Just survived heart attack at age 38, follow up to Phil's post

[maldorf]

I dont have defibrillator. Now is time to be patient just wait... little scared but is the only way..

thanks so much maldorf

Yes, take off at least 3weeks, no exercise. Then cardio for a week or 2. Then ease into lifting like I described earlier.

You dont want to get in a heart arrhythmia.

 

[8a]

With the exercise like this i will try.

Just start with ubiqui 400mg day and omegs3 2gr day. Thanks a lot

 

[8a]

How is your diet bro? Until How much ppms per set you go? Wich split you use and how oftet you do cardio? Reps and sets?

Monday again cardiologist i think we must to check the meds, just a little hit make me a heavy purple. What a stress...

 

[maldorf]

How is your diet bro? Until How much ppms per set you go? Wich split you use and how oftet you do cardio? Reps and sets?

Monday again cardiologist i think we must to check the meds, just a little hit make me a heavy purple. What a stress...

I'm eating more or less like a bodybuilder during off season. Nothing special. My only vice is that a lot of nights I eat chips watching TV, something I didn't do before my heart attack. I'm not obsessed any longer with my body fat level and how big my arms are.

I still do a Phil Hernon workout, 3 day split. 3 on 1 off. Reps are high now, up around 15 to 20. I may go down to 10 sometimes but not much lower.

If you have heart failure like me then the three most important things to do IMO : don't push to true failure or past failure, rest long enough between sets so that your heart rate gets back down a lot, and don't ever hold your breath while you lift.

 

[maldorf]

Thought Id put a log in here about the coronavirus. So far ive been healthy and just had what seemed like a bad cold back when the virus started. Pretty sure Ive not had it. Today I was able to get my teeth cleaned, that was about 2 months overdue. Everything checked out good. im glad that things are starting to return back to normal.

Ive been lifting at home because gyms are all closed plus it just isn't safe for me to go to a gym now. If they open soon I will just have to cancel my membership. I hope to go back as soon as we have a vaccine. They say a vaccine could be ready for the US by the end of this year and that gives me some hope. I miss the gym and im able to get a better workout there, but here at home isn't bad! I worked out here at home for many years after my heart attack, about 10 years, before joining a gym again. For anyone with heart failure like me, staying fit with aerobics and weight lifting is very important. My heart feels better when I am doing it. I have less arrhythmias and just generally feel a lot better when exercising on a regular basis.

 

[maldorf]

Well, would've died again last night but the defibrillator got my heart back in sinus rhythm. At least I know my new device is working well.

I had about 3/4 of a glass of wine and I could feel my heart felt a bit shaky. It was late at night and I was watching Kingdom on Netflix. Got up off the couch and went upstairs to take some more medicine. Going up stairs got my heart going faster and that together with the wine triggered v tach. All I could do was sit down on the bathroom floor and try to slow it down. When it gets really bad its like a runaway train. Rate got up over 220 fast and it zapped me.Luckily it worked well and I was fine after that. Needlesa to say, threw out the rest of that glass of wine.

I feel just fine today. Guess I can't have alcohol at all now. Going to workout here soon. I should be fine.

 

[Motorboat]

Well, would've died again last night but the defibrillator got my heart back in sinus rhythm. At least I know my new device is working well.

I had about 3/4 of a glass of wine and I could feel my heart felt a bit shaky. It was late at night and I was watching Kingdom on Netflix. Got up off the couch and went upstairs to take some more medicine. Going up stairs got my heart going faster and that together with the wine triggered v tach. All I could do was sit down on the bathroom floor and try to slow it down. When it gets really bad its like a runaway train. Rate got up over 220 fast and it zapped me.Luckily it worked well and I was fine after that. Needlesa to say, threw out the rest of that glass of wine.

I feel just fine today. Guess I can't have alcohol at all now. Going to workout here soon. I should be fine.

You are an inspiration with your heart condition and your openness about it. You have helped so many on this board.
That's amazing how that defib kicks in and thank God you have it!

 

[maldorf]

You are an inspiration with your heart condition and your openness about it. You have helped so many on this board.
That's amazing how that defib kicks in and thank God you have it!

It really is amazing. It has to synchronize the shock too, with your rhythm. I don't know how it does that. If it goes off at the wrong time I think it can actually stop my heart.

When I went to bed, it sent off a report over the internet to my doctor. In the morning the cardiologist on call called my home to check on me. There is a device next to my bed that receives all the data and sends it out automatically when I have an event, if I push a button, and once every 3 months.

 

[MethodAir]

I'm eating more or less like a bodybuilder during off season. Nothing special. My only vice is that a lot of nights I eat chips watching TV, something I didn't do before my heart attack. I'm not obsessed any longer with my body fat level and how big my arms are.

