By Coach Adolfo Salgueiro
As athletes, especially as runners, we are usually very fit people. It doesn’t matter if you weigh 120 pounds and look like a Kenyan world-record holder or if you are on the 200+ or 250+ side of the scale with an overhanging gut. Being fit does not mean being healthy, and it doesn’t mean you have a heart disease vaccine.
In the 1982 New York City Marathon, when my dad ran his first 26.2, a French runner collapsed and died. He told us that he passed this guy in the middle of the ruckus, which made it to all the newspapers next day. It must have been quite an impression on a 16-year-old kid, for 39 years later I am telling you this story.
Just a couple of weeks ago, a 24-year-old runner passed away from a cardiac issue during the Montreal Half Marathon. Unfortunately, this is one of the handful of cases that happen every year, where a fit athlete goes out for a run and, sadly, doesn’t comes back.
Jim Fixx wrote one of the most influential books in the history of running, yet he passed away from a cardiovascular issue, suddenly, at age 52.
If the father of the running boom in the United States is Frank Shorter, the Godfather must be Jim Fixx, author of the mega 1977 best seller “The Complete Book of Running”. In a pre-internet, pre-Google era, this book popularized access to the knowledge of the sport, including the cardiovascular benefits of jogging and running. This guru went for a run on July 20, 1984, at age 52, and died of a fulminant heart attack. He was in great shape, but his autopsy revealed he had atherosclerosis, with one artery blocked 95%, a second 85%, and a third 70%. His father had died at age 43 of a second heart attack.
During the Marathon Trials for the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Ryan Shay, a 28-year-old, high-performance athlete with a 2:14 PR, collapsed 5.5 miles into the race and was pronounced dead 40 minutes later. Autopsy report said: “Cardiac arrhythmia due to cardiac hypertrophy with patchy fibrosis of undetermined etiology”. Whatever that means, it doesn’t sound good.
But there have been many cases of runners luckier than Fixx and Shay. One of the most active and fit guys you will ever meet is Dave McGillivray. You may know him as the Boston Marathon Race Director since 2001. His athletic accolades include running across the United States, (3,452 miles) in 80 days, running the Boston Marathon every year since 1973, 9-time Hawaii Ironman finisher and has participated in over 1000 organized races. Yet, in October 2018, at age 63, underwent triple bypass surgery. His family cardiac history was against him, regardless of how fit he was. He is one of the lucky ones that is telling his story.
Ryan Shay, a young marathoner with a 2:14 PR, passes away suddenly at the 2008 Olympic Trials.
These are just three relevant cases from many that time and time again prove that just because you are fit, doesn’t necessarily mean you are cardio-vascularly healthy. These are two concepts that are not inclusive.
And there is a reason I bring up this subject, today. And it is because of my personal experience, which I would be dishonest if I did not share with my readers. Two years ago, during my yearly medical check-up, my doctor told me that even though a stress test wouldn’t do much for me because I was a fit marathoner, I should do it anyway “because you never know”. And guess what? you do. A congenital issue in my arteries was discovered. Unoxygenated blood was recirculating while bypassing the lungs, which created such a stress for my heart it could have provoked a heart attack. Fast-forward two years, and on June 23, 2021, I underwent open heart surgery to fix the issue. This “unneeded” stress test potentially saved my life. Now, very shortly, I should be cleared to run again.
The moral of this story is to make sure that you understand that even though you keep an active and healthy lifestyle, you are not immune to the genetics of your ancestors, cardiac birth defects or the sequels of your unhealthy habits prior to your active life. Get checked up. You never know. I am proof of it.
NOTE: If you are having or had a cardiovascular issue and you are an athlete, one of the best support resources I’ve found is the Cardiac Athletes Facebook group. I invite you to check it out.
“You never know”, what a proper and justified phrase, I’m glad you didn’t.
By the time the cardiovascular system lets you know there is a problem, it is, usually, already to late. I was lucky that my doctor insisted. That is the moral of this story… Thank you for your comment.
Este artículo que aunque conlleva la pérdida de atletas, deja un mensaje claro sobre la salud. Es muy importante hacerse el chequeo médico periódicamente y estar muy atentos a lo que al sistema cardiovascular se refiera.
Gracias por compartir tu experiencia personal amigo mío.
Gracias, Milena. Justamente ese es el punto de mi articulo de hoy. Tenemos que chequearnos porque cuando el sistema cardiovascular nos avisa que hay un problema, por lo general, ya es demasiado tarde.
Good article and this topic is very relevant. Thanks a lot as usual Adolfo.
Thank you, Juan Carlos… As runners, we can’t be careful enough when it comes to our health, especially cardiovascular health.
Good article and warning. Thanks Adolfo!!
Gracias, Marcelino… I appreciate you taking the time to read my blog and to write a comment. I hope everything is going well with your running and your coaching in Peru.
Adolf , muy bueno el artículo y mejor contado no pudo estar viniendo de la propia experiencia que viviste !!!! La prueba q te hicieron se llama así “stress test “ ?
La prueba, en ingles, se llama "stress test". Estoy seguro que cualquier cardiologo sabra lo que es, independientemente de que idioma hable.
Grande Adolfo!
Very Happy All Came Out Good!
👍👍🙏🙏💪💪💪
To say I am glad, too, is the understatement of the year. Regular check ups are the key to a good athletic life.
As a fellow runner with a tough family history of cardiac issues (I was named for my paternal grandmother who died at 32 of heart disease) I applaud you sharing your story. I started running to have a better outcome, but that also includes regular check ups. So glad to see you getting healthier every week & know you will rock Houston in 2022!
Thank you for sharing your personal experience on this issue. I can’t state how important it is to get check up, regardless of how many marathons or Ironmans you finish each year.
Exelente artículo como suelen ser.
Le doy gracias a Dios que Todo salió bien. ,,❤️😘
Excelente artículo – Recuerdo vívidamente la experiencia del francés tirado en el piso en las mitad del Queensboro Bridge antes de llegar a 59th St. en Manhattan – Esobvio -como tu mismo lo anotas- que como Coach no sería honesto no compartir tu propia experiencia en la materia.
So happy you go that stress test Coach! Can’t wait to run many many more miles for you! And with that heart good as new I see a sub-2 in your future!
Thank you, Rhonda. I look forward to taking my bionic heart for a test drive, pretty soon.
Can’t wait!
Thanks for sharing your story and this important information. I too had chest pain (so I thought, but later found ourlt gastritis, had too much Wasabi 😫 on my sushi night before)this past July and Dr. Suggested stress test..although I’m an avid runner did it, glad I did they said something about blockage . ..I passed the test Dr.was shocked 😲
However, a week later I had a followup with a cardiologist whose also a runner, said nothings wrong. Thank God better safe,than sorry . Get check, take it seriously. I’m so glad you got the stress test done, and you’re alright. You will be running soon. I think you already started. God bless
Thanks Adolfo
Thank you for sharing your story. It could be too much wasabi or it could be a blocked coronary artery. You will never know unless you go get checked. Many runners never had a chance for a 2nd opinion because they never got checked. They were counting on their fitness to keep them safe.