Heart Attack to 10K (part 4.7) - Pushing the boundaries

PART 4.7 - PUSHING THE BOUNDARIES
(Phase VI - sustaining a healthy life-style)

"Nothings going to happen unless you make it happen."

As we approached the 2nd anniversary of my heart attack in December 2018, I'm back at Harefield hospital for my next cardiology outpatient appointment were this time I was seen by the top man himself, consultant cardiologist Dr Dalby rather than one of his registrars or clinical nurses. I had a few points I wanted to get clear in my mind and he was certainly the right man to ask. 

The first was the issue of the beta-blocker [see part 4.6]. He sympathised with my GP and agreed it was probably better for me to remain on a low dose bisoprolol as my bradycardia (low heart rate) wasn't causing problems. But because I had shown signs of Afib during my previous surgery [see part 4.4] and some erratic heart rates on my Fitbit, he wanted to put me on a 7 day ECG holter monitor before restarting the bisoprolol to try and catch the AF, saying the beta-blocker could have been suppressing the incidences on my earlier ECG holter monitors.

Another point I needed advice on was could I be showing early signs of vascular dementia? I briefly touched on my concerns in [part 4.5] and after consulting Dr Google and reading about the condition on-line, I seem to be consistent with some of the symptoms such as: slowness of thought; difficulty with planning and understanding; problems with concentration; mood, personality or behavioural changes (the wife might agree with this one) and feeling disorientated and confused. He didn't dismiss it saying as I had already got CVD (cardiovascular disease) it was a possibility but I would need to be referred to a Neurologist for tests & investigation. This is not something I particularly want but would rather know so as to do something about it sooner rather than later, though reading up on treatments to slow down its progression is down to mostly lifestyle changes which I already have in place, so I shall continue to monitor my condition and take the appropriate action if necessary.

Another subject I wanted his opinion on was exercising in freezing conditions and his consent to run the 10km race I was considering [see part 4.6]. His immediate reaction was to say he didn't want to stop me exercising but to use sensible precaution and not push too hard if feeling any discomfort, freezing air can have adverse effect but he wouldn't want that to dissuade me from exercising. This has given me more confidence to continue exercising through the winter months.

On the 15th Dec I reached a landmark in my parkrun career, making my 50th appearance overall and 49th at Wycombe Rye parkrun. I finished the run in 141st out of a field of 335 in 28:39, my 4th best time. Over those 14 months I achieved 16 PB's taking my times from 37:48 (very first run) to 28:04 (latest PB). It is also interesting to note that after trying so hard to beat the 30 minutes barrier, that in the next 17 runs, 14 have been under 30 minutes of which 5 under 29 minutes! To me this clearly demonstrates that my fitness levels are improving and I think this can be seen in the chart which clearly shows the remarkable progress I have made since starting out on parkrun, with the trend of finishing times progressively getting quicker. None of this would have been possible but for the friendly and encouraging support I have received and there are so many people to thank down the Rye for making this possible, this is without doubt one of the great strengths of parkrun.

Receiving that red '50' parkrun shirt meant so much more than just a number of runs I had completed, it was a badge of honour representing the compilation of 2 years of exercising, slowly building up my fitness levels going right back to those first tentative slow walks down the road and back during my convalescence, then Cardiac Rehabilitation, through FFIT and finally 14 months of parkrun, it had been a long but hugely rewarding and beneficial journey all summed up in one piece of clothing ... and it made a bloody good Christmas present that I wear with great pride.

For my next run the following week I finished just 1 second out from my PB crossing the line in 28:05, this just made me more determined than ever that the next week, the 2nd anniversary of my heart attack and the last run before my tail-walker duties, to break that PB. However I set off way too fast and was actually disappointed with a time of 29:29, yet just a few months before I would have been ecstatic with it.

With the arrival of 2019 it was time to think about New Year's resolutions, or in my case a new SMART challenges. Over the last year I had already cracked the sub 30 minute parkrun and well on course for 5,000,000 steps so was looking for a new challenge to move me forward. With my 10km charity run coming up in May [see part 4.6], the natural progression was to start to extend my running so over the Christmas holiday I joined a few runners from the 'Your Pace or Mine' facebook group, a great initiative set up by Stuart Wheeler & Warren Bennet. I set out with the intention to just run more than 5km which is the best I had done since the heart attack, in the end I managed 10km along the Thames path, this was the furthest I had run since the 1993 Wycombe half marathon and I coped far better than I expected and in fact I was starting to regret volunteering to tail-walk the next parkrun as I was buzzing and raring to go again. Running together with a group you hardly notice the increase in distance and it becomes a nice social get-together with each supporting one another.

This led nicely to my next SMART challenge when I decided to 'Push the Boundaries' - "to increase the amount of running each week to improve my endurance with the target to run my first 10km race by May this year and the intention to compete in a half marathon by autumn 2019."

