Heart Attack to 10K (part 4.24) - What I can, when I can

Part 4.24 - WHAT I CAN, WHEN I CAN

(Phase VI - sustaining a healthy life-style)

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


As covered over my last few blogs, since returning from the Covid I have never really got back to where was hoping to be, becoming less active, slower and as of result together with my diet slipping, a bit more podgy.

Before Boris separated and isolated all of us I was enjoying some excellent support on group runs of varying distances with many of the 'Your Pace or Mine (YPOM)' (photos) members which kept me progressing and pushing further with my fitness plan, achieving beyond anything I could have dreamt or hope to achieve when I first started out in 2017, improving my weight loss and generally feeling better than I had in years.

Your Pace or Mine and me at Parkrun

The YPOM group sessions was of a great benefit to me pre-Covid at a time when post heart attack I was still re-building my fitness, stamina & increasing my running and I will always be grateful for the support I received during that time.

This all came to a grinding halt when Covid struck but I still managed to get out on my own for many cross-country trail runs of up to 15km and really enjoyed re-discovering some of the more remote parts of the wonderful Chiltern hills (photos). But it was around this time that my paroxysmal (intermittent) Atrial Fibrillation (AFib) [see part 4.17] became more prominent and regular and this in turn interrupted the ability to exercise, having to work around and rest when I was suffering episodes.

I was kinda hoping to pick up where we left off before the pandemic and re-join in the organised runs once it was safe to do so again but I had become very 'stop-start'. I was finding it difficult to keep up when with a group, so only did the one 10km run from Spade Oak where I felt I struggled a just little too much in an attempt to keep up the pace and keep the pack in sight.

Still running (just)
On the other hand, Parkrun [see part 4.20] with all its support and 'free pace' became my 'go-to' although I was still hopeful to get out again for the occasional longer cross-country runs, but had become very wary about attempting this on my own. The problem here is when I have looked for support to do a run that would benefit my own individual odd 'afibrilling' pace it has been short notice due to never knowing when I might go into an AFib episode and the response was generally poor or I was competing with other organised group runs - I ended up feeling very much on my own and did seriously considered leaving the group as I was getting little benefit and frustrated knowing what had been and feeling left out reading all the exploits of those returning to running.

I decided the only way I could continue was to become more self driven, concentrate on myself and 'do what I can, when I can'

I moved into persistent AFib around May 2022, this further knocked back my confidence to go on longer runs as I had become very fatigued, especially in the evenings and unsure if I could complete a run, so I became restricted to doing just the parkruns on a Saturday morning further isolating me from the group that had been so instrumental to my progress pre-Covid.

I was started on Amiodarone (antiarrhythmic drug) early Dec 2022 in an attempt to control the AFib and the feeling of exhaustion all the time, but it took a 2nd cardioversion in Jan 2023 to get back into normal sinus rhythm. Although no longer in AFib I continued to feel very tired a fatigued with a total lack of energy, motivation and confidence to even go a short runs on my own - it's been about all I can do to force myself down to parkrun each week but I’m pretty determined to keep up even a lowish level of activity.

Still 264 days to go ....
After a full day at work, I would often just full asleep on the sofa frequently missing the end of something I particularly want to watch on TV with the evenings becoming a bit of a non-event, my full waking hours seem to be taken up by work. Typically I would have a broken night’s sleep (damn prostate), waking more tired than when I went to bed, go to work, come home and repeat the cycle over & over again with most my physical activity confined to either before work or a lunch time walk. Retirement in March next year can't come soon enough so at least I won't be working to such a structured timetable and will be able to do 'what I want, when I want', at a more leisurely pace throughout the day.

Although the Amiodarone is very effective and did an excellent job controlling the AFib, from which I am thankfully still clear (except for a couple of short episodes), it was not giving the desired result of making me feel more energetic so by mid-May 2023 it was stopped as the risks of some rather nasty life-long side effects where not worth the lack of benefit I was getting and it was never a long term solution anyway - I can't say I'm not sorry to come off this as I had serious concerns from the beginning (a drug that carries a government health warning shouldn't be taken lightly) but it does mean that persistent AFib could make a return again at some point once the drug has cleared from my system, this could take a several months as it has a particularly long half-life with an average of 50 days and a range of 20-100 days.
 
