Anxiety problems holding me back from better exercise

bulbadoof

A big part of the reason I started losing weight in the first place is because I was experiencing chest pain frequently and suddenly. I have had multiple tests done, dropped 100 lbs, and eat a much healthier diet than I used to. My doctor has told me I'm completely fine on multiple occasions, that I have benign chest wall pain and an anxious personality, and has cleared me to up the intensity of my exercise. But every time my heart gets pounding I still feel terrified. I want to exercise more, build more muscle, get more cardio in, but it's hard to get a satisfying workout when I'm so afraid of getting my heart rate up. I've tried, so many times and so many ways, but the fear just takes me over once I start to get going.

Has anyone dealt with chest pain while exercising? How much higher than normal is it safe for my heart rate to get while exercising? At what point should I stop? Are there special breathing or warmup techniques I can use to minimize my pain and anxiety?

ChildOfTheLions

I have General Anxiety Disorder and have for 7 years. I dont ever check my heartrate while i am working out. Being i will have a panic attack if it is to high. And i have had panic attacks while exercising and it sucks SOO bad!!.. I feel like i am going to have a heart attack right there in the gym and have to walk outside for awhile until my heart rate goes down. I dont have any special breathing techniques. Everyday is a challenge. It is all mental for me, i have to be in the right mindset before i even leave the house or exercise or it will not go well. I just listen to my body , i have became really attuned to every signal it gives off. if my chest starts hurting or feeling tight, or if i feel my heartrate is to high i will slow down if i am on the elliptical or some other cardio machine and turn down the resistance until i feel comfortable and then start bumping it back up. If i am lifting weights and feel anxious or panicky i will wait longer between resp or sets. I dont know if any of this is helpful. LIke i said i take one day at a time and some days are good some days are not. Best of Luck on your journey. Im going to add you if that is ok

ChildOfTheLions

Its also nice to know i am not this only one feeling this way. My friends and family dont understand they think i am just over dramatic but it definately is a real thing and makes life hard at times!

bulbadoof

I have General Anxiety Disorder and have for 7 years. I dont ever check my heartrate while i am working out. Being i will have a panic attack if it is to high. And i have had panic attacks while exercising and it sucks SOO bad!!.. I feel like i am going to have a heart attack right there in the gym and have to walk outside for awhile until my heart rate goes down. I dont have any special breathing techniques. Everyday is a challenge. It is all mental for me, i have to be in the right mindset before i even leave the house or exercise or it will not go well. I just listen to my body , i have became really attuned to every signal it gives off. if my chest starts hurting or feeling tight, or if i feel my heartrate is to high i will slow down if i am on the elliptical or some other cardio machine and turn down the resistance until i feel comfortable and then start bumping it back up. If i am lifting weights and feel anxious or panicky i will wait longer between resp or sets. I dont know if any of this is helpful. LIke i said i take one day at a time and some days are good some days are not. Best of Luck on your journey. Im going to add you if that is ok

Thanks! Taking it slow sounds like a great way to keep yourself working out without driving yourself into a panic attack. I've been closely monitoring my heart rate to make sure it's not off the charts, but every time I see it go up, I feel tense and nervous even though I know it's what I'm supposed to be doing. It's hard to concentrate on the workout when you're arguing with your brain about whether or not this is safe! :ohwell:

My social circle is the same way. I feel a little embarrassed about it when I try to work out with friends and I especially hate to admit when I have to stop, because they think I'm doing it for attention or making excuses cause I'm lazy. Sometimes I think it'd be nice to have a workout buddy with a similar problem, so that neither of us would feel obligated to keep pushing ourselves through a scare just because our partner doesn't understand.

DopeItUp

How much higher than normal is it safe for my heart rate to get while exercising? At what point should I stop?

Your question is tricky because there is no such thing as "normal" heart rate in the first place. Heart rate depends on age, gender, fitness level and genetics (and maybe more). It all depends on the person. I wouldn't sweat it at all. The only thing that's going to happen if your heart rate is too high is that you're going to get tired really fast and/or start feeling faint from the overexertion. You don't magically die when your heart rates exceeds a certain point. My supposed max rate is 188 and I have seen 200+ on my heart rate monitor multiple times. Guess what, I'm still here! If your doctor says you're fine, just go with it, there's no reason to stop exercising because your heart rate went up - that's what exercise is! Worst case, slow it down a little bit if you're really that anxious about it.

ChildOfTheLions

Dope it up you just made me feel better

Duck_Puddle

I have anxiety issues (from PTSD-so not sure if it's the same). I find that regular medium-intensity cardio (I run-very slowly for more than an hour 5 days a week) has nearly eliminated my anxiety issues. I don't have the panic attacks, I'm not jumpy, I'm just calmer overall. I don't know if any of that will translate for you-but calming myself down overall has nearly eliminated my anxiety response to a lot of triggers. I didn't have issues with concerns over a high heart rate during exercise-but I had issues with a whole lot of things. And I didn't specifically address my reactions to each thing-I just found that my reactions have been nearly non-existent (to almost all my triggers) since I've been running 1hr+ per day-5 days a week. I'm not suggesting you start running on my schedule as a cure-all, but it's working for me so I thought I would share.