Starting to work out more - having a hard timeI

[Guest]

Hi, I had my aortic valve replaced 18 months ago. I had no complications, and last month at my visit, my cardiologist told me my heart was "working perfectly" and that I could run a marathon. Unfortunately I barely feel like I could run a 5K. I am tired in general (I work full-time), but lately I've been seeing a trainer to try to get myself back in shape and back in the habit of exercising, and after the workout - I need to sleep for several hours! That just doesn't make sense to me. It may be something totally unrelated to my heart, but I've felt this way since right after the surgery (that is, very tired - needing naps).

Can anyone relate to this? It seems like I mostly see stories about how great everyone is doing (which makes me happy!), but I'm not sure what's wrong with me.

 

[big_L]

Are you on new meds since surgery? I can tell you that each of the three of the BP drugs (avalide, lisinopril, metoprolol) I've been on for the last 6-7 years really take the steam out of me ( I was on each one separately ). Totally unrelated to the surgery.

 

[ferguson]

Hi I just awoke from my nap. What a thrill. Still feel exhausted. Had a strenuous afternoon. Went for a haircut. Didn't hardly have to wait. Home in an hour and all I could do was nap. Didn't eat my cup of frozen vanilla yogurt. Argued with She Who Must Be Obeyed. I wanted Pistachio. SWMBO set me straight. Pistachio has too much fat and other good stuff which in my delicate condition I'm not supposed to touch. But then I had eaten two pieces of cold pizza for breakfast/lunch and that was okay. Perhaps because each slab was strewn with spinach and tomatoes, skip the sauce. Fortunately my taste buds worked for a change and it was pretty good.. I just noticed that folks provide details of the offending product in their blogs or diatribes. I'm bugged with my aortic replacement valve right now it does not seem to provide me with enough horsepower. And since I've just twigged that what I got is what gets me through the day...but maybe I can hit up UHC insurance and get a bigger one that provides more flow so maybe I'll be able to walk and remember that my glasses are in my pocket and that it sure helps to see clearly when one views this big world of ours. I.E. We live in a charming little New England Village which thanks to many new McMansions is now no longer quite so quaint. Every time I turn my head I see a new Mercedes. So of course we tend to be rather sequestered. There's a quaint village airport, Sikorski Memorial that is chock-a-block with private aircraft. There are no flights anymore for the general public. Now that I'm 72 and have finally realized the value of money...thank the good lord that we have insurance. amen...I am constantly pestering my long suffering better half for a new ride...my trusty Taurus awaits to be driven out of the garage. My son-in-law wants to borrow it. Only I don't want to play nice. I can sidle into the drivers seat and tool around indulging in the quaintness of downtown Lordship but there will soon be a snag...A change in the way out to greener pastures. Work is a-pace on a change in route 113. Right by the end of the runway there is a neat dip which floods at high tide with sea water, Great for testing the brakes. The new road was supposed to get rid of that quaint feature. But I read in the paper that it's too costly to alleviate this problem .So we are getting a new-ish road that will still flood. The airport will then be able to extend the runway for more commercial aviation. Maybe the jets will be back. Every once in a while an older Lear jet roars in a fills the quaint air with a roar that is tooth shaking in intensity. But then I'm old and keep forgetting that the jets are quieter these days. But not so the Sikorski Military behemoths that rule the skies around here. At least the Russkies will be impressed . But I guess that today I'm not a happy camper and need to vent my spleen. I would also hope my valve works a bit more effectively, I like breathing regularly. Huffing and puffing is too close to gasping. But enough of this idle caviling. Earlier this afternoon I decided to live my life as if I were living in a tv commercial. Usually everybody's laughing and happy unless they have bought the wrong brand. And since I can't get around much I don't spend too much money I don't buy the wrong brands. But wait, I've got a 38k artificial valve in my chest. And I don't seem to be doing too well lately. Maybe it's a case of caveat emptor. obviously my computer does not know Latin because it's giving me one of those red squiggly lines. Maybe I should fold my tent, slip away, and stop complaining. Except when one has achieved a form of old fartdom, it just seems the thing to do. And i'm too lazy to reach into my wallet for the i.d. of my valve. And who cares anyway.

