Andy and his wife

Episodes of AF interrupt marathon training

Since experiencing exhausting episodes of atrial fibrillation (AF) while exercising, Andy has been battling uncertainty, wondering when it might occur again. Despite this, he is determined to complete his goal to run the Rotorua half marathon.

Having re-trained in his late 40s to work from home as a personal trainer, Andy had spent the last decade or so maintaining his fitness. It was something that came easily after a life spent working out, running and playing football.

Last November, Andy had begun training to run a half marathon in Rotorua.

“One day I went out for a training run, and I just felt absolutely shattered, no energy whatsoever. My breathing was fine, but I just didn’t have any energy. I ran a little bit, just shattered, walked, ran a little bit, shattered, walked.”

Once home, Andy’s wife, a nurse, checked him over but couldn’t find anything much amiss. He just looked a bit pale, and she told him it might be ‘one of those things’.

Two days later after running for just a kilometre, Andy felt the same devastating fatigue. He headed home for a rest before getting on the treadmill in his studio. By then he felt fine, so he thought little of it. Again, his wife couldn’t find anything wrong, so she suggested he make an appointment with the doctor.

Sent to hospital

With his wife away in Perth for a conference, Andy headed in to see the doctor on his own. After seeing the results of his electrocardiograph (ECG) at the doctor’s surgery, the nurse asked Andy to wait while she sent his ECG for review by a cardiologist.

“The nurse looked at the ECG and said, ‘That’s a really weird rhythm, I’ve not seen that before.’ She told me it was a good thing I was so fit, otherwise I wouldn’t be walking around.”

Sure enough, the cardiologist asked for Andy to come in to hospital for monitoring. Andy found a quiet corner to call his wife in Australia and break the news that he was heading into hospital.

Within 12 hours of monitoring on the emergency ward, Andy’s heart skipped into atrial fibrillation (AF) - something Andy himself didn’t notice.

“I didn’t know I’d gone into AF, I didn’t feel that my heart was beating irregularly or anything."...

Diagnosis of atrial fibrillation

Andy was told that he has a type of irregular heartbeat that comes and goes, called paroxysmal atrial fibrillation.

“The first thing I thought, being a personal trainer, keeping fit all my life and looking after myself, was ‘why me?’

To check there was nothing else going on with his heart, Andy went on to do a stress test on a treadmill and various blood tests, all of which showed nothing untoward.  

“The only thing was the echo [echocardiogram] showed an enlarged left atrium, and again, I’m looking at the research and endurance athletes even in their 20s have enlarged left atria.

“After the stress test I was allowed home to return as an outpatient for a CT coronary angiogram (CTCA) scan. Once back at home I started to do some research on AF and specifically what I had experienced.

“I’ve done a lot of reading and research since then and this sort of AF can appear in athletes. They’ll have a couple of weird attacks and then nothing.”

A dose of his own medicine

Andy went back into hospital as a day patient for a CTCA scan. This is a test where contrast fluid is injected into your blood vessels which the CT scanner can track as it flows through the body’s circulation.

“They use a big motorised syringe to inject contrast fluid into your blood stream. Obviously the CT scanner is going all the time scanning your heart. The contrast fluid lights up your coronary arteries, so you can see if they’re blocked or restricted in some way.”

In the past, as a Biomedical Engineer, Andy had worked on many types of medical equipment. He’d not expected that one day that same equipment would be used for his benefit.

“It was quite funny because I used to service the injectors that they use, so I was getting my own medicine back.”

Andy is still waiting for the test results, and in the meantime, he’s been put on a beta blocker medication to further slow his heart rate down.

“Because my wife’s a nurse, we sat down and talked about the AF. Obviously I had it twice when I was running, something weird when I saw the doctor and once in hospital, but the fact is, I’ve only had two episodes that affected me and they could have been one-offs and it may not happen again. And with the medication I’ve been given, that’s relaxed my heart so it might not happen again. But we don’t know.”

