“As great as I felt before all of this, I realized I probably wasn’t operating at my full capacity. But 12 weeks after my surgery, I was feeling pretty good.”
On a cold February night in 2020, Tim Jones and his wife, Taryn, hit the gym together. For the last couple of years, Tim was eating healthier, exercising regularly, and feeling better about himself. At 39, he might have even dared to say he was in the best shape of his life. On this particular night, he climbed on a rowing machine and wasted no time starting an intense workout. But after a few minutes, Tim began to feel lightheaded. He regretted not warming up.
Tim unstrapped his feet and looked over at his wife, who was exercising next to him. Then everything went black. He was being tended to by paramedics when he came to several minutes later. Taryn initially thought he was having a seizure. They’d learn later that Tim went into cardiac arrest.
It was shocking to hear, but not a complete surprise. Two years earlier, Tim was diagnosed with bicuspid aortic valve disease (BAVD), a condition where the aortic valve has only two cusps (or flaps) instead of three. It can be years before BAVD causes an issue. Tim’s bicuspid aortic valve had begun to narrow, a progressive ailment called aortic stenosis that would eventually require him to undergo a surgery to replace his aortic valve. But he was assured that day was likely 10, maybe even 20, years away.
The future is now
Tim’s aortic stenosis progressed far more rapidly than anyone could have foreseen. Following his collapse, he was admitted overnight to his local hospital and prescribed a heart catheterization. Before he underwent the minimally invasive procedure, he sought a new cardiologist. A self-guided search led him to Howard Herrmann, MD, Director of Interventional Cardiology for Penn Medicine.
Dr. Herrmann recommended that Tim undergo the catheterization as soon as he could, which, because this was the beginning of the pandemic, meant May. The cardiologist who performed the procedure informed Tim that the blood pressure in his aortic valve had reached a threshold where surgery to replace the valve would need to happen within the next few months.
Dr. Herrmann agreed that aortic valve replacement surgery was the only way forward and introduced Tim to Nimesh D. Desai, MD, PhD, director of the Penn Aortic Center.
In a few months, Tim would be charged with opening the luxury hotel, W Philadelphia, in Center City, his “dream job.” Anticipating that his work would be relentless once that time came, he scheduled the surgery for the first week of June. In the meantime, he studied the operation, and its alternatives, with the same thoroughness with which he approached his job.
“Dr. Desai discussed them all with me and answered every one of my questions, which helped me arrive at the conclusion that I wanted the aortic valve replacement surgery,” Tim says. “And then I had to decide between a tissue replacement valve or an artificial one. During quite a long call one evening, he carefully talked through the pros and cons of each with me.”
Tim ultimately opted for the tissue replacement valve, in part, he says, because it would enable him to avoid being on blood thinners. He underwent his surgery early on a Tuesday morning and was cleared to go home on Friday.
‘Making myself a priority’
The recovery period for this surgery is about 12 weeks. After four weeks or so, Tim was taking brisk walks and going on short bike rides with Taryn.
As he healed, he vowed to come back stronger than ever. Inspired by his wife, who’s competed in a number of triathlons, Tim decided a half-Ironman — 1.2 miles of swimming, 56 miles of cycling, and 13.1 miles of running — would be a sufficient test of his fitness once he was back to full health.
He was already a cyclist, so that part of the training came naturally to him. He went on a 50-mile ride 11 weeks after his surgery and gradually ramped up from there. The running was another story. “I didn’t like running,” he says. Nonetheless, Tim endured a three-mile run 12 weeks after his surgery, the first of many to come.
Initially, he was a bit hesitant about getting back to intense exercise. But with each completed workout, he gained confidence and quickly arrived at an unexpected realization.
“As great as I felt before all of this, I realized I probably wasn’t operating at my full capacity,” Tim says. “But 12 weeks after my surgery, I was feeling pretty good.”
Since his surgery, Tim has been seen by Neel Chokshi, MD, MBA, Medical Director of the Penn Sports Cardiology and Fitness Program, who’s helping ensure that Tim can navigate his training — and life — without any more surprises from his heart health.
In March, Tim competed in his first run, the Philadelphia Love Run Half Marathon. He followed it up with the 10-mile Blue Cross Broad Street Run in May. And he’s registered for a half-Ironman in September.
“I’m not fast. Nor am I a competitive person — I’m not doing this to satisfy that desire. These runs are just a way for me to challenge myself,” Tim says. “After a couple of tumultuous years, I’m focused on making myself a priority.”