8th June 2010 - Cardiac Athletes reclaim health through running after heart attacks
Dave Tuttle of Buffalo, N.Y. runs a recent race. That
was 11 years and thousands of miles ago. Determined to take control
of his health and life, Tuttle took up running.
Today, at 57, he looks the part of the endurance runner he has become.
Slender and fit, Tuttle has completed five marathons and runs as much
as 50 miles a week, logging every single one along the way: 9,073-plus
miles and counting. “I feel great. I had couple of cardiologists
tell me it’s the only reason I’m alive,” he said.
Tuttle, who lives outside Buffalo, N.Y. has close running ties to
Harrisburg. He is a member of Cardiac Athletes,
who, as their name implies, have overcome cardiovascular episodes
to become runners, swimmers and tri-athletes. The Harrisburg Marathon
, with its central location, flat course and ideal November conditions,
has become one of the group’s favorite venues.
This year, when Cardiac Athletes return
to run the marathon in November, it will donate to the New Cumberland
EMS an artificial exterior defibrillator - an AED - that it purchased
through a fundraiser.
Tuttle said it’s a token of gratitude for all the work the EMS
does each year during the race. “They have had such a great
presence in that race,” said Tuttle, who ran the race in 2007.
“I’ve been really impressed with what they do there, how
many are out on the course and how proactive they are. They do a great
job."
The AED will help the unit provide critical care in emergency situations,
especially along the marathon route, said Cindy Anderson, captain
of the New Cumberland EMS. “We’re extremely grateful for
that,” she said. “AEDs are one of the pieces of equipment
that are usually at a premium at that type of event.
A few years ago, the New Cumberland unit used an AED to resuscitate
a runner who had collapsed near the finish line. “He is still
alive and kicking today,” said Chad Krebs, race director for
the Harrisburg Area YMCA.
The race, which grows annually, had its biggest turnout last year,
with 900-plus individual runners and some 350 relay teams. Krebs hopes
to hit 2,000 runners this year.
Anderson said she learned of Cardiac Athletes a few months ago when
Tuttle called her to arrange the donation of the AED. “My first
thought was, ‘Oh, God, just what I need out there on that day...
two dozen confirmed cardiac patients,' ”Anderson said. “But
these aren’t the people I should worry about. These people know
they have a problem. They are training correctly and being monitored
by their doctor. It’s the other people who aren’t training
correctly and don’t realize they have cardiac problems. They
are the ones we should worry about.”
Anderson couldn’t be more right.
Running - even strenuous marathon training - is advisable for many
heart patients, said Dr. Timothy Walsh, a cardiologist with the Moffitt
Heart and Vascular Group in Wormleysburg. “The majority of heart
patients that have had an event and have had appropriate treatment,
a change of lifestyle and eating, and have gotten involved in exercise
can take it to that level,” he said. “There may be a small
percentage of heart patients who we do not want to see push themselves,
but the majority of heart attack and post-attack patients, if they’ve
made significant changes in their life, can get to that level.”
Walsh said he has several patients who have trained for ultra-marathons,
which can entail 50 and even 100 miles of running during one event.
“Most patients just don’t hear that message. The ones
that do we are very happy about,” he said.
These days, once they give patients the green light, doctors like
to see them out of bed within three days and in an exercise regime
within the week. “We like to get them up doing things. We like
to see them doing something five to six days a week,” Walsh
said.