Easing back into exercise

“Every time I do any exercise, I’m thinking to myself, ‘Is it going to happen now, is it going to happen now?’ That’s obviously something that psychologically, I’ve got to deal with. So it’s always in the back of my mind.”

“I’ve started running again, I’ve been running on the treadmill fine at home. I’m quite lucky that I’m a personal trainer, I’ve got the gear here in the house so I can get back to running in a controlled environment. And also, my wife’s been with me every time that I’ve run on the treadmill.

“The big thing for me was to actually go outside again for a run because you think, ‘Is it going to happen again?’ I went outside for a run the other day, I only did 5 ½ km and I was fine. When I went out my wife actually followed me in her car and stopped every so often to check I was all right. So that was good. Now I feel more confident to go out and run.”

Overcoming uncertainty

“It would be so easy to say, ‘Oh no, this has happened to me, I can’t carry on, if I do it’s going to happen again.’ And that would be wrong. Because as far as I’m aware, all the tests have shown that my heart is healthy and physically there’s nothing wrong with it – apart from the large atrium, and many endurance athletes have got that. On the report it actually said, ‘athlete’s heart’.

“So it would be wrong for me to curl up in a ball and stop doing what I enjoy just because I’ve had these two or three little episodes.”

Training again for the Rotorua half marathon

Andy says he’s just going to keep going and keep his fingers crossed. He’s now training again for the Rotorua half marathon, although he’s not exercising as aggressively as he used to.

“I’ve got my Holter monitoring for a weekend in the middle of Feb, and after that I’m seeing the cardiologist, so hopefully that’ll go OK.

“I’ve got a trail run at Ruapehu at the end of February, that’s what I’m trying to get back to. It’s only 16 km so that shouldn’t be too strenuous because it’s mostly on the downhill.

“And then in May I’ve got the Rotorua half marathon, so I want to get back to running that sort of distance.

“Life’s for living, definitely, and this sporadic thing that’s happened to me, I don’t know if it is going to happen again but I can’t let it rule what I do. I’m going to carry on and pay close attention to what my body is telling me.”

 

Update June 2018

Unfortunately, due to a badly timed arrhythmia, Andy didn’t get to complete the Rotorua half marathon, but he continues to lead his active lifestyle through a mixture of regular running and weight training.

 

Update January 2019

As 2019 begins, Andy is training almost as he used to pre-incident.

“I had a little issue where my heart rate stayed at around 161 while doing an interval training session, but it came back down when I stopped running and just walked.” Said Andy “So I’m learning to adapt, and I always use a sports watch now while training.”

Andy is getting ready for a 10km run in May as part of the Rotorua marathon races, which is all going well. He also did 150km over November 2018 for Movember, in a sponsored run for depression and suicide prevention.

Please note: the views and opinions of the storyteller and related comments may not necessarily reflect those of the Heart Foundation NZ.

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13 Comments

  • Pete 21 August 2023

    I was diagnosed with AF in 2019, alway been active running and cycling. Now 60, not running but cycling. Went into constant AF about 2 years ago. On tablets.
    Recently changed diet to Mediterranean and upped cycling to 5 days a week. Some hard sessions. HR showed 200 plus on monitor but felt ok so kept going. Resting HR was about 100. Suddenly this week I can hear my heart in my head when in bed and sounds normal. HR has dropped to 38 resting and on the bike only reaches 110 - 120. I’ve lost a stone in weight through dieting. Can AF be reversed????

  • Robert 31 May 2023

    Thanks for your story. 
    I am a master Race Walker and was doing a local 3K race walk Sunday morning.  The last 1k I was fatigued (of coarse!). About 5 minutes after the race walking to my car, I got dizzy and had to sit down in the parking lot.  After a few minutes I got up but got dizzy again.  I took the back roads diving home and have to pull over 2 times because of dizziness.

