Always had a odd heart beat....which I looked into with an echo a fews ago.
Left Ventricle: The left ventricle is mildly dilated. Left ventricular wall thickness is normal. Normal systolic function
Mildly dilated LV consistent with athletic training, normal systolic function and no regional abnormalities. Normal RV. Otherwise normal echocardiogram
Sort of freaked out abit when googling mildly dilated LV.
I am no heart expert. But I just read about the long term effect of endurance training (like cycling, rowing, running) on the heart. Cycling and rowing can have a greater effect on the heart due to an increased blood pressure (hunched more together, and in running it is a longer way back to the heart so the blood pressure by the heart is less).
The stroke volume of the heart is maximal already at an easy steady pace so all normal running training might in the long term create a larger AND stronger heart. That the wall thickness is normal is good and a natural consequence of being active and running. If you perform resistive activities like weight lifting, etc, the wall thickness can get larger due to a higher blood pressure on the heart. Harder more intense work, but not necessarily creating larger hearts.
We want a good and large stroke volume and we want a large blood volume and we want a high hemo content. All this is good for the max VO2.
I cannot say that a mildly dilated LV is normal for serious runners, but it seems that running in the long term can give a strong and healthy big heart with a good stroke volume.
If you also are one of those having a very low resting heart rate, like down to 40. If you google that, you also might be told this is a sign of a heart failure. Well, it is quite common that well trained endurance athletes have a very low resting heart rate due to a big stroke volume and an efficient cardiovascular system.
I hope some expert could answer you. I would not worry too much... Dr Google is sometimes not the best Doc.
Yeah, if I have issues with my heart, I'll ask on an anonymous message board known for rational talk and reason.
It's runners that normally have these issues.....but thanks for you pathetic input.
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I’m a D2 female runner. Our coach explicitly told us not to visit LetsRun forums.
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