How fast on 40mpw?

I'm assuming the docs are cool with you adding mileage? And later intensity? If so, definitely keep going.

I do agree on the easy runs via HR. Especially if you've had some injuries. That helps me a ton when coming back from injury and making sure I recover if I'm doing harder runs.

As for a sub 23 5k, or sub 2 half marathon? Maybe, though those race times are not all that equivalent actually. Your 10k suggests a sub 2 in the half could be there with good weather and a bit more training. The 5k will definitely require some more speed practice. But, if what you're doing is working, just keep going and don't put a timeline on hitting that pace this fall. Just see when it happens.

As for easing into intensity, have you considered doing strides or uphill strides once a week? Could help with some quicker paces, but not be too challenging to tax the knees and other body parts.

Thank you for the reply. I started working in some strides in the past few weeks after I learned about them on this forum - the bursts of speed feel good. I noticed after only a week or two my HR response and recovery from strides is noticeably improving.

My doctors don’t approve of some of my weight workouts but they have been very supportive of anything cardio related. Five years ago I couldn't make it up stairs without resting but this CRT device has been a life saver - the docs have been cautious but have slowly increased the devices HR limit from 150bpm to 175bpm to 175+ now.

Hills have been the bane of my existence. When I hit them hard last summer it caused a feedback loop where the wires in my heart started sensing each other and my HR went whacky - felt like someone was punching me in the upper chest. Medtronic came in September and did a lot of tuning to fix the problem but I’ve been hill-shy since. Now that my body is adapting to strides I’ll try hitting some strides up-hill.

I registered for another half marathon at the end of May. Based on how my training runs feel, under 2 hours might be realistic but I need to work on race nerves, hydration and meal/nutrition planning. This morning I tried a Gu gel w/no caffeine 45 minutes into my long run and it made a huge difference preventing a crash at 8-9 miles.

I’m eager to try some 5x400m intervals and build up to a fast mile on the track this spring (my fastest single mile is 7:47). Reading about all the workouts people do here is inspiring.

This week I'm targeting 33 miles.

Cool stuff. When it comes to hill strides, definitely start slow. You don't need the steepest hill around, even a small incline will help. And don't feel the need to race up the whole hill. Just 10 to 20 second cruising up, with full recovery coming down could give you a nice boost.

Interesting the docs don't love the weights. I know heavy training tends to thicken the heart wall and create tons of internal pressure in there. But everything I've read on that has to do with going super hard and heavy. Given the way you write about your training, sounds like you might just be going after basic strength, which seems like it would be good. I am certainly not one to follow all the doctors (half are out of shape and don't know what training even means), but I would err on the side of doing a tad less, rather than a tad more.

Also, that's crazy your device controls max HR. Never even thought of something like that.

Have you looked into the benefits of an all plants based diet for heart issues? It has been known to reverse blockage

Complete heart block is an odd term, it means the electrical system in my heart completely failed so the top and bottom chambers of my heart do not communicate. It is not a physical blockage - aside from a crappy draw of genetics I’m very healthy. The heart muscles became imbalanced over the years compensating which led to heart failure - couldn’t mechanically pump enough blood.

Heart docs encourage high rep weight training but say I’m not allowed to lift over 40lbs. It causes a rapid spike in blood pressure which supposedly isn't good for weaker hearts. I was a competitive gymnast in my teens and still do a lot of chin-ups, which are not doctor approved, and I’ve been lifting weights since I was 12 so even for high reps a 40lbs limit isn’t really realistic for some exercises.

The device controls most of what my heart does. I even have a sleep mode that drops my resting HR from 55 to 45.

40 pounds. Wow. Not much.

Consider getting a 40lb/20kg-ish kettlebell. I remember reading an article years ago about a guy who had a similar weight restriction from his docs. He got the relatively low weight and proceeded to get quite strong on swings, clean and presses, snatches, and other exercises. Could be worth looking into. Of course, I'm a bit biased as I really dig my kettlebells.

FFS, keep your kale and quinoa bullshit to yourself and leave the medicine to the experts. His condition has nothing to do with ‘blockages’.

Hit 34 miles last week but dropped to 30 miles this week because my right knee hurts and I had to cut my runs yesterday and today a little short. This is only my third week over 30 miles and I may have bumped up the mileage too quickly.

Monday: Off

Tuesday: 4 miles - @10:01 min pace, avg HR 130 bpm

Wednesday: 7 miles - @9:37 pace, avg HR 143 bpm

Thursday: 4.1 miles - @10:17 pace, avg HR136 bpm

Friday: off

Saturday: 5.5 miles - @9:31 pace avg, HR 141 bpm

Sunday 9.5 miles - @9:56 pace, avg HR 131 bpm

Signed up for a half-marathon that is on May 12th so I have 10-weeks. It is not a goal race but it would still be cool to be under 2 hrs. My plan is to build my base up to 40mpw in the next 6 weeks and then add a weekly workout into the mix. Is going from 30 to 40 miles in 6 weeks too fast?

Is it reasonable to add track sprint intervals in 6 weeks? I’m hoping track work might improve my stride length. I need to get permission from my cardiologist but intervals might help condition my HR response and recovery as well.

Ran the half in May in 1:56:35 a week after an echocardiogram showed my ejection fraction had dropped from 40-45% to 35-40%. The bad news motivated me during there race, sort of an FU to heart failure mind set. My lungs had some fluid accumulation after the race and my hands were blue and swollen but the pace was faster than I hoped for and 27 minutes faster than my last half.

Cardiologist added spironolactone to regime of pills which has knocked some oomph out of my runs the past few weeks. Hoping my body will adjust. Only able to run 25 mpw because my form gets sloppy when I get out of breath / fatigued and my knee/hip starts to hurt.

Now I am hoping to get under 25min for a 5k on June 28th. My goal of 22:xx 5k by Fall is starting to feel unrealistic - Medtronic makes new device that has adaptive heart pacing so I may be getting an upgrade this year.

Does anyone else on letsrun run with heart failure or pacemaker/CRT?

A few points:

1. Congrats on going sub 2! That's a great accomplishment and you should be proud of not letting your situation block you from achieving your goals...

2. Science is amazing. I can't believe they can build machines that make your heart beat correctly.

3. The idea of running with all that kit hooked up to one's heart scares the hell out of me! I'm sure you and your doctors have it all under control, but man. That's some ballsy stuff.

Congratulations on getting under 2, and here's hoping your condition continues to improve.

As far as your running goes, I have a few thoughts. Runner's knee was a problem for me for a long time; what's your height and weight? If your weight is OK, it doesn't sound like you're building mileage too fast. But in your 40s, and especially if your meds are affecting your fitness, it's possible for some of the ancillary muscles to get fatigued. You might want to look at a basic core routine. I don't do anything extensive or complicated, just some short front/back/side plank variations, but it helps keep everything working together and reduces overuse injuries.

Strides and hills are great ways to introduce some intensity, but they overlap a bit in what they can do for you. If hills cause problems but strides are OK, stick with strides, at least for a while. For the race distances you're targeting, another great way to introduce intensity is adding a tempo run. You don't need to add 400 repeats or anything like that yet. Instead, try adding 30 seconds to your current 5K PR pace, and then try to run around that pace for 5 minutes. If that goes OK, next week make it 6 minutes, and so on. Your goal is to get up to 20 minutes, adding one minute a week. It's OK to break it up into 2-3 segments with some jogging in between, too (so 7 - 7 - 6 when you get up to 20 minutes). It's not supposed to be an intense workout, but it provides the biggest bang for your buck in terms of payoff in racing performance compared to effort.