    The next morning (yesterday) I went to the walk in clinic and they confirmed I was in Afib and sent me to the hospital next door.  I was in the hospital from 8am to 2pm but they sent me home with 3 medicines. 

    I am registered to race walk in the National Senior Games in Pittsburgh on July 7th and 8th.  Your stories give me hope I can still do that, but we shall see.  I will start regular walking tomorrow as the Doc said start again the 2 or 3 days at a moderate pace.  I feel better now that my heart rate has drooped and my Sense Fitbit is not show Afib right now.

  • Mark 22 April 2023

    I was diagnosed with AF in 2018 when i was 40 and at the time was an active half marathon/marathon runner. Over the course of the next 3 years i had 3 cardioversions and continued to drink alcohol on a weekly basis ie. more than a bottle of wine maybe twice weekly. My last cardioversion was November 2021 and i decided to cut down in drinking alcohol. I no longer drink excessively and limit my alcohol to 2 drinks on special occasions such as events, birthdays etc a Since November 2021 i have stayed out of AF and i am running the fastest half marathon times ever. I ran 1h 39 mins in half marathon Sept 2022 and hope to break 90 minute mark in half marathon May 2023.
    I have done loads of research and listened to the AFib cure on Audiobooks. This is an excellent listen and gives loads of useful hints and tips on managing condition. Everyone is different with AFib but for me alcohol is the biggest culprit for putting me in AF. Life without alcohol is so much easier and way more enjoyable. Best wishes to anyone with condition and managing it.

  • Ralph 27 November 2022

    Having led a very busy and active lifestyle as a farmer, competing in cycle races at very much an amateur level but reasonable fitness nonetheless, occasionally putting my hand up for a half marathon…had my first episode of AF on Friday evening. I’m 37.

    10 minutes in to intense exercise (local touch rugby social tournament), I felt my heart beating strangely, and excused myself from the field.
    My teammates were a bit annoyed because that meant no subs!

    Thinking it would settle down, and it probably wasn’t a heart attack, I made the seemingly dubious decision to hang around and catch up with people after the game. I may have tried self medicating with a bottle of speights before thinking better of it and moving along to a coke.

    4 hours later, at home i worried about trying to sleep with very noticeable amd uncomfortable palpitation in my chest (basically the beat was irregular, approx 90 bpm when my usual resting rate is around 45-60 depending on my fitness level), I decided to get to a and e to get checked out. In a nutshell, the ecg showed I did indeed have af, but after a few hours monitoring, they sent me home with no treatment other than taking some bloods etc. Apparently my rate wasn’t high enough to warrant much. They recommended a gp visit and they may prescribe me with blood thinners to reduce stroke risk.

    I’m a bit concerned it will come back. However I’m hoping that changing my lifestyle a little will reduce the chance of recurrence. In the last few months I’ve been under considerable stress, short staffed (i’m self employed), working 16 hours a day with very few days off, sometimes 6 or 8 coffees in a day (I know, I know…), lack of sleep and alot of fatigue as also have a 7 month old baby to look after alongside my wife, when I’m not at work. I’m aware that the risk factors of arrhythmia are stress, high blood pressure, fatigue, caffeine, lack of sleep. Think I ticked them all!

    After a terrible night still in AF I decided to take the wee one for a walk down the road. Walking briskly felt good and I broke into a jog on the way home, lifting my HR to 150bpm. When I finished, my heart settled back into regular sinus rhythm, much to my relief!!

    Will keep you posted. Thanks everyone for your stories, it makes me feel a little better!

  • Margaret 5 April 2022

    I was diagnosed with AF in my mid 40s and was fitted with a pacemaker I’m now 73 and have my 7th pacemaker in, pacing 100% due for replacement this year. I’m not an athlete I just take my dog for a walk twice a day I could do more but I’ve never been one for excersise. I also take anticoagulants due to mild stroke in 2002 I was lucky no after affects due to clot happened on the outside of the brain sack, complete recovery. My story is not as bad as some of the ones I have been reading.