For the next couple of weekends to make up for the lack of running on the parkrun, where I recorded my slowest times yet of 1:05:55 and then a little better 51:30 as the tail-walker, I joined in with the early Sunday morning running posse again. First off was a run around the Penn 7 route where old running coach/buddy Andy King helped me around the 11.2km road route before the next run where I amazed myself by running 12.7km up and down the mainly off road undulating Chiltern hills including a quick pit-stop to take in Roald Dahl's grave at St Peter & St Paul's parish church in Great Missenden. Not only did I set a new longest distance on this run but broke the 5,000,000 step challenge for year 2 since my heart assessment back in 2017 .... still with 18 days to spare until the end of my '2nd cardiac year'.

Achieving these longer runs has only been possible due to the fantastic support I've received through the local running community and during this time I've formed many new friendships but there is one in particular. Ann Smith, who only started running last Sept., has helped to keep up my motivation when the going gets tough but more than this we also have a common connection in that Ann lost her husband a few years ago to a sudden heart attack, leaving her with two young children. This is something I can relate to having lost my father when I was 7. I like to think we have formed a special bond with a kindred interest so it pleased me that she is not only willing to join me on the 'Ridge Off Road 10k' but also happy to help with the fund raising in aid of Hearts & Souls.

In the meanwhile I got in touch with Hearts & Souls to let them know of my plans and got the kindest replies and support, it really is like arranging an event with an old friend. This is not some large national organisation but just a local charity trying to offer the best service possible for local people who have been through heart problems. I also contacted the race organisers and again the support and interest in my story behind this challenge has been amazing with offers to help publicise the cause.

The next parkrun was my only actual 'run' in January and I was interested to see if the extra running had made any difference to my parkrun. Wearing the 7 day ECG holter monitor from Harefield hospital, I set off as I normally do but was quickly running alongside Ann, having reached the 2km point in a good time Ann took control and kept me going for the remainder of the course where I would have eased back with a barrage of 'words' of encouragement (I like to call it nagging) which saw me come in for an incredible PB of 27:47 for rare chance to ring the 'I done well bell' - this was 17 seconds faster than my previous PB 16 weeks earlier and the first under 28 minutes!

I met up with Ann and a few others the following morning for yet another long run, this time led by Rod we followed the Thames basin out from the Spade Oak towards Maidenhead. Even though it was mainly a flat route, again I amazed myself by 'pushing the boundaries' even further, though I did need Ann's special 'words' towards the end. On returning to the car park at Spade Oak we had run 15.2km!

I was beginning to feel that wearing the ECG holter monitor was going to be a waste of time. Since starting more regular and longer runs the symptoms I had been showing had practically disappeared, I hadn't really noticed any palpitations and all my pulse traces all looked normal. I want to put this down to running and now wondering if I really need to be on the beta-blocker. I next visit the Cardiologist in March and it will be interesting to see what he makes of my progress.

Hearts & Souls are based in Wycombe hospital and set up to raise over £20,000 each year to support the Cardiac Rehabilitation team by funding the exercise classes, equipment and specialist trainers, and as I have found out through my own experience this is an invaluable service. When you've been through a cardiac event your confidence is hit really hard and you fear that attempting even the most mundane tasks could be over exerting yourself and lead to another heart attack. I have been through the rehab twice now and both times they removed that fear and restored my confidence that I could go on a still lead a normal life and push those boundaries even further. The local running community have been brilliant and encouraged me beyond anything I would have dared attempt on my own and I'm am pleased to be join by 3 friends who I met through parkrun. As well as Ann we are also to be joined on the run and fund raising effort by Theresa Ball and Warren Bennet and I really do appreciate your backing and support.

Please, please, please do support us as we 'RUN THE RIDGE FOR HEARTS & SOULS' by visiting our JustGiving page at ... https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/runtheridge-heartsandsouls - you never know when you or a loved one might be grateful for their help.

Never mind pushing the boundaries, I think I broke them on Sunday 27th Jan. Following my 3rd tail-walking parkrun were I set a new PB as the rear ender guiding a tourist from Braintree over the line in 49:44, I joined Rod and the motley crew for another amble along the Thames. Again we set out from the Spade Oak but this time headed up stream after crossing the Bourne End rail bridge and headed for Temple via Winter Hill, here we crossed the river and return via the north bank. By the time we reached Marlow I was starting to struggle developing a slight chest ache and it took some extra special 'words' from Ann and a few puffs of the magic (GTN) spray to get me back to the start where we had covered an incredible 16.3km!!!!. Some of the pain was probably self-induced, while walking on the parkrun the day before I noticed I was getting some angina pain and thought little of it, but it occurred again while walking to football that afternoon before I realised I had forgotten to take my Nitrate tablet that morning and it would seem I was still suffering a hang-over the next day, if nothing else it proves how effective the pill is.

