Bill Beasley Nearly Died While Getting Fit

Following a 20-minute warmup on the treadmill and one set of sit-ups, Beasley's heart stopped. The 48-year-old fitness buff collapsed from a major heart attack in front of stunned club members, including his wife and daughter.

He was in the right place at the right time. His health club, Ontario Racquet Club (ORC) in Mississauga, had a defibrillator on hand.

"When they hooked me up I had flat-lined -- they had to shock me. For seven to eight minutes I was basically dead," says Beasley, who's already back to walking and light jogging after the harrowing incident on April 1.

Fit as a fiddle from regular cardio and weight workouts, tennis, squash and hockey for the past three decades, doctors discovered a 90% blockage in his left artery and put in a stent.

"The plumbing's been fixed and now I have to work my heart into shape," he says. The only downside -- no more hockey, maybe ever.

Exercise does not guarantee a life without setbacks, says fitness expert Barrie Shepley, and "with few exceptions, I don't believe exercise causes health setbacks."

So we're not better off on the couch! "Fitness doesn't always guarantee longevity, but it generally does provide quality of life," says Shepley.

According to Shepley, a former Olympic coach and owner of Personal Best Health and Performance, "younger people, usually men in their 40s and 50s, who die during exercise, usually die from one of two reasons: Either the person was totally inactive for many years (decades) then gets caught up in a men's hockey tournament, 10 km run or basketball pickup game, and then goes too hard and over-extends himself.

"Or, if they have been exercising and they die during exercise, in all likelihood they have extremely bad genetics and likely would have died earlier," he says, adding that he rarely hears about women aged 40 or 50 dying during exercise. "They seem to have the hormonal support until menopause, at which point the number of deaths from heart attacks are roughly the same as men."

Beasley is counting his blessings: "Holy cow, am I lucky. I could have been out running and had no one with me. I probably wouldn't be here," says Beasley, who was given CPR by qualified club members and staff while the defibrillator was retrieved.

Adds Jeff McCarrol, general manager of ORC, "Bill was definitely in the right place ... All our fitness, tennis and key staff are certified yearly in EMS procedures. Over the years, we have had eight cardiac arrests at the club and, thankfully, we have been very fortunate to have saved seven of eight."

McCarrol purchased the defibrillator when one member had back-to-back cardiac arrests within a year. Exercise is not dangerous, emphasizes McCarrol: "It plays a significant role in the prevention and treatment for diabetes, cardiovascular disease, depression, osteoporosis, cancer, quality of life and many more."

He encourages regular exercise, and regular family physician checkups if there are any medical hereditary factors.

Meanwhile, Beasley plans to raise awareness and funds for defibrillator placement in public places. He also strongly advocates getting stress tests. He never made it to his; it had been scheduled a mere 10 days after his heart attack.