outta shape

[low_delta]

I am so out of shape it is scary. No, really. I was shoveling today, and thought I would have a heart attack. I can repeatedly throw snow ten feet without feeling any appreciable amount of muscle strain, but my heart feels like it is going to explode. I've gotta do something about that.

Comments

[serendipity.livejournal.com]

Start working out to "A Hard Day's Night! It's great!

Also, the very cold weather makes it much harder on your heart.

[low-delta.livejournal.com]

I have all kinds of excuses not to do that. ;-)

I'd never heard that the cold has an effect on the heart. Do you know why that is?

[serendipity.livejournal.com]

You know, I was going to post last night about all my excuses not to do that. I very nearly didn't work out last night because of all my excuses, but made myself do it and yet again was so glad I did. Seriously, try it, you'll like it! Or, maybe, if you're concerned about how your heart felt while you were shoveling, maybe you should get a treadmill stress test first.

As for your question, I knew it was something about the body overcompensating for the cold by shutting down blood vessels, but hadn't really looked it up until now. Here's part of an ABC news article that explains it:

When it's cold, the body prevents heat loss by closing down blood vessels in the skin, arms and legs.

Paul Romanello, Lenox Hill Hospital: "But the body's not perfect and what happens is that other arteries also start to narrow down or constrict, and when this happens in the heart arteries, it directly affects blood flow."

For heart patients whose arteries are already narrowed by cholesterol, more constriction from the cold may cause:

Chest discomfort or squeezing chest pain
Shortness of breath
Sweating
Nausea
If you have heart problems, the best way to prevent chest pain is to minimize heat loss, wear a hat and gloves, and to avoid going out in this weather. If the cold brings about chest symptoms that you haven't had before, tell your doctor. A treadmill stress test may show heart disease and prevent a heart attack. But chest symptoms don't always point to the heart.

Paul Romanello: "Some patients who have asthma will get a constriction across the chest and they'll be short of breath."

And stomach disorders cause similar symptoms. But don't you make that assumption.

Entire article: http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/news/health/wabc_oncall_011604chestpain.html

And: Cold air increases the vasoconstriction of the blood vessels not only in the skin but at these temperatures, there is vasoconstriction of the deeper blood vessels, so the heart has to pump against more resistance. One way of thinking of that is that the heart gets more workout than would be the case for the same jog at a higher temperature. If the heart is borderline in function that can produce symptoms or very occasionally, even heart attack.

http://www.mediscene.com/patient/topic.php?topic=exercise

[serendipity.livejournal.com]

Hey, this explains it while encouraging working out/warming up (do it to A Hard Day's Night!)before shoveling snow in cold weather:

Take Care When the Temp Drops
On chilly days, some of us need to take extra precautions before venturing out to exercise. If you have any kind of heart problem, for example, you should consult your doctor before working out in the cold. As the air temperature drops, your body responds by constricting blood vessels, a process that pulls blood toward the trunk to feed your internal organs. When this happens, exercising puts extra strain on your heart as it tries to pump blood to your extremities.

Walking can relieve some of this strain by dilating blood vessels in your legs. The trick is to warm up slowly, to allow your body to adjust to the coldness. If you don't warm up when it's freezing outside, you could set yourself up for angina (severe chest pain) or a heart attack, says Roger Fielding, PhD, assistant professor in the department of health sciences at Boston University. That's why people have heart attacks when shoveling snow.

When you warm up, do it indoors, before exposing your body to the cold air. This reduces the strain on your heart, because your blood vessels become dilated. You'll feel better about going outside, too, because you'll be warm already.

More: http://www.prevention.com/cda/feature2002/0,4780,s1-6364,00.html

[low-delta.livejournal.com]

Good stuff. Never heard of that.

I wonder, though, because after not very long at it, I'm usually sweating. I'll have to pay closer attention.

Thanks!

[emschin.livejournal.com]

Too bad there isn't something about house rehabbing that gives you aerobic exercises. Or is there? I'm pretty hazy about which exercises are aerobic and which aren't.

[low-delta.livejournal.com]

Not really. Even running up and down the stairs doesn't do much for me aerobically.

[vlinker.livejournal.com]

i know the feeling........i keep hearing this heavy breathing noise when i'm out skiing....and i realize that it's me!......

[low-delta.livejournal.com]

With me it's my heart.

[vlinker.livejournal.com]

they are connected.....

be safe out there and don't overtax it!

[low-delta.livejournal.com]

I'd probably be doing a little better if the heavy breating accompanied the pounding heart.

[vlinker.livejournal.com]

sounds like some exercise is required......but, i'd make sure that everything is within norms prior to getting on with a program