Fitness with Heart Disease - The Struggle

A little over a year ago I was diagnosed with a Mitral Valve Prolapse and Heart Valve Regurgitation in my Mitral, Tricuspid, & Aortic Valves. My resting heart rate is 90 BPM and walking spikes my heart rate to 145 BPM pretty quickly . Since being diagnosed I have yoyo-ed in my commitment to fitness and weight-loss simply because it felt like the deck was stacked against me, like all routes would lead to failure and I was discouraged when I wouldn't make any progress. This is what it means to have heart disease in your 20s when you should be in the prime of your life but you experience irrational jealousy towards your friends that can do things with minimal effort that you struggle to do at all. I used to suffer from Too Much Too Soon Syndrome (TMTSS) because I just wanted to keep up and not be left behind in what felt like everything.

Breathe. It's okay. The road to healthy living with heart disease is difficult but not impossible and it's important to not get tunnel vision looking at others progress or giving up when you see a road block. As always before taking on any exercise program talk about it with your cardiologist. I go for EKGs every 6 months to re-tailor my safe fitness parameters to avoid overdoing it and landing in the hospital. Your cardiologist may recommend a cardiac rehab program - do not be alarmed, go, feel it out, it will be a great starting point. If not, be sure to ask how much exercise is good for you, what kinds you should avoid, would wearing a heart rate monitor benefit me, if so what heart rate monitor do you recommend, what signs should I watch for while working out, will I need to have any adjustments made to my medicine?

Generally exercise to broken into 2 categories: cardio and strength. I'm sure you can guess which provides the most benefit to your heart - cardio. Every good workout requires a warm up and a cool down which is usually a slower paced version of whatever workout you plan to do. If at any point you feel chest pain, dizziness, or breathlessness you are working too hard and you must slow down but don't come to an abrupt stop as this can worsen any feelings of palpitations.

Some pointers I have learned from personal experience:

1. Avoid working out outside in extreme temps - it impedes circulation and can cause chest pain. Try to do indoor activities when the weather is not moderate.
2. Be careful about taking really hot or cold showers after a workout, I know I always get dizzy and fall. Keep the temperate moderate and avoid sitting and then rising in the tub - it messes with your equilibrium and you could easily black out and fall. I don't even want to count the number of times I've fainted in the shower and woken up outside the tub with bruises I can't remember getting.
3. Drink enough water - when you skip out on fluids you dehydrate and can experiences dizziness. but do not overdrink or you may vomit especially when its very hot outside if you ignore tip #1
4. Do not eat and immediately exercise, you will likely vomit. Wait about an hour and a  half.
5. Don't start off strong, ease into any training program and be sure to balance with rest to avoid physical injury and nauseas. If you stop for a few days ease back in as well.
6. Block a time in your calendar to work out so you cant say you're too busy.
7. Don't invest in tons of expensive equipment, the simplest solutions are always best. Save the flashy stuff once you've proven your commitment.

*These tips are also true for those not with a  heart condition

Interesting Facts from the American Heart Association

1. For every hour of regular exercise you get, you'll gain about two hours of additional life expectancy, even if you don't start until middle age.
2. Only 21% of people get the recommended (30 mins 5x a week) of daily physical activity.
3. The single most effective form  of exercise to achieve heart health is walking.
4. 69% of all Adults are overweight.
5. Cardiovascular disease is the leading global cause of death, accounting for 17.3 million deaths per year, a  number that is expected to grow to more than 23.6 million by 2030.
6. In 2011 787,000 American people died of various cardiovascular diseases, that's 1 in every 3.
7. Every 40 seconds a person in the US dies of a cardiovascular disease.
8. Only 27% of high school kids get the recommended amount of exercise.
9. Of females that have cardiovascular disease 10% are between 20-39, for men that is11.9% - age does not make you immune.