We'll run to beat the sunlight, We only get the one life, And I wanna feel your heartlines, I wanna feel your heart -Broods
This certainly was news to me.
At the end of a marathon, it is always my legs that feel like they have worked the hardest, never my heart, and of all the physical challenges I thought I may have faced this year, my heart hadn’t even crossed my mind.
It was only after a conversation I had with my uncle where he spoke about having Atrial Fibrillation (AF), a condition that runs on both sides of my family, that I decided it wouldn’t hurt to mention it to my Dr.
My Dr reassured me that she could rule out AF by simply feeling my pulse, but given the amount of running I am doing we would do a 24hr monitor test... just to be on the safe side.
So, we did.
The test was a pain in the backside, and I can remember being annoyed that it was probably all a waste of time. So, it came as quite a shock when I received a call from the doctors' receptionist to say that I needed to come in as soon as possible to discuss the results.
Weighing in at 10 ounces, the blood-filled muscle called the heart has become the universal symbol of love. The Greeks believed the heart was the seat of the spirit, the Chinese associated it with the centre for happiness and the Egyptians thought the emotions and intellect arose from the heart.
The heart is a masterpiece of electrical engineering. It has its own conduction system, so it can automatically contract and relax on its own, unlike other muscles in the body which require outside electrical nerve impulse for stimulation.
Aside from being an emblem of love and emotion, the heart is a central organ of the cardiovascular system and vital for our existence.
I booked an appointment for 3.30pm that afternoon, and although I tried my best not to worry, I had pretty much convinced myself that it was going to be just like the movie Beaches when Hillary is diagnosed with viral cardiomyopathy, requiring a heart transplant if she is to live. Having a rare tissue type, she realises she will most likely die before a heart is found, which she does - cue Wind Beneath My Wings.
To make matters worse, I had just finished researching our charity partner for this years Women in Super Christmas party, Her Heart, where I had read the frightening statistics that heart disease kills one woman in Australia every hour, kills more women than all cancers combined and that 1 in 3 women die of heart disease.
Oh my goodness I am going to become a statistic!
The Dr called me into her office and ushered me to take a seat. She looked more nervous then I did, which was not a great sign.
Oh my goodness, she is going to tell me I have viral cardiomyopathy, requiring a heart transplant if I am to live - cue Wind Beneath My Wings.
I can't quite remember the first things she said, as Bette Midler was still singing, but the end went something like this, 'the most encouraging thing is that when Wenckebach second-degree A-V block occurs in highly conditioned athletes the prognosis is excellent, as a progressive block generally does not occur'.Sorry Doc, but can you say that all again in plain English, please? You lost me at Wenckebach.
To cut a long story short, basically, my test showed that, while I was sleeping, there was a delay in the transmission of impulses from the atria to the ventricles - a condition know as Wenckeback.
The fact that this was happening, while I was asleep, was the encouraging part, as this was consistent with findings in elite athletes.
I like it when my Dr refers to me as an elite athlete.
Personally, I would put myself into more of your recreational athlete category, but hey she is the Dr so I'll take her word on this one.
She went on to explain that even though the initial findings were encouraging, I still needed to go and see a Cardiologist for further testing... just to be on the safe side.
The further testing was rather extensive and intrusive, given the position of a ladies heart, but at the end of 4 visits to the Cardiologist, he concluded that I don't have to stop running (all I really wanted to hear) and that the condition may get worse, but it may not, so we will just monitor it yearly and cross that bridge if it ever happens.
Phew - what a relief!
I had a thought on the drive home that maybe because my heart does work twice as hard as my legs when I run, that it was just tired and it likes to have a little kip at night time too.
Marathon 9 was the Sydney Marathon. This one had a lot of sentimental value to me as it was where my journey into long-distance running all began.
I ran my first half marathon in Sydney in 2013. It was one of the most difficult physical challenges I have ever completed, and if you had of asked me at the time if I would have run another, the answer would have been a big fat NO.
Yet here I was, 5 years down the track, with 3 more half marathons under my belt and soon to be 11 marathons.
The marathon itself was a tough one. My legs wanted to stop at the 28km mark, and if it wasn't for Tom I probably would have stopped to walk.
I came across Tom at the start of the year on Instagram as he was also taking on 12 marathons this year. We both ran the Cadbury marathon in January and have kept in touch over the year to see how each other is going. We finally met in person at the Sydney marathon, and as we were both aiming to run the same time we decided to run together.
It was great to have some company on the run and to learn more about what has inspired Tom to run.
At about the 28km mark I started to get a niggling pain in my left tensor fasciae latae.
More commonly referred to by me as the 'I need to stop and have a latte pain'.
I had hoped that it would work itself out, but unfortunately, it kept getting worse causing me to drop my pace.
Tom had run ahead to catch up with his mate who was also running. I thought that was just as well as I was getting ready to walk, but as I came around the next corner I could see him up ahead waiting for me.
This was all the encouragement I needed to rally and get to the finish line.
I came in at 3:49:48 and boy was it a wonderful feeling to stop. Sydney had turned on a beautiful day and now that the hard work was out of the way I was happy that I could relax, grab a latte and enjoy it.
I was very lucky to be staying with my work colleague and dear friend Marta. I had such a lovely weekend with her and her family and felt like a princess staying in her beautiful home. Her two boys were also very helpful in helping me do all my post-marathon eating!
Next up is marathon 10 - The Melbourne Marathon!
I am very excited about this one and look forward to telling you about it in the next Running Mojo edition.
Until then...
Happy running x
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