Cycling after AF ablation

[david k]

@Brandane

How much Flec do you take? I'm on it as well and take 200mg a day, half in the morning, half in the evening. I'm also on a large dose of beta blockers.

I'm not sure which of the two slows me down the most but having read your post, it seems that the beta is probably the culprit.

Hi, I take beta blockers for AF and hate them, they tried me on flecinacide and it didn't work but I was not on 50, they returned me to beta blockers which I hate as they slow me down. They talked of putting me back on flec but a doe of 200 as I'm big bipartisan also advised ablation. I'm waiting for my date now, I took th decision to do the ablation and get off drugs as they are slowing me down so much I cannot stand it

 

[gavgav]

I had a ablation for atrial fibrillation in 2014, and was signed off by my Electrophysiologist (Cardiologist who specialises in arrhythmias) in June 2015. I was encouraged to take some exercise and decided the gym, jogging and swimming were not for me.

I decided to buy a bike partly with the expectation that it may have one outing and then find a permanent home in the garage.

To my surprise I really enjoyed getting back on a bike after an absence of 40+ years since being a teenager!

I gradually and slowly built up distance to about 20 miles ( at a modest speed) until the wet and windy weather started in December.

I don't want to overdo it and bring on a return of AF, so I was wondering if there is anyone else out there who has taken to cycling in similar circumstances, and how are you getting on?

I've only just caught up with this thread, but I had ablation performed in 2011 to correct Mahaim Fiber Tachycardia, a rare type of VT which caused my heart to trip into an uncontrollable 250 beats per minute. I've cycled 4000 miles since then with absolutely no problems. I still get occasional ectopic beats, which can be a little alarming sometimes, but I tend to find it easier to ignore them now. Hope you continue to cycle and are problem free

 

[Yorksman]

They've given up on the idea of ablation now and are going for cardioversion. This either means that I am going to be converted to Catholicism or they are going to put a lot of volts down the jump leads which are already connected to my heart. I thought technology had improved since the days of giving things a good kick to sort them out.

 

[david k]

Well I had my ablation on Tuesday and they said I have a good chance of it being successful.

They also said I not only had AF which was being treated but also atrial flutter so they treated that at the same time. That was a bit of a shock pardon the pun

I was told not to do much for a week, walking to a cafe from the car is about the max, I went the shops yesterday walking about 100m in total and felt light headed and dizzy, I quickly returned home. Just walked around the corner and same happened, pretty boring sat still but cannot do anything else.
My back and sternum are also sore.

I have to remain on the beta blockers so really tired, but fingers crossed it works, I can stop the beta blockers in 3 months

 

[DaveGM]

It does take time for the scar tissue to form. The scar tissue creates the "barrier" to block the errant heart impulses that are the cause of atrial fibrillation.

Take it really easy for at least the first two weeks.

If you have any concerns the Heart Rythm Nurse specialists at Lverpool Heart and Chest Hospital I found to be very good.

 

[JtB]

I have the opposite problem in that my heart rate drops too low and even has a habit of stopping when I get too relaxed. My Bradycardia (due to sick sinus syndrome) resulted in a dual chamber pacemaker set to pace at 60bpm. On average I seem to be getting paced at about 70%. I do occasionally monitor my heart rate when cycling and display it "real time" on my Garmin SatNav,, but I feel uncomfortable having the monitor so close to the pacemaker and so in the end I usually base how much I push myself on how I feel.

 

[Yorksman]

Although I had an ICD implant because of tachycardia, my AF, orinally diagnosed as fibrillation, then flutter and then fibrillation again as also causing very slow heart beats. The primary function of the ICD is the defibrillator part, which you hope is never required, but it also paces the heart and mine was pacing me up whenever it dropped to 50 bpm. I felt better immediately but, it was pacing me about 35% of the time. I am now back in sinus rhythm after cardioversion and can mow the lawn, trim the hedge and cycle easy routes all day. This is despite having heart failure which limits the amount of blood being pumped.

I monitor my heart rate and on a turbo trainer, it rarely goes much above 80. In the real world I cycle between 90 and 120 which is well within my safety zone. The main thing is though that the heart rate is predicatable and directly related to effort whereas before, it used to jump all over the place and likely to get me into trouble.

Fingers crossed that I stay in sinus rhythm. I have stuff to look forward to:

 

[Yorksman]

Well I had my ablation on Tuesday and they said I have a good chance of it being successful.

They also said I not only had AF which was being treated but also atrial flutter so they treated that at the same time.

I went for a pre assessment for flutter ablation but the ECG they did showed I was not in flutter but fibrillation. That's why they thought they'd have a go at cardioverting me out of it. Depending on how the rhythm behaves over the next few months, they may or may not do ablation as well - as a sort of belt and braces job.

 

[david k]

I went for a pre assessment for flutter ablation but the ECG they did showed I was not in flutter but fibrillation. That's why they thought they'd have a go at cardioverting me out of it. Depending on how the rhythm behaves over the next few months, they may or may not do ablation as well - as a sort of belt and braces job.

Good luck mate, I had AF but they also found flutter?? So they treated both at same time, let's hope it worked

 

[Yorksman]

Good luck mate, I had AF but they also found flutter?? So they treated both at same time, let's hope it worked

You might be interested in this article: Atrial Fibrillation and Atrial Flutter. It explains the differences and shows the typical ecg curves for each but states that you can have both. I suspect that when you have both, the resultant wave created on an ECG might be hard to decipher.

 

[david k]

You might be interested in this article: Atrial Fibrillation and Atrial Flutter. It explains the differences and shows the typical ecg curves for each but states that you can have both. I suspect that when you have both, the resultant wave created on an ECG might be hard to decipher.

Yes that's very good

Odd they never picked up the flutter, but then again it took them years to pick up AF
I had numerous ecgs which picked up nothing, I kept telling them it goes now and then, usually after a long cycle of some alcohol but it was hard to convince them. I finally went to a and e after a cycle and they found it, I went again the week after when it was racing and same again. On each occasion they gave me a beta blocker and it calmed down then went regular. Since flecinacide didn't work they kept me on beta blockers, maybe because flecinacide doesn't work for flutter so I seem to recall reading ? Ablation was the best option