Back after a long hiatus... my heart failure story.

[aHarness]

I use the Qunol brand as it seems to be the best priced legit ubiquinol. I forget the fish oil dose and brand honestly. It was an extremely high dose or anything. Just a few caps.

Life Extension makes a good Pycnogenol.

Agreed with @TODouble2 on Qunol. And is great because it’s 200mg per softgel.

Thanks guys. Both are what I’m currently using. Was hoping for maybe a cheaper Ubiqionol, but seems like there really is no way around that it’s just expensive to run high dosed.

 

[Golden]

Hey guys. good to be back on the board.. thanks to the mods for allowing me back.. and thanks to nothuman for his help.. Just wanted to share my story since i had been reading some stuff on here about other guys in similar situations.. and it helped me through it. its great to have a community like this.. since its hard to find anyone with a similar mindframe to talk to about this stuff. anyway here it goes.,..

Currently 39 years old. i was diagnosed with severe heart failure back in February... Ejection Fraction 20-25. Severely dilated cardiomyopathy. All that good stuff. Ive come to realize i was walking around with very high blood pressure for many years. roughly 170/110 sometimes higher. Cadiac cath test showed pretty much no plaque in arteries so thats good.

i was put on meds of course.. i did a drastic lifestyle change and went back for another echo 3 months later and my heart was pretty much back to normal which is amazing. they couldn't believe how fast i recovered, so i thought id share what i did. EF was now at 55-60 and heart borderline normal size!

Steroids:
I wasn't going crazy with gear as of lately. but i cut out the growth and stopped the little bit of NPP i was on for joints.
Stayed on only 100mg Test cyp weekly split into two 50mg shots. Test showed my levels in the 700s 3 days after injection.

Meds:
Amlodipine 10mg
Carvedilol 12.5mg
Entresto gradually raised to the highest dose
Pravastatin (i forget the mgs)
Ezitimibe 10mg (this was added later after the recovery to help control LDL)

Supplements: (i'll only list the ones specifically for heart failure)
D Ribose 10g
Taurine 4g
Ubiquinol 400-800mg depending if i remember to take that much daily
Magnesium Taurate 400mg
Pycnogenol 100mg
Himalaya Arjuna 1 caplet
Fish oil


Diet/Lifestyle
Cardio every day with an occasional miss 30-45 min low to med intensity nothing crazy
Weights 15-20 reps stopping a rep or two before failure
Control sodium to an extent
Cut out sugars (this actually wasn't even recommended by doctors since they don't know shit about actually diet and health)
Generally ate healthier but did not limit red meat like they suggest. if i go to a restaurant, you can't tell me there's anything healthier than a nice steak with baked potatoes and vegetable.
Alcohol - i like to drink, i didn't quit completely, but i limited it to no more than one or two a few times a week. no getting drunk of course.

Also, took TB500. i believe it was 2.5mg twice a week. I read about TB and heart remodeling, and i wonder if it was a driving factor in my quick recovery but who knows.. i will say the cardiologists were very surprised at how fast i recovered.


After the echo showing improvement, i slowly began living a little more normal.. eating what i want a bit more, not watching sodium as much, if my friends go out i'll go also and not be afraid to eat and drink and enjoy myself, sometimes taking a day or two off the cardio.... i had another echo after months of this more lax lifestyle and it was consistent with the last one. normal size and function. EF 55-60...

So it seems the meds are working great and really keeping my heart where it needs to be, even when i let off the gas a little with the lifestyle and diet stuff.

So thats my story...

Also, i'd love to hear some opinions from people on whether or not i'm crazy for wanting to take a few ius of GH again. and occasionally taking a little something more than 100mg of test. (no crazy high doses at all.) I did lose a bit of size and don't feel like myself at all. And im pretty sure the overwhelming factor in this was the high blood pressure for years.

With an EF that low and having DCM, did the docs put a limit on training?

 

[01dragonslayer]

Welcome back to the show my friend. That's a tremendous journey you made..... I applaud your drive and dedication. Wishing you the best in your return back to the gym.

 

[TODouble2]

With an EF that low and having DCM, did the docs put a limit on training?

Yes they said just don’t go too crazy with the weights. Sidnt seem too concerned. Don’t go to failure

 

[01dragonslayer]

Yes they said just don’t go too crazy with the weights. Sidnt seem too concerned. Don’t go to failure

You should have had them define 'crazy'..... we're not your average gym goer.

 

[marssel]

Hey guys. good to be back on the board.. thanks to the mods for allowing me back.. and thanks to nothuman for his help.. Just wanted to share my story since i had been reading some stuff on here about other guys in similar situations.. and it helped me through it. its great to have a community like this.. since its hard to find anyone with a similar mindframe to talk to about this stuff. anyway here it goes.,..

