The Heart of the Matter

"Fear defeats more people than any other one thing in the world."
– Ralph Waldo Emerson

 

This article was published in the Wall Street Journal on March 26, 2014. Dave McGillivray, Boston Marathon race director, finisher of 130 marathons was diagnosed with coronary heart disease. This marathoner was shocked and prior believed he could eat anything because his running would burn it off. He even advocated a chocolate chip cookie recipe and visiting Dairy Queen’s after his runs.

Since receiving his diagnosis last October, he changed his diet, and his weight dropped from155 to 128 pounds.  On the other hand, he increased his weekly mileage from 60 to 70 miles. Dave rationalized that it’s not that running will have killed him, but that the trigger would’ve likely happened even sooner, except for his running.

The following two studies suggest concern (50 men who had run at least one marathon a year for 25 years had higher levels of coronary artery plaque than a control group of sedentary men). Another study of 42 Boston Marathon runners found that their carotid arteries had a less favorable arthroscopic risk profile than a control group.

The article went on to talk about that some cardiologists believe that beyond a certain point, exercise stops preventing but actually and starts causing heart disease. In fact, one cardiologist believes that sustained endurance exercise can damage the heart and he doesn’t recommend any more than 20 miles a week at a moderate pace. On the other hand, another cardiologist might say, exercise might not add years to your life, but it adds life to your years.

In any event, consider having scans taken of your coronary arteries. In any event, there’s no guarantee that you can live to 100 years of age. Just make sure that whatever you do, it enhances your life.

For me, the key to life is to keep moving, smiling, laughing, loving, bonding and appreciating. What is your recipe ?