Home - Week 10 - Bike rides and downward dogs

This week started with meeting the rehab doctor, Dr. P. The appointment is part of the overall rehabilitation plan and it consists of a complete physical examination with a thorough medical review of my current cardiovascular status including blood work. According to Dr. P. I have "the blood pressure of a teenager", my heart and lungs sound great and I should be able to return to the shape I was in the past.

The highlight for me was the blood work. Two numbers are real important: LDL and HDL. These numbers indicate the cholesterol levels in my bloodstream. In December last year my LDL (bad cholesterol) was 4.09 and my HDL(good cholesterol) was 1.36 . For someone without a valve problem and blocked arteries, these are not terrible numbers, but for someone that was in my condition the LDL needed to be 2.0 and HDL 0.9. I'm happy to say my LDL is 1.1 and HDL is 0.79. The HDL is a little low so I will be adding Salmon Oil to my supplements and my increased activity should help get that number up. The good LDL number is probably a result of the Lipitor which means I'll have to continue taking that pill for a while. I hope that in my meeting with the cardiologist in June we will be able to reduce the dosage.

Although there is no change to the Lipitor dose, we were able to reduce the Metoprolol from 100mg to 50mg a day. Metoprolol is a Beta Blocker and it helps reduce blood pressure, angina and risks of having a heart attack. It's other affect is that it keeps my heart rate (HR) down. I figure with my overhauled pumper and a good exercise plan I'll get this one off the list in June. Currently I exercise at an HR of 120 with little perceived exertion. I'd like to start taking that number up as my fitness returns however the Metoprolol will affect the effort. After talking about this with Dr. P. he recommended a reduction in the Metoprolol and said that my cardiologist will need to make the call on cutting it off completely.

At the end of our meeting I got some other things confirmed: (1) I could get back on the bike; (2) I could go back into the gym and start resistance training; (3) I can go back to Yoga without issue; and (4) there would be no problems with sports like paddling. I mention this because of my continuous paranoia about my chest bone. The Dr. explained to me the healing process and also said that the bone actually heals stronger than the original bone. I don't know if I buy that 100%, but it still makes me feel good.

That was Monday. Needless to say I walked out of the OHI with a significant bounce to my step. I have been on the bike twice this week and aside from a little muscle pain, an embarrassing cadence and harry legs, I'd say I did OK. I have also started my yoga sessions again. So far I'm getting my downward dogs in every second day. Let's just say that my flexibility needs work. The breathing was smooth, the transitions between positions was smooth, but the positions were not stellar, including the downward dog. I have learned, especially with yoga, that with practice everything gets smooth.

I finished the week off on Friday with buying a sea kayak. Remember that paddling question above, there was a reason. For a long time I have wanted a sea kayak and today I finally picked it up. I won't actually start paddling until mid June, but I'm pretty pumped about the whole thing.

This week was a good week.