Pacemakers and sport

Sorry to rake up, what seems to be a really old topic. I have been looking at old postings from sports people with concerns about performance drop off after getting a PM.

I have not come across any responces that indicate that there are those who HAVE got back to pre-PM levels.

Could we have a collective review on this topic, its about time that a kind of comprehensive understanding is established.

Tattoo Man

15 Comments

performance

by Tracey_E - 2013-02-26 08:02:51

I'm not a usual case since my condition is congenital. Being in block all the time with a hr that wouldn't go above 45 all my life, I had no endurance and limited activity before I was paced. Now, I can do whatever I want but my endurance isn't as good as others who do the same boot camp as me. I do a really hard class so I'm perfectly happy to finish last. Sometimes I have to modify, sometimes I have to stop and let the dizzies pass, but I can do it, and finishing last is still finishing! I can do things no one ever thought I'd do, but I'll never be a high performance athlete. Don't know how much of that is the heart, the beta blockers, or my age (46).

Patch, you sure that's not the viagra?

Performance

by golden_snitch - 2013-02-27 03:02:55

Hi!

My experience is that, if you need the rate response all the time, you have some limitations.
Bicycling is one problem, because there's hardly any upper body movement. Also, very dynamic sports such as basketball are a bit problematic, because the rate response is sometimes too slow to react appropriatly to sprints. You'll probably say that this is a matter of how the pacer is programmed. Believe me, 12 years of experience with rate response (dual-sensor and single sensor) have taught me: If the rate response is programmed so that it reacts appropriatly in everyday life, it will be too slow when you exercise; if it's programmed in a way that's good for exercising, it'll be too fast for activities in daily life. At the moment when I run slowly I'm at 150-170bpm, and when I just walk to the supermarket around the corner or go for a long walk, it's around 120-140bpm. We have really tried everything, all settings the pacemaker allows, but this is the best we get out. So, I had to get used to the faster rates, and now it's ok.

I cannot actually say that I had a performance drop, because my pacemaker placement was related to sinus node modifications, so before the pacer was put in my heart was running a marathon 24/7 with 120-140bpm at rest. BUT I used to be able to play basketball and ride my bike in the years before the pacemaker and the ablations. I was always worn out, extremely tired, but when I exercised my sinus tachycardia was not the problem (but it didn't stop after exercising, sometimes needed hours to get back to the resting rates I mentioned).

So, the ablations and pacemaker have certainly changed my ability to exercise. I can no longer do the sports I used to before all this. At first this was very frustrating, but now I'm trying to concentrate on what I can do instead, running for instance.

Everytime I get to know really active pacemaker patients, it turns out that not one of them needs the rate response feature.

Inga

Thanks Guys...........

by Tattoo Man - 2013-02-27 04:02:16


........................This is the stuff !...Frank,. yup we all need to accept that we have ' Defective' hearts.

Tracey..'Jiggling' may not be advisable...there was never a book titled 'The Patience of the Long Distance Runner '

Snitch RR has to be looked at, and Techies informed

Wayne...great news...does a can (tinnie) of Fosters help ?

Cabg..shame on you...us Brits only do serious postings..Mister Mucky !

IAN MC...crikey I knew you were old but ...August 201.....
...you were born in the time of Roman Emperor Trajan Decius...smashing bloke and such rotten luck getting slain in the battle of Abrittus...I never trusted that Gallus bloke.

IAN,. the Red Leather bound volume will nestle in the Popes safe for his sucessor to peruse...so much reading for the new chap..

Seriously..all new contributions to this thread will provide really useful info for those who do sport with a PM.

Lets face it guys,.. all with PMs who do sport / activity on any level need to wake up every day and be grateful that they can do ANY activity, albeit a little slower.....The great Scottish wise man George Bernard Shaw,..on being informed that an athlete had knocked half a second off the hundred yard dash, came out with the riposte....." And what does this young man plan to DO with this half second ??"

TM...best to you all out there

Those were the days !

by IAN MC - 2013-02-27 04:02:41

No it wasn't a typo; my PM was fitted in 201 AD . The PM club was much quieter in those days but Frank was very helpful at the time .... he started calling himself Electric Frank much later !

Ian

Pacemaker and return of Sports Performance

by Wayneflewis - 2013-02-27 04:02:48

Tattoo Man
I can only talk about my experience so far (5 weeks and 3 days post implant).
I had mine fitted for extreme bradycardia which was complicated by an altheletes enlarged heart after cycling in competetion most of my life.
Pre implant at 61 I started to feel my cycling performance was dropping off at a greater rate than my fellow riders and I was was also suffering dizzy spells, feeling tired and very dispurbed sleep patterns among a range of other classic symptoms.
Now 5 weeks post operation I am already riding easier and faster than I have in the last 12 months. This following a couple of weeks off.
The difference is dramatic.....more energy for less effort, not feeling tired post ride, a definate increase in strength and sleeping like a log.
In sumary, I feel 5 years younger.....

I know that not every one has such a lucky outcome but so far thsi is my story....All the best and stay focussed..