Currently 39 years old. i was diagnosed with severe heart failure back in February... Ejection Fraction 20-25. Severely dilated cardiomyopathy. All that good stuff. Ive come to realize i was walking around with very high blood pressure for many years. roughly 170/110 sometimes higher. Cadiac cath test showed pretty much no plaque in arteries so thats good.

i was put on meds of course.. i did a drastic lifestyle change and went back for another echo 3 months later and my heart was pretty much back to normal which is amazing. they couldn't believe how fast i recovered, so i thought id share what i did. EF was now at 55-60 and heart borderline normal size!

Steroids:
I wasn't going crazy with gear as of lately. but i cut out the growth and stopped the little bit of NPP i was on for joints.
Stayed on only 100mg Test cyp weekly split into two 50mg shots. Test showed my levels in the 700s 3 days after injection.

Meds:
Amlodipine 10mg
Carvedilol 12.5mg
Entresto gradually raised to the highest dose
Pravastatin (i forget the mgs)
Ezitimibe 10mg (this was added later after the recovery to help control LDL)

Supplements: (i'll only list the ones specifically for heart failure)
D Ribose 10g
Taurine 4g
Ubiquinol 400-800mg depending if i remember to take that much daily
Magnesium Taurate 400mg
Pycnogenol 100mg
Himalaya Arjuna 1 caplet
Fish oil


Diet/Lifestyle
Cardio every day with an occasional miss 30-45 min low to med intensity nothing crazy
Weights 15-20 reps stopping a rep or two before failure
Control sodium to an extent
Cut out sugars (this actually wasn't even recommended by doctors since they don't know shit about actually diet and health)
Generally ate healthier but did not limit red meat like they suggest. if i go to a restaurant, you can't tell me there's anything healthier than a nice steak with baked potatoes and vegetable.
Alcohol - i like to drink, i didn't quit completely, but i limited it to no more than one or two a few times a week. no getting drunk of course.

Also, took TB500. i believe it was 2.5mg twice a week. I read about TB and heart remodeling, and i wonder if it was a driving factor in my quick recovery but who knows.. i will say the cardiologists were very surprised at how fast i recovered.


After the echo showing improvement, i slowly began living a little more normal.. eating what i want a bit more, not watching sodium as much, if my friends go out i'll go also and not be afraid to eat and drink and enjoy myself, sometimes taking a day or two off the cardio.... i had another echo after months of this more lax lifestyle and it was consistent with the last one. normal size and function. EF 55-60...

So it seems the meds are working great and really keeping my heart where it needs to be, even when i let off the gas a little with the lifestyle and diet stuff.

So thats my story...

Also, i'd love to hear some opinions from people on whether or not i'm crazy for wanting to take a few ius of GH again. and occasionally taking a little something more than 100mg of test. (no crazy high doses at all.) I did lose a bit of size and don't feel like myself at all. And im pretty sure the overwhelming factor in this was the high blood pressure for years.

So you felt your EF was shit or got told. I’ve heard of guys getting out of breath walking up stairs and other guys saying they felt fine before a cardiac incident or scare (I’d call this a scare). You’re heart was wholly enlarged or really bad LVH? Thanks for sharing.

 

[TODouble2]

You should have had them define 'crazy'..... we're not your average gym goer.

Well he just said when you strain really hard those are the reps that are bad. So I said I’ll just stop a few reps short of failure and he said OK.

 

[TODouble2]

So you felt your EF was shit or got told. I’ve heard of guys getting out of breath walking up stairs and other guys saying they felt fine before a cardiac incident or scare (I’d call this a scare). Your heart was wholly enlarged or really bad LVH? Thanks for sharing.

I can check the report again but I believe it was mostly left ventricle. And what I was saying was that there were symptoms there, but I didn’t know anything was wrong because I didn’t know they meant there was something wrong with my heart. I thought I was out of breath because I was training, or anxious at other times. And the weakness in the legs I had no idea why, but who would think that’s your heart if you don’t know that’s a symptom of heart failure.

 

[01dragonslayer]

Well he just said when you strain really hard those are the reps that are bad. So I said I’ll just stop a few reps short of failure and he said OK.

You should have said we don't train that way...lol.

 

[TODouble2]

You should have said we don't train that way...lol.

Well he’s a cardiologist they don’t always give you the answer you want to hear.. maybe I can up that dose a bit for a few weeks without harm now that I’m on the meds, but the doctors won’t sign off on that lol.

now that my hearts looking good I’ll somewhat ramp up the training.