 
I think its official now that things are not getting any better. I am not just running some of my slowest times since I started on parkrun 180 runs ago back in Oct 2017, but following on from a recent exercise tolerance test carried out due to a low resting heart rate in the lower 40's (bradycardia), it looks like I have Chronotropic Incompetence (CI), a form of exercise intolerance. This is where the heart has an inability to increase its rate to commensurate with increased activity or workload demanded during exercise and symptoms include fatigue, tiredness, decreased exercise capacity and light-headedness - I can definitely relate to all of those! My maximum age predicted heart-rate resulted as 61%, with the normal target being 85%. This probably goes some way to explaining my more recent struggles and slower times on parkrun and general lack of energy and confidence to attempt more. After speaking with the arrhythmic nurse it seems there is a strong possibility that I might now need a pacemaker (not the sort that carry little numbered flags around parkrun), though he would like to delay it as long as possible as it would have to be repeated regularly throughout my lifetime due to the battery life with a risk of infection each time - he kept calling me 'young'! - (I like him)
 
My next appointment is with Respiratory Investigation at Wycombe hospital in mid July where I'm to be checked for sleep apnea, a condition where your breathing stops & starts while you sleep. I then have my next cardiologist outpatient in Nov. where I hope future plans will become a bit clearer.

Just wait until I’m battery powered and then see me fly!

Parkrun times post Covid, all time personal best 26:32



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


My full story - from heart attack to half marathon:

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
Part 4.7 - Pushing the boundaries (Phase IV - sustaining a healthy life-style)  click here
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

Next:
Part 4.25 - Life changes (Phase IV - sustaining a healthy life-style) click here

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The rest of the story

Heart Attack to 10K (part 4.1) - Getting FFITer and Harefield & Heartbreak hill revisited

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GETTING FFITer. (Phase VI – sustaining a healthy life-style ) "Nothings going to happen unless you make it happen." I already knew I had an enlarged prostate, but during early April 2017 that I noticed that I was having to visit the little chairboys room a bit more frequently and it was becoming more difficult to pass water. I thought this might be due to a change in medication so mentioned it to my GP on one of my many visits. This prompted the doctor to get a little more intimate with me than I was comfortable with as he gave my prostate a little tickle (you'll probably have to pay extra for that in a house of ill repute!) and he then referred me to the Urologist. A blood test showed my PSA ( Prostate-specific antigen, a protein released from the prostate gland into the blood stream) to be 6.2, this was cause for concern as anything over 4.0 could indicate the presence of cancer cells. Normally, I believe the next stage would be to go for a biopsy, thi...
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Heart Attack to 10K (part 1) - That fateful day.

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THAT FATEFUL DAY. (Phase I – heart attack) Being at a bit of a loose end and with nothing better to do during that dull period between Christmas and New Year (or the Plymouth Argyle & Cheltenham Town matches as my fellow Chairboys & girls would remember it), I decided to go for a walk in the local countryside around the rolling Chiltern hills. Overnight it had frozen, but the bright winter sunshine turned the early frost into a mist persuading me that it might make for some good atmospheric photographs. So, on Wednesday 28 th December 2016 (a date now etched into my brain) I drove out to Bledlow Ridge, parked the car in a side road just after mid-day and set out with my camera on a 6.8 mile walk that by the time I returned to the car would become an adventure I wouldn't forget in a hurry and ultimately have a dramatic change on my priorities and the way I live my life. I had been meaning to walk the Radnage area for some time and with the afternoon bright sunl...
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Heart Attack to 10K (part 4.17) - Get that crazy rhythm (the low down on AFib)

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Part 4.17 - Get that crazy rhythm (the low down on AFib) (Phase VI - sustaining a healthy life-style) "Nothings going to happ en unless you ma ke it happen." I'm not sure who is actually reading this blog or even if you find it interesting or not, with little feedback it can be difficult to know how well it is received.    I'm certainly no expert and just write from my own experiences and what I have learnt by facing or overcoming certain problems as they occur, I hope by writing this blog to raise awareness on matters of the heart so others might consider their own health and fitness needs and seek medical attention, if needed, before letting things get out of hand ..... at the very least writing this stuff helps me to recall my recent medical history & achievements 😉. My biggest concern of late has without doubt been Atrial Fibrillation (also known as AFib or AF) and its quite noticeable from my conversations that many 'non-hearties' have no idea what t...
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Heart Attack to 10K (part 3) - They tried to make me go to rehab, I said yes, yes, yes please

