still spend a majority of my ride above 175 bhp, with significant time spent above 180bhp, and at times i even saw 190bhp (though i wasnt pushing myself 100%, i think i could have seen higher heart rates). my previous max hr was 218, and i have always wondered whether that would change post avr. do you guys think this is anything to worry about? my cardio has not placed any limitations on me, and i will of course consult with him, but in your experience. do higher heart rates have an adverse effect on valve life? as an aside, i have been getting migraines quite often since my ohs. i notice that i almost always get them after hard exercise. has anyone else experienced this? any suggestions. i took excedrine before my ride today, and i didnt get a migraine. though i did get one immediately after yesterday morning's ride. btw, i take 50mg toprol xl, 5 mg lisinopril and 1 baby aspririn daily (though i shamefully admit that i havent been very good about remembering my meds lately. i know thats terrible, but i hate taking them and i cant explain why. i suppose i want to think that im fine, but ill try to get better about that, especially as i start riding harder and harder.)

to report some good news: even though i have ZERO form right now, i've been feeling pretty decent on the bike, all things considered. i managed to finish an A ride with the local cycling club today, after getting dropped from my usual group ride 2 weeks ago, 40 minutes in. i dont think i've ever been so tired after 40 miles!

thanks. enjoy the road!

 

[Steph]

Million Dollor Question

Million Dollor Question

do higher heart rates have an adverse effect on valve life?

Hi JasOn, Great to see you posting again. I am glad that you are feeling well. I can not help with any of your questions, but please let us know what you find out. I am still in the waiting room and have many question regarding my high heart rate now and post op.

Take care,

Steph

 

[tprice54]

HR and valves

HR and valves

Jas0n, as a marathoner, I discussed HR and valve type with my surgeon before picking a valve, not that it was my sole factor, but something I definitely wanted to include in my decision. He could not find any studies as to HR, atheltic efforts, and valve longevity. Taking the Toprol should limit your max HR effort, so you're doing really good on 50mg.!
If you want, see if the cardio will lower or stop the Toprol...it might get you back to preop HR. I'm 4 months post op on 75 mg. and can't wait for next month's cardio appt. to see if I can get off the Toprol....

 

[Jas0n]

i too am hoping to be off meds completely for my next appt. we only decided to keep up the meds since my last visit (novemeber, 3 months out) for a little extra padding. i was always taking 50mg of toprol though?

 

[Jas0n]

i have a 23mm bovine valve in the aortic position. percisely this type of diverging opinions is what can at times lead one to second guess the information they have been given directly. nevertheless, my doc and surgeo, to very prominent docs whom i respect immensly, havent placed any restrictions on me (and they know my history as a cyclist and as an impatient type a personality) so im not too worried.

 

[67walkon]

Jason, you might have to do some research on your own. Everyone's max HR varies tremendously. The meds you are taking probably lower yours.

I'm a 57 year old road biker, used to run a lot and always played basketball. My AV is going to be replaced fairly soon, but is still working at 1cm.

I can ride all day long at 18 to 20 mph and never exceed 140 bpm. The highest I've seen it on the bike is 147, but I'm a little afraid to push myself since I know about the valve issue. I started monitoring when they told me about the valve, so I don't know my HR was before. However, my resting HR has always been in the mid to even low 40's, so it makes sense my max HR might be lower.

I don't think "using" the valve will wear it out. The issue is they become calcified and I can't see how that would be affected by use, but ask your doctor.

An option might be to have a stress test to figure out what your max really is now and then train off that.

I wouldn't worry about it, sounds like you're doing great.

 

[Jas0n]

thanks for the replies guys and gals. i did do a stress test 3 months out at my last visit. pre avr, when my leaky valve was first diagnose, i finished the test (21 minutes on this particular machine) with room to go further at only 198bpm. this time around - post avr - i only managed to last 19 minutes at 178bpm, though i honestly think i could have gone a bit longer; my lack of fitness, i believe, was really at play and not a substantial difference in cardiac performance, though i may be mistaken. the second time around i was more fatigued than anything else. i was tired of running and my doc said he had enough data (he was really looking to see if my blood pressure dropped at higher heart rates, as it did pre avr, which leads to me seeing stars while i rode). it did not drop as it did pre avr.

interestingly, i just realized i don't see stars anymore!! i didn't even see them when i rode pretty hard this past weekend. i would see them often (i.e. all the time, its what made me see a doc in the first place) when i rode and throughout day when i was just walking around for even watching tv (i developed a very low ejection fraction of 35% between when my leak was diagnosed and when it was decided i needed to have surgery, though i was asyptomatic otherwise). wow, its kinda amazing when you realize you've made a big impovement, which all the while went un-noticed.