 

[tom in MO]

We care. that's what the forum is for. If your valve only cost 38K, you got a bargain : )

 

[Paleowoman]

I'm nine months post OHS surgery for bicuspid aortic valve. I am not as fit as I was the day before surgery ! Yes I can relate. I hope that 18 months post surgery I will be at least as fit as before surgery. I was asymptomatic before surgery so I think that is something to do with it - ie, if I'd been symptomatic then the 'difference' pre and post would have been good, but since I was asymptomatic, and I really do mean that (EF 79%, pressure gradient 68, valve area size 0.9 and I'm a small woman) then the 'damage' that surgery has done my body and heart is greater than the benefit. Obviously I will one day feel a benefi ! Can't wait for that day since now I get breathless when I didn't before and can't lift such heavy weights.

 

[RunMartin]

Hi, I had my aortic valve replaced 18 months ago. I had no complications, and last month at my visit, my cardiologist told me my heart was "working perfectly" and that I could run a marathon. Unfortunately I barely feel like I could run a 5K. I am tired in general (I work full-time), but lately I've been seeing a trainer to try to get myself back in shape and back in the habit of exercising, and after the workout - I need to sleep for several hours! That just doesn't make sense to me. It may be something totally unrelated to my heart, but I've felt this way since right after the surgery (that is, very tired - needing naps).

Can anyone relate to this? It seems like I mostly see stories about how great everyone is doing (which makes me happy!), but I'm not sure what's wrong with me.

I can relate to this. Some people seem to return to normal whilst others do not quite match their pre AVR abilities. I am grateful I got my valve fixed and have got used to my new athletic profile. My aortic valve area was 0.8 cm2 pre AVR and I thought that a new big valve would mean I would be much quicker. After surgery it soon became apparent that this was not going to be the case.
I am still running but at a lower pace. I still compete in races and I have done 79 races so far this year. What I had to do was to start all over again and learn to run with my new valve.
I enjoy my running now but I do not try to emulate things that I used to be able to do.

Have you checked your iron levels? I found that I was anaemic and once I started to take iron tablets I found running etc much easier.

Below are a few threads that may be useful


http://www.valvereplacement.org/foru...-other-runners
http://www.valvereplacement.org/foru...19-low-stamina
http://www.valvereplacement.org/for...on/38310-longest-post-surgery-race-run-so-far
http://www.valvereplacement.org/foru...ightly-aneamic


Martin

 

[spartangator]

Hi, I had my aortic valve replaced 18 months ago. I had no complications, and last month at my visit, my cardiologist told me my heart was "working perfectly" and that I could run a marathon. Unfortunately I barely feel like I could run a 5K. I am tired in general (I work full-time), but lately I've been seeing a trainer to try to get myself back in shape and back in the habit of exercising, and after the workout - I need to sleep for several hours! That just doesn't make sense to me. It may be something totally unrelated to my heart, but I've felt this way since right after the surgery (that is, very tired - needing naps).

Can anyone relate to this? It seems like I mostly see stories about how great everyone is doing (which makes me happy!), but I'm not sure what's wrong with me.

Yes, absolutely. It was only from about 18 months on that I started feeling normal. I was active well before that (did a marathon about then) but was generally tired as well, much like you describe. All that has improved dramatically, however, over the years. It sounds like you're doing smart things (consulting with doc, working with a trainer, accepting rest) so keep doing what you're doing, and I'd wager on improvements to come.

 

[MarkU]

Although I was 'functional' a few months after my surgery, it took me a full year to get my stamina back and feel fully recovered. I was never a 'napper' before, but learned how to do it out of necessity. Just getting older also has a lot to do with it.

Mark