I still do a Phil Hernon workout, 3 day split. 3 on 1 off. Reps are high now, up around 15 to 20. I may go down to 10 sometimes but not much lower.

If you have heart failure like me then the three most important things to do IMO : don't push to true failure or past failure, rest long enough between sets so that your heart rate gets back down a lot, and don't ever hold your breath while you lift.

Did your lungs stay clear during your recent cardiac event? What happens when you do the valsalva maneuver during weight training?

 

[maldorf]

Did your lungs stay clear during your recent cardiac event? What happens when you do the valsalva maneuver during weight training?

I never have fluid buildup in my lungs, my function is high enough to avoid that. Breathing feels unaffected. I do get dizzy and mind gets foggy, its scary.

The Valsalva actually triggers vagal tone, so it could slow heart rate if I have trouble. I should have tried it last night but it happened so freaking fast that I kinda panicked. It usually causes a feeling like a panic attack when it hits so hard and fast. The time between when the rhythm started and when the defibrillator went off was less than 30 seconds. Talk about sudden cardiac death.

I don't hold my breath when lifting, and if I do its only very brief. Ive not had any issues lifting, except when doing high rep squats really hard to failure. Squats have triggered v tach a few times. Lost count.

 

[MethodAir]

I never have fluid buildup in my lungs, my function is high enough to avoid that. Breathing feels unaffected. I do get dizzy and mind gets foggy, its scary.

Patients with normal ejection fractions and blood pressure can experience lung congestion if they have a valve issue. On the other hand, they may not experience v-tachycardia.

And you aren't on any diuretics? No peripheral edema either?

 

[maldorf]

Patients with normal ejection fractions and blood pressure can experience lung congestion if they have a valve issue. On the other hand, they may not experience v-tachycardia.

And you aren't on any diuretics? No peripheral edema either?

No, my valves are great. No diuretics or spironolactone. I originally took low dose spironolactone because research shows good results but I had to stop because my BP was too low.

Never had any edema, even right after heart attack. I suspect someday in the future that will come on, and then its probably time to shop for a new heart.

 

[MethodAir]

No, my valves are great. No diuretics or spironolactone. I originally took low dose spironolactone because research shows good results but I had to stop because my BP was too low.

Never had any edema, even right after heart attack. I suspect someday in the future that will come on, and then its probably time to shop for a new heart.

You're doing well then. Taking too much warfarin can also cause lung congestion that appears similar to CHF (coughing up blood).

 

[maldorf]

You're doing well then. Taking too much warfarin can also cause lung congestion that appears similar to CHF (coughing up blood).

My 12 years so far with coumadin has been fairly uneventful, except for last fall when I had an intestinal bleed. One good thing about it, its easy to counteract fast with plasma units. A slower way is to use vitamin k. Some of the newer anticoagulant drugs don't have such an easy way, and some hospitals don't have the antidotes handy.

If you eat a consistent diet then maintaining your INR in therapeutic range is fairly easy.

 

[tripleOT]

Dang Mal, scary stuff. Has alcohol done this to you in the past or is this a new occurrence?

 

[maldorf]

Dang Mal, scary stuff. Has alcohol done this to you in the past or is this a new occurrence?

It has been an ongoing problem for about the past 3 years. About 2 years ago I have a ventricular ablation done hoping that it would help stop the arrhythmias, but it did not. My heart seems to have slowly gotten more sensitive to the alcohol over the years. 5 years or more ago I could drink a whole bottle of wine and be fine. Last night I didn't even have one full glass and I set off my defibrillator. It looks like I just cant have any at all.

From my experimentation, it seems like red wine is the worst. There is something in the red wine I think, besides just the alcohol. I may try switching to white wine. The wine I had last night was Port wine, and port is fortified with brandy so its stronger. The other wine that made my defibrillator go off 2x in the past was aged in oak barrels and fortified with whisky. Funny thing is, I had 2 shots of Eliza Craig Bourbon which is 94 proof and it didn't bother my heart too bad. Red wine seems to be the worst, but its my favorite now.

We went to Italy last summer for 2 weeks and starved myself of wine there because of this, it was very hard to do. I didn't want medical trouble in a foreign country! I only had a 1/2 bottle of white wine that I shared with my wife. I had about 2 glasses or that and I was fine thank goodness. Maybe because it was white. I looked it up once, I think the tannins in red wine are what do it but need to look at that again. Empirically it looks like I need to avoid red wine.

When you get down to it alcohol is a poison and useless calories anyhow, I shouldn't have any but I think it is ok to have some once in awhile for a treat. Ive still got a bottle of port and about 4 more bottles of red id like to have someday. Maybe if I get another ventricular ablation done it will make my heart more stable. there is a danger too that it could make it worse.

Things sure went to shit when I had my heart attack. Whole life changed for the worse. I wish I could go back in time and stop it from happening. If I had known I had a clotting disorder I would have never used the steroids that I did. I would probably have just stayed natural.

