Bodybuilding and weightlifting after implant

Hello Everyone,

First of all I'm glad I found this site. Many people here give honest and positive information. In particular I have enjoyed reading responses from TracyE and the knotguy. I'm sure there are other great people here too, I'm just getting started. I just had a single lead pacemaker implanted 1-20-15. I am 37 years old and I felt great until 6 weeks ago when I fainted. I have always had a low heartrate, but after many tests my EP recommended I get a pacemaker. The past 6 weeks have been very scary, surreal, etc.

Questions:
1. Does anyone with a pacemaker here shoulder press and bench press? I used to bench press 275lbs for reps and shoulder press over 205lbs for reps. I want to get back to that.

2. Does anyone participate in bodybuilding?

3. Are there many of us with pacemakers under 40 here?


Thanks for any responses,
Josh

13 Comments

Bodybuilders chime in

by Theknotguy - 2015-01-24 02:01:29

I'll let the body builders chime in as I don't specifically do that. It will be the minimum of the standard 4-6 weeks for the body to heal before you can start back into body building. As far as weights go I've got to let the body builders answer those questions.

My doc told me a minimum of 90 days but I was so beat up from the two sessions of CPR that it was seven months before I could get back to "normal" activities. If you're just getting a PM, don't think you'll have to wait that long.

At the seven month period, I had to work for another month to get my body "hardened" to the full activities. Went for two hours at a time at first, then expanded to three. Found a third cracked rib so the count was one broken rib, one cracked rib right away, and another found at five months.

At fourteen months, I'm able to move 26 pound bar stools for cutting into chairs. I lift the stools from storage onto pallets, from pallets to table saw, from saw to work tables, from work tables back to pallets. With 30 stools that's 120 repetitions of lifting 26 pounds at a pop. Then move the pallets into retrieval storage using a pallet jack. No problems with the PM or lifting, but I do sleep good at night.

While it's not the 200+ pounds you've indicated, I do get a good workout and feel good afterward.

Hope the body builders chime in and give you some good numbers.

placement

by Tracey_E - 2015-01-24 04:01:00

1. I do both but nothing close to your weights! I do Crossfit rather than straight body building. I pressed 8 sets of 10 on 75 last week and was pretty darned proud of that :)

2. There are a few bodybuilders here but they aren't regulars, hopefully they will see this and chime in.

3. Well, I was! I got my first one at 27 but I'm 48 now. We have lots of members of all ages, probably more young than old. You'll find that while you are likely the youngest at your dr's office, you're right about average here.

How heavy you can go depends on a few things. Some drs are more conservative than others. I've seen everything from don't lift anything over shoulder height and don't go over 20 pounds (way over the top, imo) to no restrictions at all. Most probably fall somewhere in the middle but my doc falls into the latter category. He said leads are sturdy so stop if it hurts, and don't do anything stupid. So far it hasn't gotten me into trouble. That said, how deep did they put it? If the bar will sit on the device when you clean it, or if the leads are close enough to the collarbone that either the bar or the weight of the bar on the collarbone, will put pressure directly on the leads, then you need to be careful. They're strong and flexible, meant to move with us, but pinching them will cause problems.

If your hr has always been low, you may find that your stamina goes up considerably once you heal.

Welcome! Glad you found us.

should be fine

by Tracey_E - 2015-01-24 05:01:06

As long as your surgeon knew beforehand what you do and said it's ok, then trust him that it's ok! When you're ready to get back to it, I'm sure you already know to ease into it. You'll be able to feel if something isn't right but it sounds like he took good care of you.

The only thing I don't do is ring rows (like an inverted push up). They won't do any damage, but they get so much deeper in the pecs than a lot of other weight-bearing exercises that it aggravates the scar tissue and I'm sore the next day. So, I do something else those days. (my pm is submammary, so under the pectoral)

It always makes me sad to see people live in fear of overdoing it and holding back when there's no need. I hope that my posts help people see that life goes on.

Thank you

by JoshM - 2015-01-24 05:01:43

Thank you The knotguy and TracyE,

Your responses mean a lot to me. You are both very special and I am sure that you are helping many more people than you realize. It's nice to know that I am not alone.

TracyE, my pacemaker is just below my left collarbone…not in deep. I'm not sure about the lead. I mentioned many times to my Doctor/EP that I want to lift weights and he said that he gave me more "slack" in the lead. He also said that I can do anything after I heal. Just not crossing my shoulders over my center (flyes?) too much.
Thanks again. I'm sure I'll have more questions

heart rate

by mtbike - 2015-01-24 10:01:49

moving on from weights, does anyone have any information on whether there is any risk in raising your heart rate. I mountain bike and my rate goes up to 150-160 on steep hills. I asked my cardiologist and the technicians and the answer was "no problems" but it is not just the rate but also the increased stroke volume out of the right side of the heart. i have a fear of displacing the leads. (dual lead pacemaker put in 4 weeks ago for severe bradycardia episodes but no heart damage)

leads

by Tracey_E - 2015-01-25 02:01:13

Once you heal, the scar tissue holds the leads in so well it takes a special laser to get them out. Regularly getting your rate up is good for you, keeps the heart strong. As long as you are otherwise healthy and cleared for exercise, there are no downsides to regularly getting your rate up.

