Heart Surgery to Sprint Tri - how many months?

Hope you recover well!

What did your doctor say about when you could get back to training?

Congratulations on getting through your surgery successfully.

I had aortic valve replacement surgery in December 2000 at age 47.  I did a LOT of walking when I first got home.  I was fully active and back at the gym within about 12 weeks, but it took me a long time to get my stamina back again.  In my case I was still feeling the effects of the surgery for 9-12 months afterwards. 

At the same time, I have known others who have bounced back sooner and done half-marathons, marathons and tri's within a year of their heart surgery.  Everyone's recovery time is going to be a bit different.  I think a lot of it is dependent on what kind of shape you are in beforehand; the better shape, the faster you recover.

In my case I had to transition from being a heavy weightlifter to being an aerobic athlete, so a lot of stuff was new to me.  Although I had been an age group swimmer in my youth, I hadn't swum seriously for over 20 years, had never done any serious cycling and had been a sporatic runner.  I initially started doing some cross-training with running and cycling.  I didn't start out with the objective of becoming a triathlete, but was eventually egged on to try it by one of my colleagues at the office.  That was three years after my surgery and got me hooked on triathlons.

I would also endorse Kathy's recommendation to consult with your doctor; mine was very supportive and basically told me that it was okay to do as much aerobic exercise as I could handle. 

Good luck to you.  Hope your recovery continues to go well.  Just take it one day at a time.  If you overdo it your body will let you know.

Mark

I had a stroke and then a cardiac PFO closure procedure.

The issue for me was to let the surgery and cardiac implant "take" or heal into place adequately. The company that manufactuered the implant was not comfortable with me taking it above 120 beats per minute for any length of time. It was designed for use in predominantly sedintary patients.

I had to wait three months for the implant in my heart ot heal into place adequately. If it came loose there is a chance I would not be able to survive that.

I waited 91 days before I ran for the first time. No problems. I raced about a year later- had a good race, felt fine.

The moral: Follow your Doctor's orders and ask questions. If you push the limits the ramifications could be extremely bad. If you aren't prepared to accept the consequences of something going wrong- don't take the chance. Err on the side of caution.

Best of luck.

Just like Tom, I had a stroke and then a cardiac PFO closure procedure. It happened the evening after a Triathlon.

I had the heart surgery procedure in April. I was jogging in June and did a super-sprint in August. Half-Marathon in September. The next season I was back to normal doing my 1st full marathon and HIM.For me the biggest issue was not the heart but the painful cut on the inner thight where the surgon entered the aeorta - it kept me from moving my leg well for 6 weekss.

While the opinions given out on this board are well intentioned, few of us here are medical doctors and even fewer are cardiologists. TALK TO YOUR DOCTOR ABOUT THIS TO GET THE REAL ANSWER.

Just had my one month follow-up from surgery today.  Doctors were incredibly encouraging.  Their recommendation?  This week, start range of motion (especially right arm) exercises.  Next week, start a weight program with light (<15 lb) weights.  In two weeks, OK to add swim/bike/run - starting real slow.  Basic idea is to follow a "couch to __" program for a while.  Not sure how many months  that it will take to get to a sprint tri, but I intend on finding out.

I was fortunate to have a healthy heart going in to surgery - only the mitral valve and Afib were the problems.  Now I have a perfectly normal EKG, with no valve regurg - and feel like I have been given an incredible gift.  If you have never thought about your heart before - be thankful!  It is a pretty important part of your engine, and nice if you can concentrate on other things instead.  Also, if you have never been sidelined - it really isn't fun being inactive!

John