Running And Heart Attacks - Can Running Kill You?

Running is cardiovascular activity per excellence

, it gets the heart pumping and working hard for long periods of time. Therefore, it does put considerable stress on the body, mostly the heart and lungs. That's why lots of people started to link heart problems to running due to all this extra stress. Well, is this conclusion a true scientific fact? Or, it's just a myth that the media preaches to play on people's fears and get attention?

This question became a big argument in the early 80's with the death of running author Jim Fixx. But there are a few facts that you need to know about this guy before we go any further. Because there are lots of misconceptions about Fixx sudden death that needs clearing up. Jim Fixx started out a very unlikely runner. He was overweight; and smocked heavily. He was in a very bad shape and unhappy about it; so he took up running. Then he became known as a promoter and defender of running and published the famous book: "the complete running book". That made a huge success at that time.

But during one of his daily runs, Jim Fixx suffered a massive heart attack and died instantly. As a result, some people held responsible running for his death and claimed that this was proof that running causes heart attacks and has harmful effects on the body. In fact, this couldn't be farther from the truth. Jim Fixx had a family history of heart disease. His father had died at the age of 42 due to a heart attack. Add to that his unhealthy life style for almost his entire life before he started running.

The truth is that Jim fix actually added years to his life through running, but more just adding years to his life, Fixx enhanced the quality of his life. It has been proven time and time again that running and other forms of exercise help prevent heart disease and improve cardiovascular effectiveness; and studies show that engaging in regular exercise like running can extend your life from 3 year to 10 years.

What most studies agree on is that a person who already has a damaged heart or an underlying heart disease, is more likely to die while running than if he or she were walking or resting.This makes sense because of the strain on the heart is obviously greater during strenuous exercise. Therefore, if you have a family history of heart disease, be cautious and don't go over your limits.

by: david dack

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