Powerlifting

by ElishaBoxer - 2015-01-25 04:01:44

Hi Josh, I'm also new to this site, and am glad I've found it, I train in many different sports and am always researching other people's experience training with Pacemakers when I start something new.
I have previously done bodybuilding but have recently moved onto powerlifting, hoping to compete this year. I deadlift 300lb and squat 275lb. I DO NOT do any chest or shoulder work though, purely because I have previously damaged one of my leads and have had it replaced. There are now two leads in the one vein and no more room for another lead if I damage the new one, so I am being more cautious.
Do not be overly concerned about damaging the lead though, I do not want to deter you if your cardiologist has said it's ok, I was boxing for 4-5 hours a day (competitively) over a span of a few years so that was the cause of the 'wear and tear'. Just make sure it is well healed before re-starting.
I'm 28 years old now, have had my pacemaker in for almost 8 years

Thank you ElishaBoxer

by JoshM - 2015-01-25 06:01:14

Hi ElishaBoxer,
Thank you for your response. Your lifts are impressive. I appreciate your perspective regarding no chest or shoulder work. Once I get healed, I will have to figure out what works for me. I am so new to this that I can't really offer anyone anything yet. I just want to heal and hopefully I can contribute later.

As for the leads

by Theknotguy - 2015-01-25 08:01:22

Once the leads get imbedded in the heart wall they aren't going to move unless, they were going to move anyway i.e. some unknown problem, you are in some accident that moves them. If you're in that kind of accident, you'll have bigger problems than moving heart leads.

Just don't push it too hard at first. I did and pulled my leads. Hurt like hell, then I had to take it easy for another six weeks because it hurt so bad.

At the year mark I can do whatever I want. No problem with the PM or leads. But the broken and cracked ribs - that's another story - and the chest tube wasn't too much fun either.

The biggest thing was learning about the consistent and strong heart beat. "So that's what it's like to have a good heartbeat!" was my thinking. Feels really good.

Hope your recovery goes well.

Crossfit

by morganmckinney - 2015-01-29 02:01:23

Hey Josh,
I'm 21 and had my pacemaker implanted 1/13/15, so just a few weeks ago, and yesterday 1/28/15 was my first day back at CrossFit. I did everything modified but didn't have any discomfort or pain. There are so many people in the world who've lost limbs and are doing better than they were before, so with that being said, I kept that in mind when working out...if someone with one arm can do a wall ball, I can modify it to one arm, but really focus on getting a deep squat in and exploding so I use as little of my arms as possible. But I did wall balls, sprints, burpees, double unders, modified pull-ups, sit ups, squats—nothing with weight though. If ANYTHING, the only thing that may have bothered me was the sit-ups. I have a check-up today and was going to ask my doctor his opinion. Shoulder press was in the workout and I feel like I couldve definitely done 45# to keep it light and not straining, but I know people were walking on eggshells around me and asking with everything I did if I was "allowed to do that" so I refrained and just did more squats lol. If you're into bodybuilding I'd say use this time to focus on certain muscle groups and definition. I'd significantly reduce the weight and significantly increase the reps. I do CrossFit just because I think it's fun, I'm not trying to compete or anything, but being out for any time at all really takes a toll and makes you feel lazy because now that I feel healed I want to go right back to where I was before, but I know that I can't because I need to give this thing its time to heal. So I know your pain. I've been looking up so much stuff it's pretty ridiculous haha. There's a 75 year old man at my box who has a pacemaker and the only thing he does subpar is running, but as far as weights and body weight movements, you'd never know he has a pacemaker.

Wow Morgan

by JoshM - 2015-01-29 06:01:28

Thanks for the reply. It's incredible that you are already back at it. Good job. The gym/Crossfit is so awesome for the body and the mind. I can't wait to heal and really hammer it. I have been walking, but I'm really gonna give it some time before I start back up with the weights. Thanks for sharing. It's nice to know that I'm not the only person who is under 40, loves the gym, and has a pacemaker.

Fantastic site

by KSolberg - 2015-02-13 10:02:45

Hi!

I'm also new at this site, I'm from Denmark and we have so little experience in this area compared to every other bigger country - thank you for this site and your dedication in answering!

I've had a pacemaker and artificial mitral valve since 93 ( I'm 24 years old), and I have worked out since my late teens and have never had any trouble with benchpress and was peaking at 220 lbs. But now after 6 devices (now sub muscular with three leads) my doctors have said i should lay low with the pectoral training. But after joining this forum and have been reading a lot of posts I begin to think that bench press might be okay to do, I don't say you should overdo it, but as long as you don't feel any tension og weird feelings around your device or leads I don't think it is a problem. I'm going to start training my pecs again - slowly though!

Back to the gym!!!

by Cmandersonrn2010 - 2020-02-15 23:35:06

I am 38 years old and just had a pacemaker put in Dec 12, 2019 for sick sinus with irreversible Bradycardia. I am ready to start back at the gym but I wasn't sure what exercises i needed to avoid. From what I can tell I should be ok to start back with no real restrictions. Today was my first day back and I could tell a big difference in my energy and stamina. It really helped motivate me to want to continue. I'm also glad to see I'm not the youngest one with a pacemaker.  This whole experience was pretty mind blowing with how fast everything happened. I am a nurse and worked three 12 hr shifts in a row making comments about how I felt like I was in congestive heart failure. I ended up going to the ER and  sure enough I was rapidly headed that way. My HR was 32. I was told I needed a pacemaker immediately.  I had always ran low, 40's to 50's but I seemed to compensate just fine. I guess I just quit compensating.  The wild thing is that my 16vyear old son just had open heart surgery 3 months before to fix a birth defect we never knew he had. He had a heart attack earlier in the year and they found an anomalous left coronary artery. It's the second leading cause of death in young athletes. He's a been in wrestling for 10 years. The dust seemed to finally be settling from that when this happened. I guess you can say we are a competitive family lol.

You know you're wired when...

Your heart beats like a teenager in love.

Member Quotes

My pacemaker is the best thing that every happened to me, had I not got it I would not be here today.