 

[null88]

Were those your only symptoms? What triggered you to go to the doctor?

 

[nothuman]

I was wondering when you were gonna post. Thanks for shouting me out. Same with you @danieltx

It’s just awesome that these things have the potential be reversed so fast nowadays. This was not something we thought was possible even just a few years ago.

 

[TODouble2]

Were those your only symptoms? What triggered you to go to the doctor?

I went to the doctor because I hadn’t been to doctor in a few years since my primary doc passed away.. and every time I went to an urgent care or a specialist they’d tell me my BP was high.

after finding out I had heart failure, I now know I had symptoms (shortness of breath and weakness in the legs.. also overall lethargy). The symptoms weren’t something that made me go to the doctor. I had wrote them off as something else.

 

[Brock456]

I went to the doctor because I hadn’t been to doctor in a few years since my primary doc passed away.. and every time I went to an urgent care or a specialist they’d tell me my BP was high.

after finding out I had heart failure, I now know I had symptoms (shortness of breath and weakness in the legs.. also overall lethargy). The symptoms weren’t something that made me go to the doctor. I had wrote them off as something else.

Curious what your lifestyle was BEFORE finding out about the heart issues?

Weight?
Gear usage?
BF?

Was it lifestyle choices that led to the high BP?

 

[CorgisOnTren]

Thanks guys. Both are what I’m currently using. Was hoping for maybe a cheaper Ubiqionol, but seems like there really is no way around that it’s just expensive to run high dosed.

I wanna point out https://www.distacart.com/ as a great price option for supps. Especially the Himalayan ones. Cystone, Arjuna, Ubiqionol all very good prices. Obviously some shipping time, but if you stay on top of your stock I recommend it.

 

[TODouble2]

Curious what your lifestyle was BEFORE finding out about the heart issues?

Weight?
Gear usage?
BF?

Was it lifestyle choices that led to the high BP?

In recent times leading up to the diagnosis - weight 220-225. I’m 6 ft tall. BF not sure prob around 12-15 wild guess..

I recently haven’t taken as much gear as years ago. The year leading up to the test I was on 300 test and 400npp for roughly 4-6 months. Then cruised at 150 test and 100npp for months before the first echo. And GH around 4-5iu pretty consistently year round.

To be honest lifestyle in general wasn’t the healthiest at all. Drinking few times a week, eating like a normal person but with some added protein.

 

[Brock456]

In recent times leading up to the diagnosis - weight 220-225. I’m 6 ft tall. BF not sure prob around 12-15 wild guess..

I recently haven’t taken as much gear as years ago. The year leading up to the test I was on 300 test and 400npp for roughly 4-6 months. Then cruised at 150 test and 100npp for months before the first echo. And GH around 4-5iu pretty consistently year round.

To be honest lifestyle in general wasn’t the healthiest at all. Drinking few times a week, eating like a normal person but with some added protein.

Doesn’t sound like your BP issues were AAS related based on those dosages. I guess everyone reacts differently but most wouldn’t get that much increased BP from those dosages.

I know that’s neither here or there. Just always curious.

 

[marssel]

I can check the report again but I believe it was mostly left ventricle. And what I was saying was that there were symptoms there, but I didn’t know anything was wrong because I didn’t know they meant there was something wrong with my heart. I thought I was out of breath because I was training, or anxious at other times. And the weakness in the legs I had no idea why, but who would think that’s your heart if you don’t know that’s a symptom of heart failure.

Good point I could see where you could miss that, the leg weakness I didn’t know was a heart problem symptom

 

[TODouble2]

Also wanted to add… the symptoms are still there, the specialist explained they may always be. I’m considered to have heart failure with improved ejection fraction. Likely I’ll always be on the meds. I don’t see them taking me off unless I push for that. He said when someone recovers and stops the meds, half the people stay the same half go backwards.. so why chance it.

So this isn’t something to be taken lightly, but its good to know you can recover from it much more so than in the past.

 

[marssel]

Also wanted to add… the symptoms are still there, the specialist explained they may always be. I’m considered to have heart failure with improved ejection fraction. Likely I’ll always be on the meds. I don’t see them taking me off unless I push for that. He said when someone recovers and stops the meds, half the people stay the same half go backwards.. so why chance it.

So this isn’t something to be taken lightly, but its good to know you can recover from it much more so than in the past.

My EGFR went up 6 points this month, it’s a lot of work but you can fix or repair major organ issues if you really prioritize it, glad you’re healed and staying with it, not complacent and no reason to drop meds with no sides