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Heart Disease (Expert Forum)
Atenolol and exercise performance
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Atenolol and exercise performance
by Dane, Dec 11, 2000 12:00AM
I am a 39 year old male. I am preparing to run my first marathon in 2001. I currently run 20 – 30 miles per week. I am also participating in a light strength training regimen. My doctor recently prescribed Atenolol 25mg for mild hypertension. Given my new medication, should I modify my training program? Will Atenolol impact my exercise performance? Thanks.
Doctor's Answer
by CCF CARDIO MD - CRC, Dec 11, 2000 12:00AM
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Choose an Ace Inhibitor like Altace instead. Doctors just precribe this stuff because it's cheap and it works. It's also a good drug after a heart attack. It's mainly for people with rythm problems that are relatively sendentary.
The pharmacists have told me that I should not be able to run on the beta blocker. The family doctor said I should and the cardiologists ducked the question.
The first problem is that is the demand by the body for a higher heart rate such as when you start up that last hill is driven down by the beta blocker. The result is fatigue. You can always walk when the thighs start to hurt.
The second problem is resting heart rate. Because we are fit, our natural rate is maybe as low as 45. I understand that the beta blocker lowers both active and resting rates therefore the 45 is taken even lower. This has made me dizzy and almost pass out when the low rate is combined with a normal variation of blood pressure. Watch out for mid-day.
Thirdly I believe that you cannot improve your performance as quickly as when you didnt take the drug. I think this is because improvement requires stressing, muscle damage and then recovery to a stronger position. This is harder to do when you can not get your heart rate up. So the improvement curve is flatter. (which it is as you get older anyway)
Given the half life of the drug, it max's in the blood 3 to 6 hours after taking. I usually time my runs to be 12 to 15 hours after and that helps.
My brother in law, doctor and 65yr marathoner makes sure he takes a regular aspirin before any race or very long training session. I dont bother as I am on daily dose anyway.
I have also started on an ACE a year ago. I have found no effects on running nor have I read of any.
Finally 25mg is a small dose and maybe you will have no effects at all.
Keep up the running, surely the miles will reduce the hypertension more than any drug.