david58

Moved from Oregon to New Mexico in February '15, and started riding again after a bit of dieting and weight loss. Then, my wife was diagnosed with cancer, short circuiting a whole lot more stuff than just riding. Aside from the hell of chemo, all went well, and her last chemo was in October.

But just to complicate things, and to put myself at the mercy of the docs, too, I had a heart attack this past June (and likely a silent one before that one).

Been in cardiac rehab since July, trying to get the collateral circulation further developed around the RCA blockage. Recumbent elliptical, and treadmill. Not precisely exciting.

But on Sunday I got my road bike on my trainer, and tonite I actually turned on a Sufferfest video and spun for half an hour. Sufferfest was for entertainment, as I didn't want to very literally kill myself, and the half hour was my max so I could walk tomorrow. Was damned near in tears when I started spinning, it felt so good.

My resting HR is about 45, my target at this point is 80. 80 - wow. But they say I gots to be slow about it. To finish the weight loss, and hopefully to reverse two other partial blockages, I've gone vegetarian, so I'm making changes all over.

But the big deal is just to maybe be able to ride again. I'll not be riding as intensely as before, but I do think that getting back to good Saturday rides and the occasional century here in NM is still possible.

And now for the public service announcement: guys, gals, not every heart attack (actually most) will have the classic symptoms. Mine came on during a hike, with shortness of breath (at first confused with altitude), dull pain in the arms, and aching in my lower teeth. That was it. No elephant on the chest, no chest pain, no pressing urge to take a dump or barf, no sense of impending doom. But things weren't right, and I am glad we decided to come down off the mountain and get to the hospital. Pay attention to your body, and don't say it can't happen to you - my genetics had ZERO heart attacks, and about 90% of us have heart disease to some extent due to our American diet. And none of us are getting out of here alive, no matter how many miles we put in!

B. Carfree

Best of luck with the rehab and renormalizing. Good advice on listening to one's body.

While I've never had a serious medical issue, I was once forced off the bike for a few months when I had my lower leg bolted back together. I remember the sheer joy of turning the pedals again. Being healthy enough to ride a bit is good. Actually riding is great. Have a great recovery.

Rowan

Nice to see that you are still with us, david. Good news about your wife's prognosis, and here's hoping your own situation works it way back to excellent... slowly.

berner

Keep pressing forward David and doing as much as you can as long as you can. I get back to my home town in upstate New York about one a year to see friends and family. Last year, at a neighborhood picnic, I saw an old boyhood friend from when we were 10 y,o. He had a heart attack about 20 years ago at about age 60. He is a few years older than me so now about 81. At the picnic he told me was taking flying lessons with his son-in-law who is a commercial pilot.

RiPHRaPH

No "kinda" about it. You are back in the saddle.. great comeback story. Continued success. How is the wife doing now?