Heart rate question.. just curiosity.

islebutterfly09
islebutterfly09 Posts: 33 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
What is the effect of nutrition and exercise on your resting heart rate. I started using a HR monitor about 2 weeks ago, and I remember when I first got it I checked my resting heart rate and it hovered in the high 80's. Yesterday and today I did it again and it has been consistently in the low 50's. I was just wondering if anyone had any input or could educate me on this. I have done at least some exercise every day, usually around 30 min. of cardio and a few days I did over an hour of it (and some days only like 15 min). I didn't track exercise every day, but my food logs are accurate. Just wanted some insight from someone more educated than I am. I am really excited to learn about how all this kind of stuff works.

Replies

  • Bakkasan
    Bakkasan Posts: 1,027 Member
    Similar results here. I'm in the mid 40's to low 50's usually now. The heart doesn't have to work as hard at rest when it's in better shape.
  • ixap
    ixap Posts: 675 Member
    Your resting heart rate will drop as you become more fit.
    That's a huge drop for 2 weeks though. I wonder if either your monitor isn't fitting correctly anymore (maybe not tight enough), or if when you first checked your resting heart rate it was elevated for some temporary reason (feeling excited or anxious maybe).
  • mariagabriella
    mariagabriella Posts: 267 Member
    Your resting heart rate will drop as you become more fit.
    That's a huge drop for 2 weeks though. I wonder if either your monitor isn't fitting correctly anymore (maybe not tight enough), or if when you first checked your resting heart rate it was elevated for some temporary reason (feeling excited or anxious maybe).

    this... that drops seems to good to be true.
  • Bakkasan
    Bakkasan Posts: 1,027 Member
    I'll add it took 4 months to see the mid 60's down from an 80 avg. Over a year in and now I am what I posted earlier.

    Many meds can artificially lower hr.
  • opuntia
    opuntia Posts: 860 Member
    My heart rate was always pretty high - for years and years it stayed between 80 and 90 - even when I ate healthily and did cardio. But since I've started doing strength exercises, it's gone down to between 50 and 60. And it was quite a rapid drop too - within a couple of months. I'm not on any meds and never have been.
  • gators1378
    gators1378 Posts: 5
    i wouldnt worry about it ! just keep it simple!
  • spiregrain
    spiregrain Posts: 254 Member
    I have a naturally low resting heart rate (fit or no -- even if I'm doing normal daily stuff like chasing my kid around it doesn't go over 55). If your heart rate falls below 50 **AND** you have symptoms like feeling faint or breathless, you should see a doctor right away. But if you just had the one initial test at 80 and since then it's been 50's, I'm going with you're probably like me and have bradycardia. It's generally considered a pretty good thing.

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