I can see the risk in the swim portion for all those 40-50 year olds that have no idea how to swim in cold OW.
http://www.startribune.com/lifestyle/health/42052842.html?page=2&c=y
this was posted here before and I do not see how they make a connection between that data and heart attack risk.
14 dead out of a million between 2006 and 2008
safer than driving.
there is no story here
it is like some grad student did a survey for a dumb thesis and had to play it up like there was anything worth thinking about here.
There is a better chance of drowning in the bathtub.
The real take away from these articles is, if you do any kind of strenuous activity, triathlon included, you MUST have a proper physical (including EKG) prior to training and competing in these events, and should have one yearly thereafter. This is more important as you get older.
Regular physicals will enable physicians to detect problems that could cause problems if not treated, and which training for and competing in triathlongs could exacerbate. An enlarged heart is one example which puts an individual at increased risk.
I have seen this first hand. Middle aged triathlete, in great shape, no symptons of anything, finally goes in for a physical (after x years) and turns out that he has an enlarged heart.
Why do you ying yangs keep posting this crap?
I don’t get it. Slow night in the boonies? It’s been discussed ad infinitum.
Overweight and sedentary= Heart attack risk
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That is just a silly statistic. In fact this statistic make triathlon seem safe.
Lets be fair about it, what you have just said is Bst.* If you have a heart attack between 40-50 you have either made some bad lifestlye choices or have very unfortunate genes(or possibly a previous illness that weakened the heart).
I am only in my 30’s but it is usually men in there mid 50’s onwards having heart attacks or partial heart attacks requiring by- pass surgery or stents. Can think of 6 recent ones I know and all are mid 50’s and weren’t in great shape and had a bit much stress in there lives. It is a bit stupid working too hard (such that your body is out of shape), and keeling over dead mid 50’s leaving work for all others around you to sort out.
But i do agree that if you are a candidate for a heart attack, then excess physical stress is a time when it will show up. And it is more of a problem if it happens during the swim because you have the added threat of drowning.
You can tell how your own health is in training to a large degree and through other signs your body gives you. But your heading to this post is also inflammatory.
You could also say:
Triathlon, exercise and a healthy lifestyle prolongs your life as a healthy individual. But you have to be sensible.
Some grossly overweight person who doesn’t change there diet but starts exercing alot is probably increasing there chance of a heart attack.
At 32 I had the choice and it was do you want to be ‘fit and healthy’ or fat and wealthy’. I chose…fit and healthy and am only just managing that. The money has stayed flat since 32 but that is fine with me.
To be fit and wealthy is perfect but you can’t guarantee that and in most countries/societies; it has a health cost to be wealthy.
I think anyone who chooses the life of a pro triathlete is just following their dreams, only a very select group will become wealthy from it each year. There are a few exceptions to this though.
Don’t try to train or race hard if you have a virus/cold.
G.
This article is the kind of crap my family reads and sends me worried emails. Sigh.
I have just read the article now. It seems to be a different one from that posted aweek ago?
Firstly though I think saying the cold water causing the heart wall vesssels to constrict is not good journalism(because you wear a wetsuit and warm up so it negates that being a problem).
Maybe they could just have said, ‘if you have a known or undiagnosed heart conditions, then the swim during triathlon can be a risk’.
There are some good points in it:
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a health check up with your doctor or other trained person is useful(but more so when over 50); it can be useful to get you on the right track healthwise if you are younger though,
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practising open water swimming is important and things like this used to be a prequisite before getting an entry in the better events; i think it should still be a prequisite today,
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getting swim fit is important before embarking on a triathlon, but we should all know that as it is commonsense(you drown otherwise.
It is very interesting to hear Matt Reed even had a small asthma attack yesterday while racing; due to the swim scrumm, goggles kicked off.
It happened to me 14months ago and it is quite unnerving so i know first hand. For me it was a matter of going too fast without a warm up in that particular lake; it was cold, clear and shallow so alot of unusual stimulus. If you had an underlying heart condition then these sorts of incidents would be enough stress to trigger further problems.
‘Healthy’ well trained people don’t die of heart attacks caused by natural causes.
G.
Lets be fair about it, what you have just said is Bst.*
Well said 
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My wife, and 3 other people at work sent me this. Of course all of them are drunk, and live off junk food, and they use this to rationalize thier choices. Maybe I should send them the thousands of articles about drinking and junk food.