am I exercising too much with a 4.3 ascending aortic aneurysm?

Even though your post is 2 years old I was taken by it. I also have a thoracic aortic aneurysm, in fact two. One 4.2 cm and one 4.5 cm with a valve prolapse. At 88 I am still going to the gym three times a week and am otherwise healthy. I also have been active most of my life in alpine skiing and other outdoor sports. I think your doctors have it correct: keep on with your sports because your strength will get you to 88 and beyond. I will not give up on my active life style because most of my peers are in heaven, those that did not exercise. So, don't worry, be happy and keep on with the things you love.

Very good advice. Since arteries have no nerves associated with them it is doubtful that aneurysm could be the culprit, as long as it does not burst, there is no pain. Angina on the other hand is painful and therefore most likely Kmailloux must have other issues possibly with her heart. I was surprised that her doctors did not put her on a statin and blood pressure meds, since those drugs are indicated in lowering blood pressure, one of the problems that go undetected until stumbled on as in my case.

I am 71 years old and was diagnosed 8 years ago with a 4.4cm Upper Aortic Aneurysm. I have a CT Scan with contrast every 6 months to a year and it has not grown since. I exercise regularly and agree with all the discussion about recommendations being all over the place. I walk a lot at a pretty brisk pace, use exercise bands, as well as 10, 15 and 20 lb dumbells to do all sorts of exercises. I have used 25 and 30lb dumbells to do incline bench presses. I do pushups on an incline against the kitchen counter and squats with no extra weight using the counter to balance myself a little bit. I never do as many reps as I can possibly do, I just stop when my muscles start to feel tired. Before I knew I had an aneurysm I lifted regularly doing maximum reps to failure and straining a lot. Those days are long gone, and I mean, at 71, what's the point.

As far as lifting goes I think the most important thing is how you breathe. Personally I breathe in through my nose as I prepare to exert myself and out through my mouth as I push or pull of whatever. I think what can cause spikes in BP that doctors warn against has to do with lifting heavy weight and straining, meaning holding your breath as you push or pull. If that's what someone is doing, its probably, (in my opinion) too much weight or too many reps. Also agree with everyone who has said talk to your cardiologist because it varies so much between individuals.

All the best to all of you and God bless you!

This really resonates with me. I was diagnosed with a 4.3cm dilated Aorta and Aortic Root. I am 44, 6’4” and 230lbs. My cardio jokes that if I was her size this would be cause for concern but at my size it’s considered mild. She was not able to offer any specific exercise advice. Working out and weightlifting has been my primary life long hobby and now I just feel lost.

The main issue with exercise is avoiding any exercise that leads you to hold your breath and/or grunt, that is common when trying to maintain back stability, sometimes while doing planks, crunches or lifting heavy weights. It is known that during those moments your BP rises significantly and high BP is the worst enemy of an aneurysm. That is why cardiologists normally tell patients to limit weight lifting to 30lbs. I have posted videos in this forum about exercising and aneurysms, look through my posts and you will find them. One of them is from a cardiologist who does research in the subject the other is by Dr Andy Galpin with Dr Huberman, it is not about aneurysms but how and why straining makes BP increase and by how much

On the other hand keeping your body healthy it’s paramount in case you ever need surgery to repair your aneurysm. I had mine repaired in 2020, I was 54 and my aneurysm was 5.2 cm. I was in very good physical shape and my surgeon gave me >99% of having no complications. I was out of the hospital in 5 days back to work in 3 weeks

Well, I echo Houston13's comments.

When my aneurysm was at 4.3cm, I was blissfully ignorant doing anything I wanted including running, hiking high mountains and doing some crossfit exercises that, in retrospect, were probably not helping (Crossfit did significantly raise my BP). I finally was diagnosed with a 5.3-5.4cm ascending aneurysm a couple years ago and decided to get surgery before the damn thing burst. I am now 1.5 years post surgery and all is well again... back to hiking, occasional running and biking.

So my recommendation is to be mindful of your condition but don't let it overwhelm you. Most importantly... stay in great physical shape so when you do have surgery, you will bounce back quickly. Good luck!

Husband has a 4.2 aneurysm, Dr told him not to lift over 50 lbs. No straining, I had to buy smaller luggage. He is going to be 80.

I am 64 years old and take an hour long Zumba classes twice a week, play pickle ball several times a week and bike on the weekends. My aneurysm is 4.1 right now. I was told the same thing that I could do whatever I wanted as long as I felt like it. The only thing they said was not to lift any way above 25 pounds, do isometrics, and bike uphill. I was walk the back up the hill. That’s definitely what they say. Do what you want to do. But like you sometimes I am concerned, I guess time will tell. Kay🌺

My comment should’ve read that I always walk my bike up hills.

I’m in very similar situation to you. Same age and about same level of activity as you do. I also add some fast but short (30-50 yard) uphill sprints during my walk. My aneurysm is currently at 3.9cm and has been stable for several years. My doctor said that this level of exercise should not be a problem.
Someone here posted an excellent video addressing the subject and if I can find it I will post it here. It’s really very helpful and informative.