  • Mark 2 November 2021

    Thank you all for sharing your stories. I’m in the hospital waiting for first cardioversion procedure, and hopefully last, but from what I’ve read, that’s not likely. I’m a runner so your stories were helpful with keeping my spirits up and planning for a future with running.

  • Paul 30 May 2021

    I was 55 sat down at work, major palpitations, diagnosed after lots of checks with Par AF. Was given a 5mg betablocker. Everything fine until I was 65 then suffered a stroke. All the left side was dead and blind in the left eye. Because of my fitness and the timing was right eg in the 4hrs since the stroke I was given a radioactive drug and within 3 days everthing came back literally to normal. However during the scans CT and MRI they found I had a brain tumour, ( meningioma)  I am now been monitored but as its stable they are not touching it eg just monitoring. Then to cap it all in 2020 I was diagnosed with colon T3 cancer. I had keyhole surgery to remove part of my colon[. The surgeon complimented the condition of my body and said you did the hard work. Even the nurses said it. One lesson I have learnt: know matter what happens keep exercising to what ever level you are capable. I am still at 69 feeling very fit, cycling and walking, thats why I do not have a car: I have to cycle or walk: its all about habit

  • Colin 26 March 2021

    I was dong someptetty intensive training for the 2017 World Masters Games when i noticed my heart rate was spiking to 175 bpm. Thats about 20 higher than it should be for me a life long athlete of 75 yrs age..
    I went on to gain medals in 20k TT and Crit but in the road race a week later hit a flatspot in my energy and breathing just before the big the first big hill climb
    The rest of that race is best consigned to forgotten history..
    Short story i was eventually cardioverted fro A flutter.
    It came back 5 months later but nit as bad but always tired.
    Justabout thetime of covid 19 I fell off the top of a ladder and the flutter came back with a vengeance.
    Now i am under the Electrocardiology team. Echo has shown i have a huge left atrium causing variable heart block. Decisions are presantly being decided on what and when actions. It has been suggested Pace and ablate as i am medication intolerant. I just want to get back to feeling good and able to excersise for health and fitness.

  • Brian 12 September 2020

    I’m 45 years old, I’m in excellent cardiovascular and physical condition.  Over a 10 years period I’ve transitioned to a plant based diet and for the last 3 years began.  Today I was diagnosed with SVT, AF and I’m Leiden Five Factor.  WTF!!! I’m determined to continue my healthy and active lifestyle, but obviously my intensity must be reduced and I need to monitor my heart.  I can choose to survive or thrive… I choose thrive! -BB

  • Robin 7 August 2020

    I’m 65 and recently had a series of TIAs (mini strokes) during my sleep. The hospital did various tests and I was diagnosed with AFib, which they suggest I’ve probably had for about 25 years (the first time I suffered from palpitations). Although no damage seems to have been caused, I’m now taking Apixaban every day to reduce future stroke risk, and continue to run/walk 3-5 miles on most days each week although sometimes (often?) I find it difficult for the same reasons as Andy.

    Andy’s story sounds familiar to my experience as I’ve been a regular “jogger” my whole life, always kept reasonably fit, and always kept my weight under control (sort of). At 61 I qualified as a Personal Trainer after deciding to do something completely different, and in 2017 I completed my first marathon. Despite my AFib, I aim to complete another one in the next couple of years…

    However, the TIAs made me review my experiences, and I now realise that I’ve probably had half a dozen episodes of AFib over the last 25 years, and that they all occurred at times of extreme stress, emotional and/or professional.

    The latest attack, which resulted in TIAs, was the culmination of 2 years of emotional stress with low mood, gradual weight gain, slightly increased alcohol consumption, deteriorating diet, and poor sleep quality - although I continued to run and go to the gym on a regular basis.