 

[8a]

What the fuck maldorf.... with this thread, hollywood can make something fucking heavy

take care bro, i wish you the best

 

[maldorf]

Interesting article here from the American Heart Association.

Search News Releases

newsroom.heart.org

"Using two-dimensional ultrasound imaging, researchers found that the left ventricle, the heart's main pumping chamber, was significantly weaker during contraction (systolic function) in those taking anabolic steroids compared to the non-steroid users.


Seventy-one percent of the anabolic steroid users who were on-drug at the time of evaluation had a low pumping capacity (less than 52 percent) whereas off-drug users had largely normal pumping capacity. In contrast, researchers found that only two of the non-users had a low pumping capacity.
Diastolic function, which is when the left ventricle relaxes and fills with blood, was impaired both for on-drug and off-drug anabolic steroid users. The researchers said this suggests a more permanent heart problem."


“Compared to non-users, anabolic steroid users displayed both higher systolic and diastolic blood pressure as well as a higher prevalence of levels of bad (LDL) cholesterol in their blood,” said Aaron Baggish, M.D., study co-lead author and associate director of the cardiovascular performance program at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston."

“It is critical that clinicians become aware of the long-term risks of anabolic steroid use on the heart. Most people relate anabolic steroids to cheating among athletes and fail to realize that there is a large population of men who have developed dependence upon these drugs, but who are not readily visible. The oldest members of this population are only now reaching middle age,” said Harrison Pope, Jr., M.D., the study’s other co-lead author and professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School"

“Clinicians need to know that there may be a marked increase in anabolic steroid-related cardiac pathology as this population moves into later middle-age and beyond,” said Pope who is also director of the Biological Psychiatry Laboratory at McLean Hospital, Harvard’s largest teaching hospital in psychiatry.


Other co-authors are Rory B. Weiner, M.D.; Gen Kanayama, M.D., Ph.D.; James I. Hudson, M.D.; Sc.D.; Michael Lu, M.D.; and Udo Hoffman, M.D., M.P.H. Author disclosures are on the manuscript.


A grant from the National Institutes on Drug Abuse funded the study."

 

[MethodAir]

Interesting article here from the American Heart Association.

Search News Releases

newsroom.heart.org

"Using two-dimensional ultrasound imaging, researchers found that the left ventricle, the heart's main pumping chamber, was significantly weaker during contraction (systolic function) in those taking anabolic steroids compared to the non-steroid users.


Seventy-one percent of the anabolic steroid users who were on-drug at the time of evaluation had a low pumping capacity (less than 52 percent) whereas off-drug users had largely normal pumping capacity. In contrast, researchers found that only two of the non-users had a low pumping capacity.
Diastolic function, which is when the left ventricle relaxes and fills with blood, was impaired both for on-drug and off-drug anabolic steroid users. The researchers said this suggests a more permanent heart problem."


“Compared to non-users, anabolic steroid users displayed both higher systolic and diastolic blood pressure as well as a higher prevalence of levels of bad (LDL) cholesterol in their blood,” said Aaron Baggish, M.D., study co-lead author and associate director of the cardiovascular performance program at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston."

“It is critical that clinicians become aware of the long-term risks of anabolic steroid use on the heart. Most people relate anabolic steroids to cheating among athletes and fail to realize that there is a large population of men who have developed dependence upon these drugs, but who are not readily visible. The oldest members of this population are only now reaching middle age,” said Harrison Pope, Jr., M.D., the study’s other co-lead author and professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School"

“Clinicians need to know that there may be a marked increase in anabolic steroid-related cardiac pathology as this population moves into later middle-age and beyond,” said Pope who is also director of the Biological Psychiatry Laboratory at McLean Hospital, Harvard’s largest teaching hospital in psychiatry.


Other co-authors are Rory B. Weiner, M.D.; Gen Kanayama, M.D., Ph.D.; James I. Hudson, M.D.; Sc.D.; Michael Lu, M.D.; and Udo Hoffman, M.D., M.P.H. Author disclosures are on the manuscript.


A grant from the National Institutes on Drug Abuse funded the study."

The widespread use of testosterone and aas by elite Tour de France cyclists dispells the myth that they reduce cardiac output.

Further, ejection fractions can be misleading...elite endurance athletes commonly have lower ejection fractions than the general population.

Malcom Kendrick dispells other myths about LDL.

 

[MethodAir]

The widespread use of testosterone and aas by elite Tour de France cyclists dispells the myth that they reduce cardiac output.

Further, ejection fractions can be misleading...elite endurance athletes commonly have lower ejection fractions than the general population.

Malcom Kendrick dispells other myths about LDL.

This PhD scientist explains why every medical institution/study warrants skepticism and scrutiny: