Heart of an athlete

[Melalvai]

Do you think of yourself as an athlete? What does an athlete have that you don't?

My husband & I had our establish-care check ups a few days ago. My husband went first so by the time the doc got to me I'd been sitting quietly for nearly an hour. He listened to my heart, looked at my records, and took my pulse again. My resting pulse is 60. "You have the heart of an athlete," he said.

I may have the heart of an athlete but someone else has the rest of it! I have never been athletic. I'm active now (I wasn't always), but I am neither strong nor fast nor graceful. I can't catch a ball, win a race, or lift a thing. I suspect that if I had time and inclination for serious training that I'd be working against a stacked deck.

I'm finally coming to accept that I am doing a fantastic job with what I was given to work with! Well, maybe not 'fantastic' as I keep injuring myself.

[zoom-zoom]

I run and bike a lot (though less than a few friends of mine...I don't know how they find the time or how their bodies tolerate the load they do. I seem to hit my physical limit far earlier, regardless of how carefully I increase the workload), but on the outside I don't look particularly fit. I'm 20ish #s over my ideal weight for my height and build. On the inside, though...my PCP is forever amazed by my bloodwork and BP. He's said that my #s are about the best of any of his patients. This is the stuff that matters.

So, yeah, I guess I have the heart of an athlete, too. :)

[redrhodie]

I do consider myself an athlete. I have developed skills beyond someone who just rides a bike. I ride consistently, and I'm passionate about cycling. Most of all, I do it because I love it. So, that fits my definition. I don't think you need to compete, or be particularly gifted, to to be an athlete. I think we're all athletes.

[Crankin]

Yea, I'm kind of the same. While I have various not life threatening things that are chronic, my (new) PCP asked me at my physical last month, "how I did it?" when referring to my cholesterol ratio. She also said she should use me as a case study for other patients. Personally, I thought it was a dumb question, as she already knew how much exercise I did... maybe she didn't believe me? I told her there's no magic. It's exercise 5-6 days a week and a very healthy diet. I could tell she had no frame of reference for my lifestyle, as she's in her forties and didn't look very fit. Maybe she is (don't want to be judgmental here), but I don't take her advice the same way I do from my ob-gyn, who lost 150 lbs. and became a tri-athlete.
I can't catch a ball, either. Or play tennis, golf, or downhill ski. I hated team sports as a kid. But, I've always loved endurance stuff. I might not be the fastest or go the furthest, but I can go. And I've been doing this stuff for about 30 years.

[Roadtrip]

I really should find a replacement for my primary Dr. as I'm procrastinated this long as I dreaded going.... I knew he was going to yell at me about my weight.

Last time I had my BP/RHR checked it was bad news.. bp was elevated (I was at work-- DUH) and before I started cycling. It in fact was one of the things that made me realize I needed to do more for my health as my family has a history of high bp and various other heart related issues.

Grandma had a stroke in her 60's and they thought she wouldn't make it as she had major blocked arteries. She survived for about eight years, and then passed away after another stroke, but never really regaining her independence so I question the quality of live those last eight years.

Mom has been on bp meds for QUITE some time and she's dropped some weight in the last few years and had surgery on her foot (total ankle replacement) that had always been very painful after even moderate activity.

She's more active and able to work in the garden and do some of the stuff she wants to do now. She even mentioned riding a bike again when I started riding, but she also has a slight balance problem, so we'll have to see about the bike. She does have a 200cc scooter, tho I don't think they've ridden in a little while, but if she can ride the scooter I'm sure she can ride a bike. She fell while outside and hit her head, giving herself a good lump and a minor concussion... only to find out that she had a slow growing tumor that was affecting her balance. Benign, but still.

She'll be 59 this July, so I am concerned as last year was a horrible year for her health wise (concussion, ankle, week in the hosp. from a cat bite and infection), but she's taken a more proactive role in her health care and doing the right things now. She mentioned a year or so ago that she feared her approaching the age in which her mom had her first stroke, so I think that's been on her mind too.

I think I've digressed pretty far from the OP topic, but I think it takes all kinds to have a "huge" heart... Mom defiantly qualifies!!

Shannon

[Jo-n-NY]

Do you think of yourself as an athlete? What does an athlete have that you don't?

My husband & I had our establish-care check ups a few days ago. My husband went first so by the time the doc got to me I'd been sitting quietly for nearly an hour. He listened to my heart, looked at my records, and took my pulse again. My resting pulse is 60. "You have the heart of an athlete," he said.

I may have the heart of an athlete but someone else has the rest of it! I have never been athletic. I'm active now (I wasn't always), but I am neither strong nor fast nor graceful. I can't catch a ball, win a race, or lift a thing. I suspect that if I had time and inclination for serious training that I'd be working against a stacked deck.

I'm finally coming to accept that I am doing a fantastic job with what I was given to work with! Well, maybe not 'fantastic' as I keep injuring myself.

I was told the same from my dr. and felt so proud. At that point I didn't even have a metric or century under my belt. I never had any athletic ability. I was always the one in gym class hiding behind the bleachers when teams needed to be picked as I didn't want to be the one that made whatever team I was on lose. Can't catch/hit a ball or run (but trying) either. Now when asked about my athletic abilities and can say with my head up high, I am an avid cyclist.

~ JoAnn

[Karma007]

I think of myself as an athlete. Maybe I don't look it so much, but physically I'm in great shape (if one were to overlook a few pounds!). I'm always thinking about training, my diet....thinking of myself in this light keeps me focused. I have very clear goals about what I what like to accomplish as a cyclist.

Sure, I'll never be competitive, but I challenge myself every day to work a little harder than I did the day before.

[Grits]

I was at my 30 year high school reunion when my cousin, a facebook friend I don't see or talk to often, told me I was an athlete. I didn't know what he was talking about because I was also one of the PE haters who avoided team sports like the plague, but he had seen my posts and pictures about century charity rides and other riding I was doing and recognized what I hadn't yet.

Doing the amount and distance of recreational riding I do puts me in a category of fitness and endurance that the vast majority of Americans are not even close to. Once I broadened my definition of "athlete" beyond team sports, ball/club/bat, I realized that I am an athlete!

[Crankin]

Roadtrip, I have to say that I was shocked when you mentioned your mom's age. She's only about 1.5 years older than me. That really puts things in perspective. I hope you keep encouraging her! I only wish my mom had lived long enough to see me cycling... she died about 4 years before I started. But, she loved physical activity and she was what I consider to be an athlete, even though she was born a generation too early to really have embraced it. She could out pace me on a walk even when I was super fit, teaching 7 aerobics classes a week.
Yeah, I consider myself an athlete.

[Bike Chick]

How interesting to read everyone's responses and realize I'm right there with you. I am working on those extra lbs I need to lose and wish I looked like an athlete. But last week, dh and I rode 10 miles to do a couple's 5k race, ran the race, rode back home, loaded the bikes and met friends for a fun, hilly 30-miler. It was great and after my last ekg, my dr said I have the heart of a 16 year old. Not too bad for a 52 year old.

I looked up the definition of an athlete and it states that it's a person possessing the natural or acquired traits that are necessary for physical exercise or sports. I may not look like an athlete, I was always too uncoordinated to do well at team sports and am convinced this belly is here to stay but by that definition, it looks like we are all athletes.

[Melalvai]

Great discussion! Ok, I'm persuaded, I am an athlete too. My husband has teased me for being a "jock" ever since I started cycling but I never took him seriously. :)

[ladyicon]

Roadtrip,,,,,,,, I loved your story, put a little tear in my eye. Reminds me of my mom who has passed last year, she was 86. She had a heart of gold.

[emily_in_nc]

Very interesting. I was also one of the un-athletic, terrible at team sports or anthing involving a ball, last-kid-picked types. I had asthma pretty bad as a child so avoided most athletic endeavors, feeling that I couldn't do them. Back then, the general thought was that asthmatics had to be sheltered.

I wonder if more that other sports, people who find and become passionate about cycling, are those who weren't so successful in typical team sports back in their school days? I'm sure there are many exceptions, but it's interesting that so many of us were distinctly unathletic as kids or young adults.

Crankin, my doc says the same thing about my amazing cholesterol ratio. She says I'm the poster child for good cholesterol. My resting HR at the doc's is always a bit higher than normal (white coat syndrome), but at home it's low, as is my BP. I don't race, and I'm fairly slow when compared to many cyclists I know. I can't do the distances I could do before my accident either.

But yes, I unequivocally consider myself an athlete! I know the other gals at work think I'm amazingly athletic, so that's good enough for me. :p

[marni]

both of my parents died before I lost my weight and started bicycling which makes me very sad but I feel their spirits glowing at me in pride, especially when I push myself a bit extra. When I first started riding, it nearly wiped me out to ride a mile. Now I routinely do 30-60 mile training rides at least twice a week, and train with a trainer as well as work out in the gym with weights and resistance for the rest of the week.

I will confess to a intense feeling of pride and perhaps a bit of superiority when someone asks me how far I ride and their jaw drops when I reply with a goodly distance.

My GP bless her heart is a sensible older Irish lady who continually comments on my bp (122/55) and my resting pulse rate which is usually about 45-50. I have been asked by her nurse if I am actually alive every time she takes my pulse.My cholesterol is slightly above normal but that's because my good cholesterol is high!

I thank the spirits that led me to a healthy diet, realizing that I needed help, getting that help and discovering cross country bicycling and road biking.

[PscyclePath]

Like it says in the People for Bikes ad, "If I ride... I will grow a heart so strong that hospitals will have to start taking Tuesdays off."

Sounds good to me, anyways...

[Catrin]

My trainer just called me an athlete today :D :cool: He isn't the kind to say something like that to make you feel good - though he is great at positive reinforcement. It did me good to hear that :)

[Crankin]

Marni, your comment about your cholesterol resonated with me; my total is very slightly high also, for the very same reason: my HDL is so high that one practitioner told me he had never seen a number that high before. That's why the ratio is so good, too.
Emily, yes, I think you are right. There's too many of us here that were "last picked" as kids for it to be chance. Since just about everyone learns to ride a bike, it's not surprising that it is a sport people start later in life, even when we haven't had that much success in other athletic endeavors.

[Eden]

Emily, yes, I think you are right. There's too many of us here that were "last picked" as kids for it to be chance. Since just about everyone learns to ride a bike, it's not surprising that it is a sport people start later in life, even when we haven't had that much success in other athletic endeavors.

Hmmmm sounds familiar... at 5' nuthin most running, jumping net based sports were a bit harder for me.... (I can walk under a regulation volley ball net without ducking) - basketball... a bit of a farce.... track... I'm not super slow, but I have to take two steps for each one a taller person does.... a bike OTOH even things out a lot and my size can even be an advantage at times.

I'm getting my cholesterol checked for the first time pretty soon. I hope and expect it will be pretty good, since I exercise quite a bit and eat pretty well. I already know my blood pressure tends to low

[Karma007]

Emily, yes, I think you are right. There's too many of us here that were "last picked" as kids for it to be chance. Since just about everyone learns to ride a bike, it's not surprising that it is a sport people start later in life, even when we haven't had that much success in other athletic endeavors.

This was me- short, chubby, bad vision. Not exactly a coaches dream girl. It's why I love cycling. I can excel, at my own speed, on my own terms. I can be part of a group, and yet my performance is based only on me, and what I would like to achieve.

[WindingRoad]

Marni and Crankin I'm right there with you on the HDL. My ratio is basically all HDL the LDL is so low it doesn't even show up on the test.

Due to cycling I have been diagnosed with non-pathogenic bradycardia which is a slow overall HR. I found my resting HR to be 45. Apparently all those years of playing a wind instrument gave me the lung capacity of an adult male, lol. That part amuses me for some reason. My BP is consistently low and I feel good even during these stressful times. I agree we are all athletes and we don't even have special chefs, coaches or dietitians at our disposal. ;)

[jessmarimba]

I've never really thought of myself as an athlete - I'm not good at anything I do sports-wise, but people who know me apparently think I'm athletic. I'm a slow runner, fearful cyclist, ok snowboarder, etc. I haven't had many comments from doctors (besides my good balance getting me out of the hospital last summer!) but I used to work with a woman who would shriek about my food every time she saw me eat something remotely fattening (she was forever dieting but extremely inactive). I guess she never made the connection that running 30 miles a week could buy me a piece of cake every now and then!

[Melalvai]

+1 here on lack of sports and always picked last when I was younger. At least, that's the image I had of myself, and it was true for many years.

But I played basketball in junior high anyway even though as an 8th grader I was put on the 7th grade team and a couple of 7th graders were put on the 8th grade team. And I was in track for a couple years and I ran the long distance events because as a girl you could medal in those just for showing up. And I went through Basic Training and was actually put in the 2nd fastest group for training, and they worked us harder than the fastest group so at the end of it I ran 2 miles in 14 min.

I was overcompensating for my perceived lack of athletic ability.

[Catrin]

+1 on total lack of sports as a kid, was totally uncoordinated and had bad feet/ankles so generally fell when I tried anything anyway. Not only was I the last to be picked but I didn't WANT to be picked because I knew it wouldn't turn out well. My mother wouldn't dream of allowing me to learn how to ride a bike because she was convinced I would kill myself - looking back - it was the one thing I probably could have done well since I didn't have to run or walk to do it.

