TAA and exercise

I had TAA emergency dissection at the root a year ago. I have a Konect Resilia valve conduit now and am instructed to watch my blood pressure. I completed a 12 week cardio rehab program where the focus was really cardio and not much about weights other than a 30lb limit or other forms of exercise. I was told to watch heart rate max of 120. Can I lift weights above my head? Is singing ok? Is biking ok? Often heart rate above 120 when biking. I used to do road biking before the dissection and now don’t think I can. A bit frustrated about what I can and cannot do. I had a personal trainer before but a lot of isometric exercises that would have holding my breath. Not sure I can trust a personal trainer who doesn’t know much about aneurysms. Any suggestions other than don’t hold your breath?

Maybe consult with a Physical Therapy Doctor, my wife is going to one for a back issue and it is incredible the knowledge they have abot the body, muscles, exercise, etc They will take you gradually through the right exercises and will teach you postures, etc

Thank you for the suggestion. I tried to get a suggestion from kinesiologist working at the cardiac rehab centre. She suggested going ahead with isometric exercises saying that I wouldn’t be holding my breath for very long. That was a red flag to avoid kinesiology grads. I’ll ask my GP for a suggestion.

Not sure that your GP is the best doc to ask this question of. I would personally ask the Surgeon who performed your surgery. Even if it is a message on the portal, the surgeon would want you to have the best post op outcome possible.

PTDs are Doctors, not MDs but they have similar path. I will ask ours for recommendations.

Best reply in my opinion. houston13 is correct in name only. PTD does mean physical therapy doctor but they are not close to MD's in training. Any bachelors degree followed by as little as 2.3 years of physical therapy training will earn the title PTD.
I'm not taking anything away from Physical Therapists, most of them are well trained and can help rehabilitate one after a medical condition that requires further attention following surgery or other condition.

I live in Canada. My sister was a physiotherapist which is now a MSc program here. I don’t know of any cardiac physios in the area. The hospital ones seems to be more occupational focussed with stairs and walking tests before discharged. A physiatrist , an MD with physical rehab specialty, may be the approach or at least point me in the right direction.

Good point. It has been a year but I can see him knowing everyone in the area.
I’m also doing genetic counselling with a group looking at aortic aneurysms. They might suggest someone too.

My son is a 3rd year medical student, I don’t know if there’s a more grueling career to study, so I know they are not close, I just meant PTDs (at least the ones I have had contact with) are very knowledgeable and I have found them very effective. Their years of study are real and I respect their expertise and knowledge (I imagine there are some that are not that helpful but unfortunately that’s also true for some MDs/DOs)

Hi Mpl. Your dissection was a scary thing! With your activity history it must be frustrating to have unclear limits in your exercise parameters now. All of us are trying to stay active in a safe way. I would suggest that you look into the Valsalva maneuver and see how it is produced when YOU personally do daily activities like your singing and lifting things above your head. The valsalva increases blood pressure for short blips of time during certain activities or core body mechanics used during activities, and must be avoided. A physical Therapist who is "Hands On" and "specifically Prepared" could help you work through these parameters and definitely your body mechanics. This also needs to be approached within a "Team" that includes cardiology and primary care in order to consider your specific TAA repair, your specific current physical conditioning, and any comorbidities that might affect your process. One person is not enough. Also, the more informed you are, helps you ask targeted questions and apply your information. Good luck with this! I love all the comments everyone has posted regarding your questions, because they are all relevant. I hope to see more.