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THEY TRIED TO MAKE ME GO TO REHAB. I SAID YES, YES, YES PLEASE! (Phase III – cardiac rehabilitation) the cardiac rehab team 21 st Feb 2017 and I start phase III of my cardiac event when attending the first of 6 weeks of cardiac rehabilitation classes, but this part of the story really began back at my heart assessment 3 weeks earlier. Besides receiving my pedometer and starting an obsession in counting steps [see part 2], a series of measurements were taken which have since become the base point for tracking my subsequent progress.  My heart rate was 59, blood pressure 153/96, weight 98.2 kg, height 177cm, BMI 31.34 and waist 107cm. The Cardiac Prevention and Rehabilitation Team set long term targets against these measurements – blood pressure <140/90, weight 58-78.3kg, BMI 18.5-25 and waist <94cm. [Care4Today Cardiac Rehab video, this features the actual team I was with ..... click here ] Part of the assessment is to do a ‘shuttle walk test’ during which you w...
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RUNNING THE RIDGE FOR HEARTS & SOULS: LOCAL CHARITY APPEAL

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Heart Attack to 10K (part 4.23) - God bless the NHS

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Part 4.23 - GOD BLESS THE NHS (Phase VI - sustaining a healthy life-style) "Nothings going to happ en unless you ma ke it happen." Just occasionally I like to write something other than about my heart condition, highlighting my appreciation, experiences or support received over the past 6 and a bit years, to this end I have already written special blogs covering Cardiac Rehab , FITT , AFib awareness and Parkrun . Today I would like to show my admiration and gratitude for the tremendous work & service given to me by the NHS , not just for my heart problems but for other aliments I suffered over the same period. Recently I have been reading a 'question & answer' social media platform where the question of health care in the USA gets heavily debated when compared to the UK and elsewhere with 'socialised healthcare' and I admit knowing very little what happens over the pond other than it being 'private' and driven by insurance with terminology su...
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Heart Attack to 10K (part 4.20) - Persisting with parkrun

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  Part 4.20 - PERSISTING WITH PARKRUN (Phase VI - sustaining a healthy life-style) "Nothings going to happ en unless you ma ke it happen." I only intended to write another blog if there was something special or significant to write about; well, since the last blog in May 2022 my AFib (Atrial Fibrillation - heart arrhythmia ) has moved up a level to from paroxysmal to persistent which is a fairly significant change in lifestyle for me and as a result I would like to write my own tribute to just how important parkrun has been, especially through this period of relative inactivity as it has been the only bright spot during a period where I have become concerned about my of lack of exercise, but as crucially how it gave me the opportunity to progress my health and fitness drive soon after I completed both cardiac rehab and the Wycombe Wanderers FITT lifestyle programme in 2017, months after suffering a heart attack. Parkrun has become a constant feature throughout these blogs ...
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Heart Attack to 10K (part 4.6) - Sub 29, attack of the AKI and 1 year old!

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PART 4.6 - SUB 29!, ATTACK OF THE AKI & 1 YEAR OLD! (Phase VI - sustaining a healthy life-style) "Nothings going to happen unless you make it happen." I kick-off this blog still on a high from my two sub 30 parkruns from the previous blog [see part 4.5] .... I was on a roll and living the dream!  Welcome Blue Peter But it was summer so we took a much needed a break and I enjoyed few days away from it all with the Mrs down in Looe on the south Cornish coast, this was always going to disrupt my training schedule but I did manage to at least get out for a daily early morning walk along the coast path to help keep up my average step count and make up for those fried breakfast's, eating out and a couple or more local ales. This was intended as a quiet get away but everywhere we visited I kept bumping into people who wanted to talk 'football', much the my wife's annoyance, but this was not really surprising as the Wanderers were playing in Plymouth th...
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Heart Attack to 10K (part 2) - Back home & drama at White Hart Lane

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BACK HOME & DRAMA AT WHITE HART LANE (Phase II – home recovery) Not the New Year's Eve I had planned but I was home!! 4 to 6 weeks off work, no driving for a month, lots of rest, no lifting – welcome to phase II of a cardiac event. Sounds good but it soon becomes tedious, never mind at last I get to see those photos that had led to all this excitement in the first place [see part 1] and that was about it for the first week or so, sitting in front either the TV or computer or reading a jolly good book I got for Christmas about a tale of a Chairboy who missed that famous FA Cup run* with the odd excursion past a few neighbours houses and back mummified with my WWFC scarf wrapped tightly around my head to keep the cold air at bay. The instructions were simple enough, plenty of rest and start slowly with gentle short walks, a little light dusting etc. and gradually build up the pace and length of the walks and resume normal daily activities over the next 4 weeks. * ...
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