Wayne (Melbourne Australia)

PM and non-return of Performance

by IAN MC - 2013-02-27 05:02:47

Hi Tat .... To add to your world-survey on the subject , I can only talk about my own experience:-

- I was an obsessive runner but my distance running really came to an end after I fainted immediately after completing a 10 mile run in Aug 201

- Had PM fitted 2 days later , diagnosis SSS with HR falling to 20bpm. Like Wayne , I was also diagnosed with a slightly enlarged heart possibly caused by years of distance running

- Started with RR on but , as Inga was discussing. it was no good for me, so I had it switched off.

- My stamina has NOT been the same since having a PM and I now have short periods of irregular heartbeat after running more than a couple of miles...

As Frank rightly says , it could be the underlying condition rather than the PM ( and to complicate matters I had had a cardiac ablation 3 weeks before the PM }

It was good to read Wayne's post though and I look forward to a post from him saying that his performance is now better than it has EVER been !

Tattoo man, send me a copy of your survey results when they are published....leather-bound I hope !

Cheers

Ian

Speaking only for myself....improved performance

by jenny97 - 2013-02-27 09:02:31

I guess it helps that I don't pass out mid-stride anymore :)

I am faster and have more endurance than I did before my PM implant more than 10 years ago. But PM settings have made a difference and when they elongated the AV spacing (I have 2nd and intermittent 3rd degree AV block, VVS, and POTS) I would sometimes start passing out while running again, which would again hamper my performance despite the PM.

Now my settings are in a good place and I'm increasing times and distances. Two weeks ago I ran a half marathon distance for the first time in my life! And a few weeks before that, at my PM check, I learned that I had not had a heart rate over 200 since December 31, despite all my running and training! Since I often would have 10-15 minute spells of HR between 220 and 246, this was huge! (Now I know the PM has nothing to do with keeping my HR lower, but it was still exciting news and seemed to indicate that my heart issues are getting under better control - finally.)

Too early to start running again?

by ma_ku - 2013-02-27 11:02:11

Hi,

Great thread!

I had my first pacemaker put in 8 days ago. I am 41 years old and a keen runner. Since the operation I have been walking between 5 and 10 miles most days at about 4mph. The wound seems to be healing ok and my shoulder/collarbone much less sore than last week.

My diagnosis was 2nd degree heart block (Mobitz Type 2). All the MRI, ultrasounds, fitness tests etc indicate there is nothing wrong with the plumbing of my heart (just the electrics) and no contraindication to resuming exercise. My pacemaker low setting is 50bpm and high setting 150bpm (bit worried about the latter being too low and suspect it will need tweaking up at my next tuning session).

I was planning to start running around 3 weeks post op but am wondering if anyone has managed to start their exercise regime again earlier than this? Would 2 weeks post-op be too soon? I would run for half or less my previous distances at first and obviously stop if there were any discomfort.

Anybody been in the same boat and had any positive/negative experiences resuming exercise relatively soon after the op? My main concern is the PM jiggling about uncomfortably.

Mark

Mark

by Tracey_E - 2013-02-27 12:02:25

Check with your dr before doing anything, make sure he doesn't have a reason to take it easy longer. If all you have is av block, it's probably fine. I found the jiggling to be uncomfortable until 4 weeks or so, but I was out walking the day I got out of the hospital, on a stationary bike by the second week.

If you haven't already been told, you may find the settings they sent you home with aren't conducive to a heavy level of activity. When you start to get your rate up, if you feel odd, take it easy until they can check it out and adjust the settings. It's common to take a few tries to get it just right because they like to make small changes at a time.

Pacer effect on performance

by ElectricFrank - 2013-02-27 12:02:46

While the pacer shouldn't lower performance it is possible that the condition that required the pacer could. Sometimes a virus or other infection can damage the conduction system of the heart, and could also damage the heart wall itself. The pacer may correct the electrical problem, but can't fix a damaged heart wall.

So in this case the pacer is related to the drop in performance, but not the cause of it.

Hope that wasn't too convoluted!

frank

Back in 201AD

by ElectricFrank - 2013-02-28 02:02:41

That was back when I was suggesting standing on a mountain top hoping for a lightning strike ablation. Conventional wisdom was "check with your doctor before you try it".

lan was known as little lanny.

frank

Gonna up the tempo a bit

by ma_ku - 2013-02-28 07:02:56

@TraceyE

I did ask a lot (a lot!) of questions about returning to exercise after implantation and the consultants said that I should be fine given that they did not find any underlying conditions. Main concern is not to damage wound/dislodge wires. My heart doesn't block during exercise apparently, only when at rest so they set the PM up with that in mind. Nurse did a wound check yesterday and all is good there.

You have actually inspired me and I am gonna try some stationary cycling today! Feeling pretty excited about it.

Mark

Mark

by Tracey_E - 2013-02-28 08:02:03

Yay, hope it goes well!! I was chomping at the bit to get active. I found the bike to be a good compromise. Less bouncing than running, more of a workout than walking.

Did it

by ma_ku - 2013-02-28 09:02:24

20K on the stationary bike in 41 mins. About 10% off previous pace but was taking it easy (for me). Felt and feel absolutely great. Major breakthrough. Thanks for the inspiration TraceyE!

ma-ku.................

by Tattoo Man - 2013-03-01 05:03:08


...............................brilliant !

GO............................................

Tattoo Man

You know you're wired when...

Your device makes you win at the slot machines.

Member Quotes

A properly implanted and adjusted pacemaker will not even be noticeable after you get over the surgery.