    When I ran the marathon in 2017, I was happy, in a steady relationship, and was optimistic for the future and felt strong, fit and healthy. However, during a prolonged and painful end to that relationship, I was puzzled that everything was going “downhill” physically, mentally, and emotionally, despite my trying to keep up a healthy lifestyle and mindset, and then Covid-19 came into our lives…

    Surprisingly, the virus acted like a “reset” button for me in some ways and, since then, I’ve managed to lose weight, eat healthier, and my fitness levels have steadily started to improve again - but I was still struggling with low mood and anxiety, together with resultant “stress”, and that, I believe, is what led to my latest attack of AFib and the TIAs.

    As part of my training as a PT, we learnt that fitness isn’t merely the absence of disease, but is a measure of someones physical, mental, social and emotional well being - with all aspects being equally important. With that in mind, I intend to reduce my stress levels, be less competitive, exercise for fun, and not to “push” myself too hard, and to take more time to “smell the roses”. In that way I’m hoping to enhance my “quality of life”, as well as continuing with a generally “healthy lifestyle” in order to deal with, and hopefully control (or even reverse?) my AFib.

    I’m pleased that my TIA was caught in time as, apparently it was a serious warning that I was at high risk of having a major stroke. I’m told that taking Apixaban will now significantly reduced that risk.

    So what I’m suggesting is that a positive outlook and lifestyle review is perhaps equally as important as any amount of surgery or medication in dealing with AFib, and that it’s probably best to change things sooner, rather than wait until something goes wrong! After all, “the “life” in your years is more important that than the years in your life!”

    Hope this helps.

  • Ian 25 April 2019

    My first real episode of AF occurred during a high intensity training session at 50 years of age. I’d been very fit all my life, running, weight lifting, rugby etc etc. I self admitted to hospital as I was breathless, and the episode had lasted several hours. When I was discharged the episode frequency increased and a couple years later it was confirmed as persistent AF. Now 7 years down the track my AF is controlled using drugs, Cardioversion had failed and I was not suitable for ablation. It’s ten years since my first attack and for the last five I have done little fitness training. My Doctor told me to avoid intense exercise. I’m now 60, 15kg heavier and pissed off. I’ve started a regime of walking with an end goal of getting back to 5-10k runs. What happens will happen and I no longer care.

  • Michael 6 January 2019

    This sounds very similar to my experience.  About a year ago, I started getting a funny feeling 7-10 minutes into a race (mainly 5 - 10 km), or fast paced training sessions, and my power would abruptly drop. I would be forced to slow and people would pass me, and then I would recover and carry on as before.  That was until about 3 months ago, when it was like someone had turned off a switch and for the first time I was forced to walk and I felt pretty ill.  The first time this happened, I recovered and eventually picked up the pace and ended as normal.  But on Christmas day on a 5km Parkrun, and then again a few days later, there was no recovery.  Though I started running again, slowly, I finished feeling I had run a long race and spent a couple of hours recovering.  It was as though a switch had been turned off, but there has never been any warning.  Up to the moment it happened, I felt quite comfortable.  I can’t say I have felt any very marked discomfort in my chest, but each time I have been forced to walk, I have also had an ache in my right shoulder.  I have been perfectly fine in my non running life, so was happy to submit a query to my doctor by email.  She phoned and asked me a series of questions and we are reviewing again in mid January.  That was before I had seen anything on the internet,  so perhaps it is AF…

  • Peter 2 August 2018

    Nice story! Life goes on and it is more about management of the condition than worrying too much. I just had my first episode of AF; it lasted 2 hours and then disappears. It happened after I climbed up Mt Taranaki to the Lodge (about 600m climb), came back again without any issues (“easy walk”), but then, while sitting on the couch, the episode started. Now my GP has prescribed an oral anticoagulant for me. I also have an athlete’s heart. Been active my whole life. As I said earlier, life goes on. I am already looking forward to going up the mountain again :).

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