That was then - I still can't run, but I can ride, and ride and ride :) My blood pressure is that of a much younger person, my resting HR is 58, my cholesterol is very, very good, and even after a winter of not riding, I have great calves :)

No wonder I've fallen in love with cycling in all forms! Oh yes, about 6 years ago I finally had foot surgery to correct the congenital problem with one of my feet that was the cause of all of those problems when I was a kid. The problem still exists with the other foot but to a far lesser degree and it certainly doesn't interfere with riding!

[smittykitty]

I guess I'm an athlete too! Who'd a thought! Never considered myself as one, but I asked my husband (our high school class jock, now high school coach) if I was an athlete and he said "Yes you're an athlete because you ride a bike and work out". Me, an athlete! Wow, really:o:o:o:o

Can't tell you how many hours I've spent watching my husband and our kids play or coach. That was as close anyone would have wanted me to team sports!

Biking was really my idea. My DH loves all things athletic so he said sure. Now we both have a passion for it and he is so great about riding at my pace. So fun to be participating in a sport together. For once I'm not in the bleachers cheering someone else on! Now I cheer myself on! :)

[TxDoc]

This is an interesting discussion. Brings up the concept of athleticism and the many factors that determine athleticism.


Do you think of yourself as an athlete? What does an athlete have that you don't?

No, I never thought of myself as an athlete - although, oddly enough, I lived (and live) most of my life as one, just without the sponsorships... :rolleyes:

I grew up in a culture where if you are a professional athlete (i.e. sports are your career) then you call yourself an athlete; if sports are not your profession, then you are an amateur. So no, I never thought of myself as a real athlete - mostly an amateur/hobbyist, despite the fact that I even coached for many years.
Neither I think of myself as a real 'cyclist', so to speak - same old-school cultural tradition: the 'cyclists' were those competing in the Giro; all of us other youngsters racing bikes but also going to school/work/etc - we just rode our bikes ;)
Funny, I guess - but that is sort of how we saw the world of sports growing up. Nadia Comaneci was an athlete, us winning the regional championship - well, we were just some kids good at gymnastics...


Emily, yes, I think you are right. There's too many of us here that were "last picked" as kids for it to be chance.

This is also interesting - how appearence was in some places the first element determining whether a kid was judged as athletic or not, while in others the coaches really did not care about anything other than attitude and results.

Strange enough - I was one of the first picked kids in school sports. At first sight, I did not look 'athletic' at all. I was short (at 40 years old I'm still only 5'4''), wore glasses, had allergies... and yet - I was often the first one called, before the tall and muscular and fit kids. And it happened for every sport, gymnastics, volleyball, cycling... Go figure it out.
On top of the appearence, my cardiovascular fitness/health has always been pathetic to say the least. I was often hypoglycemic and hypotensive despite eating 5000+ Cal per day, had a resting hr 20-30 bpm higher than everyone else my age (still do), and of course I was always the one sent for additional ekg's.
The pre-Season sports physical was always a drama. Every time there would be extra tests, discussions, even arguments to get clearance for competition. So many times the school coaches would come with us to the exam appointments and argue with the sports med specialists to get me cleared.

With all this, you'd think they would let go and pick some 6 feet tall kid with no health issues instead. Never happened.
They saw then what I learned many years later when I started coaching: athleticism is made of many factors, health and fitness being only one. They knew that to be successful as coaches they did not need to select the kids that looked good on paper - they needed to pick the ones that were going to win, it's that simple.

And then if we look at the professional world, really there is so much to being 'athletic'.
While the average person would probably picture the professional athlete as someone perfectly healthy and fit - many pro athletes have underlying medical conditions. With training and medical support, they learned how to compensate for their problems and still perform at a high level.
Cycling is no exception, think of Armstrong recovering from cancer, Contador who survived a ruptured aneurysm, and many more in the peloton with asthma and diabetes.
The truth is that we are given one body and in most cases it's not a perfect machine - and despite any problems we may have, we are to make the best of it anyway.

Thanks Melalvai for a very interesting thread, and to everyone for sharing their experiences. Happy riding :)

[sfa]

I've never considered myself athletic, but I've always been active--rowing in college, then I took up cycling and running after college. Never competitvely; always just to stay active and in shape. Except for a few post-baby years my weight has always been in a healthy range. I eat well, have never smoked, drink only occasionally and moderately, and maintain a healthy diet.

Yet I have the heart of a middle-aged overweight smoker! Last week I went to a doctor for the first time in pretty much forever--it has been about six years since my last physical. While my heartrate is fine, my blood pressure last week was 139/90. The doctor wondered about white coat syndrome, so she asked me to check it a couple of times a week for the next couple of months. I just came back from the Wellness Center on campus and today the reading was 144/99 (again, heart rate just fine--even after the walk to the center it was still in the 60's).

