Back to running…Confused dot Com

Hi all,
This is my first posting so forgive me if this has been discussed elsewhere.

I am getting conflicting guidance about when I can resume running following implant 6 days ago.
The hospital where the op was done I'm sure said ok to start back after a couple of weeks but not to go over the top. No swimming golf etc for 6 weeks.
Just had first PM check at another (local) hospital but they were talking about not even beginning to run for 6 weeks. THis was generic advice concerned with wires needing time to become embedded, not tailored specifically because of concerns about me particularly. (The pumps fine but the electrics were dodgy and I'm pretty fit for age and setting Personal bests a few weeks before implant, if you ignore the ones from my teenage years).

I have also read, I think on this site, about one member who ran the same night as implant.
My partner is of course particularly concerned as you can imagine.
Many thanks for any guidance and for the site in general
Nick

6 Comments

back to running

by PAMMY - 2014-11-19 02:11:56

Hi Nick

Welcome to the PM club - you will get a lot of good advice from this forum as I did before and after having my PM. I am also a runner and was told I could start running about 3 weeks after the implant which i did without any problems. I have done London a few times (pre PM) and used to get good for age entries (which is easier for a woman) but unfortunately since the PM (Oct 2013) I haven't got up to that sort of mileage. This isn't due to the PM but because I seem to be having continuous calf problems and as Ian above says we runners are not very good at exercising patience! I have only managed a few 5 and 10ks but hopefully early next year I will complete a half marathon. I haven't run for the past 5 weeks due to my calf and am getting really frustrated!!
Good luck with your training and keep posting so we know how you're getting on with the training.
Pam

Running After PM

by PeteFindlay - 2014-11-19 04:11:42

I started 'power walking' after a couple of days, and carried on doing that for the first 3 weeks. I found I was setting new walking goals, and was typically doing around 5 mi, and managed to crack over 5 mph, without the jarring of running! Gets the heart rate up, keeps your arm moving, without exceeding the movement restrictions. Following an interim check to tweak my settings at 3 weeks, they said I could start 'gentle' running. I left it for a full 4 weeks to be safe - and because I was quite enjoying my marches anyway - then started running.

For the next couple of weeks, I found I could really feel the PM 'bouncing' in my chest when I first set off on a run. Not painful, but not comfortable. I actually found that this discomfort largely wore off a few minutes into the run. As others have said, the main thing is to take it steady and listen to your body.

How do you feel?

by KAG - 2014-11-19 10:11:32

That weighs into when to resume normal activities. As Sparrow said activity is great and I think the best medicine in recovery is to get back to normal as soon as you're up to it.

The 6 week rule is good to allow time for your wires to set in good.

You'll hear a wide variety of recommendations on everything from exercise to what devices to avoid (as in what can interfere with your PM). Remember that many Dr's aren't used to dealing with more active people, so they dispense info based on that and usually set your PM to what works for non-active people.

So if you feel fine, go for it, start out slowly and build up. If you feel fine, great, get on with your life. If you don't feel fine and they say that your PM is working fine, remember that means that your PM is doing exactly what it is programmed to do. Whether that programming is optimized for you is another question.

restrictions

by Tracey_E - 2014-11-19 10:11:55

The only restriction I had was with weights and raising the arm above shoulder level. The rest was whatever I felt up to. The impact from running was too much for me for a few weeks, but I was able to walk and use the recumbent bike right away. Try it and see how you feel.

Listen to your body

by IAN MC - 2014-11-19 10:11:58

Hi Nick I see from your bio that one of your main concerns is to do a good time in the 2015 London Marathon so that you will get a guaranteed entry in 2016.

The 2015 London is not until April 26th and it's not December yet so, assuming that you are fairly fit now, you have got loads of time to train and the PM should not interfere with your training.

As to when you resume serious training I suggest that you slowly jog a couple of miles in week 3 , see how you feel and build up from that. The action of running is not likely to displace a lead so I don't understand at all why your hospital should discourage you from running until week 6 .

Runners are not good at exercising patience with any kind of injury but, as you know, sometimes we have to !

Best of luck

Ian

Many Thanks

by Nick.k(uk) - 2014-11-20 05:11:50

Many thanks to all of you for your responses.
The implant happened rather suddenly (they had a cancellation whilst I thought we were still discussing the need for it) so I have been trying to catch up knowledge wise and sadly did not find this site until post implant.

I will give it until the 3rd week before some gentle work on the treadmill.
I thought I had my return to exercise sussed along the lines you guys have outlined above until the second hospital threw me the 6 week abstinence curve ball.

I have just got back from the first longish walk which I could not do prior to yesterdays PM check as they had initially set the thing to respond to movement too much and a little walk resulted in rapid heartbeat (on a par with a hard run)and feeling yuk. They toned this down yesterday and I knew by the time I got through the hospital doors that things were better. I asked if they could switch this feature off entirely and one technician seemed in favour but the senior one urged caution, so we shall see.

Once again many thanks for sharing your experiences and wisdom it has been/will be a great help.

I'm sure many of you felt similar stuff but it seems that, because the implant is now seen as a routine procedure the medics seem to have lost sight that psychologically it is still a big thing for us and our loved ones.
xxx nick

You know you're wired when...

You run like the bionic man.

Member Quotes

You'll come to peace with it in time.