From heart disease to the NYC Marathon
BY LINDA FEINGOLD
My name is Linda Feingold,
MEd, MS, RDN and during
my twentieth year as a
registered dietitian and personal
trainer teaching others
how to eat and exercise properly
in order to prevent heart
disease, I ended up becoming
a cardiac patient myself.
Being in the health education
business for so long, I literally
forgot that in some people,
a family history of heart
disease can override healthy
habits. So when I started
developing back pain that
would sometimes radiate into
my chest during my long runs
while training for the NYC
Marathon in 2018, I didn’t assume
I had a heart problem.
Especially since only a few
weeks prior I had my annual
physical and was told my “ten
year risk factor for heart disease
was .5-percent”. But I
couldn’t ignore the fact that
my dad had a massive heart
attack and went into cardiac
arrest when he was around
my age. So I asked my primary
doctor if she could order
me a stress test and she
referred me to a cardiologist.
Nine days after my 18-mile
training run I was in a cardiologist’s
office learning for
the first time that I had something
very wrong with my
heart. I underwent a slew of
tests and exactly one month
after that first appointment I
learned I had coronary artery
disease (CAD). One week later
I was in the cath lab undergoing
my first stent placement
for my “widow maker” artery
which was 99% blocked. I was
too sick to undergo the second
stent placement I needed for
another significantly blocked
artery and had to wait an additional
five weeks for that
procedure.
I could have let all this
beat me up emotionally but I
refused to do so. I was weak
from four months of being
completely inactive but I
picked myself up, wiped the
tears of fear and frustration,
and powered through. I’m
pretty sure I’m the only person
who has ever signed up
for a half-marathon in the
middle of a cardiac rehab
class (If you don’t sign up immediately
for the Brooklyn
Half you’re not getting in!).
I ran that half-marathon
six weeks after graduating
from cardiac rehab only 41
seconds slower than I did the
year before. And my dream of
running the NYC Marathon
finally came true on November
3rd, 2019 at 4:28:05 (my
seventh NYC attempt and
second marathon ever in 23
years!). In addition, in 2019 I
earned a personal best in my
1M, 5K, 4M, 10K and marathon
BRONX TIMES REPORTER,36 FEBRUARY 7-13, 2020 BTR
times. I guess it’s true
what they say — the comeback
is always greater than
the setback.
In 2020 and beyond, I plan
to continue to educate others
in eating healthfully and exercising,
with an additional
emphasis on being in tune
with the body and knowing
when something isn’t right. I
plan on being as active if not
more so than before. Most importantly,
I look forward to
more sunrises and sunsets,
and more time with friends
and family.