Forums >General Running>Heart Attack didnt hold me back
Hello all,
Im a forum newbie ( first time poster here...woot! )
I had a heart attack a few years ago due to poor diet and never any exercise. I was only 38 years old. Now every day I view as a gift and strive to push myself to make sure I live it to the fullest. I decided to come up with a plan to lose my weight by working my way up to basically running a 5k per day. I hope to stick around and learn from the veterans and more experienced runners of this site on diet, running techniques and value opinions of everyone. I just got my motivational website up and going www.mikiedoo.wix.com/5kadaymike
I also just made my youtube video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mQD6meQrVoQ
If any of you get a chance to check it out I appreciate it.
Anyway I just wanted to say hello.
Mike
Congrats on the life change and good luck on your journey! Great before and after pics. What a difference!
Now about that website... The white text on that bright red is horrible for readability. I had to stop reading your bio page because it was burning my retinas. If you could put a large black box behind the content like you do on the "Before Photos", "After Photos", and "For You" pages, that would fix that. Toning down the brightness of the red might be a good idea too.
I don't know if you chose 3.2 on purpose or not, but a 5K is 3.1 miles.
WordPress Speed Guides: my personal website with speed and seo guides
vincoding.com: repository of useful code snippets that I've saved over time
Glad you survived, Mike. Welcome to the icing on the cake portion of your life!
Lot's of good runners here (I'm not one of them, but I do pretend to be when my wife is at work), and a lot of solid advice to be mined. We even have a few resident docs and scientists who help us keep our feet on the ground. My advice to you is research and read about running, and make informed decisions about training, and don't be afraid to ask questions. The only posters that will have a hard time here are trolls and spammers. As a beginner, you should be easing yourself into running. Run easy, don't run a pace where you can't speak comfortably. Work on building total duration for the week. Don't increase the amount too quickly. A heart rate monitor is a great way to keep yourself in check in the beginning, and also an easy way to measure progress (increased speed at the same heart rate). Research heart rate training. Walking is your friend, and can help running. Always rest when feeling exhausted. Recovery is a huge part of progressing. Read up on: rest and recovery, proper pacing, aerobic, anaerobic, base training, tempo runs, cruise intervals, long runs, hard/easy training, and check out the McMillan Calculator and Team Oregon Pace Wizard (good tools to help with pacing). It also helps to watch a little TV and a few movies, so you can add to those particular threads.
Like the website and video. It shows you're getting consciously creative about your life. With all the stuff coming at us these days, it takes vigilance to stay awake and see life as a creative journey. Keep going! One day, one run, one step at a time.
Baby steps?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ncFCdCjBqcE
--JImmy
Ludwig Classic Maple
Hi Mike,
This is my first post here too. I had my heart attack in November 2007, the Sunday after Thanksgiving, I was 47 and I had 4 stents implanted. I looked at your website and it looks like you've made some good progress. Being that we are in similar situations, I am rooting hard for you.
I just ran the Mt. Sneffels Marathon in 3:57:59 and I took 2nd in the M 50-59 division. It wasn't that fast, but it was a small race and I'll gladly take it. I think you can run whatever distance you like eventually. Just make sure you are properly hydrated and avoid getting overheated. I was on a lot of the same med's you are, and I found they seemed to make me more thirsty. Watch your BP. As you run more, your BP will go down and you may need to drop the Lisinopril. My doctor took me off it completely. When I run long (>20 miles), I have to skip my Carvedilol (for you Metoprolol) beta blocker because it's easy to faint if you combine the two. Also, I know it goes against conventional wisdom, but I got rid of my heart monitor a long time ago. My resting pulse is down in the high 30's to low 40's from all the running. I just found that tracking my pulse while running was distracting, and I enjoyed the runs much more when I ditched the heart monitor.
I hope you find some of these tips useful. Above all else, have fun! Running is a great way to live!
Marathon PR: 3:25:35 Fall Classic, 2014
1/2 Marathon PR: 1:35:59, Mt. Sneffels Half Marathon, 2014
Thanks to all of you for your valuable comments and info. I will definitely look in to changing the website colors for easier viewing.
Sbpbrent, Great info on the meds and I am totally inspired by you and your journey.