Is running bad for the heart?

It's so relative.

I can run 3 miles at 9 min/mile pace and it will feel pain-free and effortless breathing slowly through my nose with my heart rate at 55-60% max.

But Mr. Joe American Fatbody could run 3 miles at that same 9/mile pace and they will be beet red in the face and huffing and puffing with sh*tty form and knee pain with a heart rate around 92% max.

The effort and strain on my heart and body from running is similar to a normal person who is going on an easy walk.

So, how can you give one-size-fits-all advice about milage?

People may have questions about running, but there's no doubt that beans are so good for your heart that people sing their praises:

All I know is that my cardiologist wants me to keep running. I have major calcium build-up in my arteries

Let this sink in one and for all: anything done in excess is BAD for you. Period.

Now go run for 30-45min a few times a week eat a decent diet, drink a few beers and live life to the fullest.

Its not complicated.

But doing things in excess feels so good. If it feels good, do it.

I think the marathon is an interesting case because you lose high end power relatively early, but can hang on to fast marathons for a lot longer. E.g. the 50 year old guy who ran 15:00 in his youth might run 16:00+ now, but can still run a low 2:30s marathon. IMO the 16:00 workouts aren’t nearly as stressful to the heart as the 22 mile hard long run — you’re limited by aging muscles/tendons first.

Just seems like something you should be aware of if you’re a master at risk of heart problems. If you’re under like 40, who cares.

Running is great for your heart.
Bad if you got vaxxed.

Not sure if this book has been mentioned in this thread: Read The Haywire Heart. Talks about endurance athletes and the effect on the heart.

There is more info on some other threads but, yes, there is good data that shows endurance athletes do tend to have calcium build-ups and thus increased risk of heart attacks (but also are more likely to survive them).

I posted on this thread in 2018; I am one such survivor. I had no other risk factors at all. The endurance athlete/calcium link is the only way I can rationalize why it happened to me. And, yes, my cardiologist is happy to have me still running.

One link about the research:

news-medical.net

Physical activity may hasten plaque build-up in the coronary arteries, finds research

Physical activity may paradoxically hasten the build-up of calcium deposits (plaque) in the coronary arteries, the amount of which is used to assess future cardiovascular disease risk, finds research published online in the j...

Link:www.news-medical.net/news/20210921/Phy...

50,000 non-runners can die of a heart attacks and no one thinks twice. One runner dies of a heart attack and, “It’s because be ran!”

Once again, sedentary people grasping for a reason to feel good about themselves for not being active.

Hard marathons (and the training involved) for over 50s is obviously unhealthy.

You sure you didn't mean hard-ons?

Plaese guys stop that nonsense about miles. It's about duration and intensity.

My cardiologist says endurance athletes have a chance of the thickening of arteries/calcium buildup after decades, but it’s just something to be aware of and periodically check. She still encourages me to continue running.

This is true. These for example:

Person A) 40 miles per week at 9-minute mile pace by someone who is clumsily pounding the pavement, red in the face, huffing and puffing with a heart rate of 89% max.

Person B) 40 miles per week at 9-minute mile pace by someone who is effortlessly gliding over soft dirt while breathing easy and relaxed with a heart rate of 60-65% max.

Are we to believe that these 40-mile weeks are having the same effect on these two people?

For those who care to read....

Coronary Artery Calcification Among Endurance Athletes | Circulation (ahajournals.org)

You were never the sharpest tool in the box blugh