January has been all about 'pushing the boundaries' and besides FFIT Xtra, parkrun, lunch time walks and the longer Sunday morning runs I also joined my former FFIT team 1 buddy Paul Szefer on a couple of Thursday evenings for a local 6-8km runs in the dark as he tries to improve his distance running. We have again been joined by Ann who just never seems to stop running and is developing a disturbing like for mud (might be as well looking through some of the Ridge Off Roader photos).

 
END OF YEAR 2 ROUND UP:

That just about brings me up to the end of year 2, the 2nd anniversary of my Cardiac Rehab heart assessment on 30th Jan 2017 when I started recording my progress. So, have I moved forward in the last year, I think so though my weight loss has slowed right down but without doubt I am feeling far fitter than I have in years as proven by my increased running.

WEIGHT LOSS:

As the start of the year I was continuing to lose weight at a steady rate, this seem to change after the summer break where my will became a little weaker and I started to give in to the odd treat. Since then I have been battling with myself and have managed to more or less keep to a stable weight though I would really like to get back on track and at least reach the upper target weight. It's a case of so close and yet so far!


STEPS v CALORIE BURN:

A new SMART goal I set myself during the year was a minimum calorie burn rate, I introduced this at 2736 per day in Mid Feb and increased it to 2800 in early Sept. this was coupled with a minimum 10,000 steps per day.

On the chart the red line is the step count while the green line is the calorie burn, on the whole both targets were met with only the 2 dips significantly below the targets, both these were when I had over night stays in hospital (proving that a stay in hospital is bad for your health). The step count has shown more consistent high towards the end of the year where I increased my running so I hope to see this trend continue.

Total step counts:
Year 1 ...  4,046,492 average 11,086 per day (2023.25 miles)
Year 2 ...  5,270,911 average 14,440 per day (2635.46 miles)




Heart attack to 10K pictorial record - click here

Thank-you for reading and I would love to hear your thoughts on any subject I have covered, please leave your comments below or email me at peterjemmett@aol.com


Previous:
Part 1 - That fateful day. (Phase I - heart attack)  click here
Part 2 - Back home & drama at White Hart Lane. (Phase II - home recovery)  click here
Part 3 - They tried to make me go to rehab, I said yes, yes, yes please. (Phase III - cardiac rehabilitation)  click here
Part 4.1 - Getting FFITer and Harefield & Heartbreak hill revisited (Phase IV - sustaining a healthy life-style)  click here
Part 4.2 - Walking for heart & soul & finding parkrun (Phase IV - sustaining a healthy life-style)  click here
Part 4.3 - End of year 1 round-up and assessment (Phase IV - sustaining a healthy life-style)  click here
Part 4.4 - Falling heart rate: fitter or hibernation? (Phase IV - sustaining a healthy life-style)  click here
Part 4.5 - Pain in the bum, going senile and sub 30! (Phase IV - sustaining a healthy life-style)  click here
Part 4.6 - Sub 29, attack of the AKI and 1 year old (Phase IV - sustaining a healthy life-style)  click here

Next:
Part 4.8 - Bling, bling, bling, two 10K's and a 5K. (Phase IV - sustaining a healthy life-style)  click here
Part 4.9 - 3 Years On, Ragged Radnage and Pete's bolus journey (Phase IV - sustaining a healthy life-style)  click here
Part 4.10 - Coping with COVID-19 and what they say (Phase IV - sustaining a healthy life-style)  click here
Part 4.11 - Living in the lock-down (Phase IV - sustaining a healthy life-style)  click here
Part 4.12 - Plus and minus 3.5 years; heart attack to half marathon! (Phase IV - sustaining a healthy life-style)  click here
Part 4.13 - Is it worth the risk? (Phase IV - sustaining a healthy life-style)  click here
Part 4.14 - Mixed bag through Covid (Phase IV - sustaining a healthy life-style)  click here
Part 4.15 - Getting back in the groove (Phase IV - sustaining a healthy life-style)  click here
Part 4.16 - Reintegrating back into society (Phase IV - sustaining a healthy life-style)  click here
Part 4.17 - Get that crazy rhythm (the low down on AFib) (Phase IV - sustaining a healthy life-style)  click here
Part 4.18 - The 5 year itch, time to cut the CRAP! (Phase IV - sustaining a healthy life-style) click here
Part 4.19 - The last word (Phase IV - sustaining a healthy life-style) click here
Part 4.20 - Persisting with parkrun (Phase IV - sustaining a healthy life-style) click here
Part 4.21 - Stuck in reverse (recap of 2022) (Phase IV - sustaining a healthy life-style) click here
Part 4.22 - Starting all over again 6 years on (Phase IV - sustaining a healthy life-style) click here
Part 4.23 - God bless the NHS (Phase IV - sustaining a healthy life-style) click here
Part 4.24 - What I can, when I can (Phase IV - sustaining a healthy life-style) click here
Part 4.25 - Life changes (Phase IV - sustaining a healthy life-style) click here