Not only does this worry me, but it pisses me off (both of which, I'm sure, aren't helping the blood pressure)! My older sister is morbidly obese, finally just gave up smoking after years of addiction, eats crap all the time, never exercises, and her blood pressure is fine.

So what can I do? My only risk factor is stress, and there doesn't seem to be much I can do about the sources of stress in my life (anyone who is keeping track: next month will make two years of unemployment for my DH, and that's just the tip of the stress iceberg). Exercise IS my stress relief, but clearly it isn't helping my blood pressure (or perhaps it is and I'd be dead without it). The doctor says genetics can play a role, but neither of my parents had problems with blood pressure at my age. This has caught me completely off guard--I was always one of those people when I was younger who had such low blood pressure that I had problems with dizziness all the time.

[emily_in_nc]

Are you on the pill? That can definitely cause raised BP with no other risk factors and despite exercise. If so, maybe consider another method of b.c.

[sfa]

Are you on the pill? That can definitely cause raised BP with no other risk factors and despite exercise. If so, maybe consider another method of b.c.

That's good information to know, but no, I'm not on the pill.

I feel like I went from a young, vital woman (o.k., not young, I'm 42) to an old woman over the course of a 45 minute appointment. The doctor also says my hand pain is probably arthritis and I should get a full body check from a dermatologist.

[Crankin]

Recommending a full body check from a derm is just part of a physical today, so don't read anything into that one!
I would keep monitoring your BP and also think about doing other, non-medical things for stress reduction, like meditation. Yoga is something else that really works, but sometimes, it is contraindicated for high blood pressure. Did your doc say how long to monitor before she would do something? I have had periods of transient high blood pressure, when under stress, and it is almost always higher when i go to the doctor. Normally, it's very low, so I bought a digital bp machine that I could save the data from and brought it to my doctor, to show her that my bp was really quite low, except when I am seeing her! So, if you can, buy a bp machine for at home.
Did you get your cholesterol checked, too? Just to be safe... my DH had minimally high bp and high cholesterol as the first warning signs of coronary artery disease, even though he was thin and at the time was riding 4,000 miles a year. He has the family history from hell, though.
I know it is disheartening to have these things, even when we are active and healthy in our lifestyles. Getting all of this checked out is just another way to keep staying healthy.

[sfa]

Actually, I'm happy she recommended a dermatologist check--it's something I'm always aware of since my sister (adopted; not a blood relation) had skin cancer when she was young. Overall, I really liked this doctor--turns out she did the same triathlon as I did, and decided to stop for the same reason (can't stand the swim!), so we had a lot to just chat about and I felt very comfortable.

I'm supposed to come back in two months, after monitoring my bp two or three times a week. We have a wellness center on campus and I can get down there to get it checked whenever I want (and no white coats involved--today it was a work study student with really cute tights). It's not as good as getting a reading first thing in the morning before I've had a chance to get stressed, but it's convenient.

I have to get to the lab for a whole bunch of bloodwork, including checking my cholesterol.

[zoom-zoom]

Actually, I'm happy she recommended a dermatologist check--it's something I'm always aware of since my sister (adopted; not a blood relation) had skin cancer when she was young.

I'm glad she did this, too. My hubby had his first (and hopefully only) melanoma removed almost exactly a year ago, at the age of 38. Now skin cancer will forever be on our radar.

[Velocivixen]

I have lost over 100 lbs and have kept it off for 16 months. I just turned 47 this month. As a kid I was always chosen last for sports (but always first for academics), so was never athletic. I changed what & how much I ate and started with a modest 30 minutes twice a week at the gym (yoga). Now I do a little of everything in and out of the gym and burn between 3,000-4,000 calories per week. I will never win a race, but I assure you I always finish! So, I guess, In a way, I'm an athlete.

[lo123]

That's good information to know, but no, I'm not on the pill.

I feel like I went from a young, vital woman (o.k., not young, I'm 42) to an old woman over the course of a 45 minute appointment. The doctor also says my hand pain is probably arthritis and I should get a full body check from a dermatologist.

Some of us just get the short end of the genetic stick. I had to start bp meds last year at the ripe old age of 28 :(. My mother started them at about the same age. At least now I don't get headaches all the time. :)

[WindingRoad]

Some of us just get the short end of the genetic stick. I had to start bp meds last year at the ripe old age of 28 :(. My mother started them at about the same age. At least now I don't get headaches all the time. :)

Lo123 I know a girl in my class who is 24 and diagnosed with hyperlipidemia already. She is the size of a pencil so it can't be linked to obesity of any kind. I mean she is REALLY skinny too. It's just nuts how the genetics play into things sometimes!