tachycardia

jluescher
jluescher Posts: 4 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Not sure if I am posting to the right board or not but I was wondering if anyone has had the same experience or advice to give to me. About two weeks ago I bought the polar ft4 and I've heard nothing but great things about it. I got it to track my calories but now I'm more concerned about my heart rate. Since I've started working out more and running at a higher speed I notice my heart rate goes pretty high. Well the other day I noticed I ran a few intervals ranging from 5.5-6.5 and my max heart rate got up to 200 and my average was pretty high up as well. I also noticed at lower pace workouts my heart rate was still high so I decided to go to the doctor. I'm - female and 5'5 and weigh 130.6; I would consider myself to be in decent shape. My doctor was "very very concerned" about this and set up an appointment to see a cardiologist on Tuesday. I'm a bit freaked out. My resting heart rate is 54, which is a little low, so I can kind of see her concern. At a pace of 5.0 I can carry on a convo. At a 5.5 it's a little tough but I can say a few lines. At 6.0 I can only say one or two words at a time bc I'm sucking wind or short of breathe (not sure what the difference is bt being short of breathe and pushing yourself). At a 6.5 I can't talk at all. On Friday I walked a minute at 3.5, finished the rest of the lap at 5.5, ran the next lap at 6.0, and then the last four at 6.5. My max heart rate was 198 and I believe my average was 186. I only ran for 14:09 mins. Is this something I should really be concerned about?

Replies

  • AlwaysInMotion
    AlwaysInMotion Posts: 409 Member
    Okay, the best thing is not to panic until you see the cardiologist and get a full workup. Your doctors will give you much better answers than you can get from a public diet/fitness discussion board. Very few people here are medical professionals - and even if they tried to give you some sound medical advice, they really have no way to determine what's going on with you specifically. And you really don't want people guessing - that might freak you out!

    Knowledge is power. Once you see the cardiologist, you will have the knowledge you need. But for now, don't worry too much. I've dealt with a LOT of serious heart disease in my family and even the most terrifying conditions can be successfully managed/treated.

    The most important thing is 1) you noticed something wasn't quite right early on, 2) you made that appointment with you doctor and now the cardiologist, and 3) you are taking steps to get healthier. Let the doctors figure out what's up and help you develop a plan. It'll be OK.
  • jluescher
    jluescher Posts: 4 Member
    Thank you! It just makes me nervous and I wasn't sure if anyone on here at a similar experience. But you eased my mind, so thank you!
  • _Zardoz_
    _Zardoz_ Posts: 3,987 Member
    My initial thoughts are that you have the chest strap either positioned wrong or not properly in contact with your skin. I know if mine on my ft7 is to loose it gives silly high readings. I would double check you have it positioned correctly and tight enough and the sensors are wet. I find you need it so it almost feels too tight. It's just strange to have a low resting hr and then such a high one at exercise which is making me think it's something to do with the monitor not you.

    If though the readings are correct try not to panic too much and wait until you've seen the doctor.
  • GiddyupTim
    GiddyupTim Posts: 2,819 Member
    My wife is a serious, 5-day-a-week runner. A few months ago, she noticed she was missing some beats. The doctors she visited told her that missed beats are common for runners. She thinks it was electrolyte-related. She started taking potassium and magnesium, and she has no more problems.
    I don't know if that is the same kind of thing or not, but I know that sometimes we observe things these days, with technology, that otherwise would have gone unnoticed and that are essentially meaningless.
    I would not worry until you get it checked out.
  • Maleficent0241
    Maleficent0241 Posts: 386 Member
    See a doctor. Same thing happened to me (both manual check and HRM showed 205+ on long runs) and I freaked out and saw a cardiologist. In my case, they did a full work up, nothing was wrong and he said "well some people are just like that." The heart is NOT something to mess around with, but I would try and relax as best you can until the appointment. Do you drink a lot of caffeine? That can elevate your HR too.
  • jluescher
    jluescher Posts: 4 Member
    I only have one cup of coffee a day but drink lots of water. I do take vyvanse for ADHD and my gp, pharamacist, and pdoc said that is the only medication that I take that stands out to them that might make my heart rate go so high while working out.
  • AlwaysInMotion
    AlwaysInMotion Posts: 409 Member
    I only have one cup of coffee a day but drink lots of water. I do take vyvanse for ADHD and my gp, pharamacist, and pdoc said that is the only medication that I take that stands out to them that might make my heart rate go so high while working out.

    Glad I could help earlier. By what you mentioned right here, there could be a few benign triggers that cause tachycardia. So, yeah, you'll want to share with the nurses/doctors how much you're eating, drinking, and what meds you are on. Also include stuff like how much cardio you're doing recently, how much rest you're getting, if you have a ton of stress going on, and even stuff like salt consumption, caffeine, or any diet/nutritional supplements. I can guarantee you'll feel relieved once you get checked out. Plus, it's nice to get a baseline on your heart health now. Good luck at the doctor's office!
  • kshadows
    kshadows Posts: 1,315 Member
    I'm no doctor so I can only offer my experience... I have a Polar FT7 I started using about 6 weeks ago, when I run and when I rollerblade. When I first started skating, my average HR was around 170-175, with the max around 190. Now, my average is 150s and max ~170. Could be as you get into better shape, it will decrease.

    Do you know your resting HR? If that is high, I'd check with your doctor (between 60-100 is considered normal)
  • runnergrlfl
    runnergrlfl Posts: 82 Member
    When I first started running, my averages were in the mid 180s. I can run a long time now at a moderate pace at about 170-175BPM.

    My RHR is 48-52, and it shoots up pretty fast when I run. I max out at about 190. It used to freak me out, and I spent so much time concentrating on it that I stopped listening to my body and how I felt, instead focusing on the numbers.

    I stopped using the Heart Rate Monitor when the battery died about a year ago, and I rediscovered that I don't need it, because I listen to my body. I can feel when my HR is too high, or my blood is pumping too intensely.

    Not saying don't visit the Cardio for peace of mind...but...grain of salt, and all that when relying on a sport machine for diagnosis.
  • DavPul
    DavPul Posts: 61,406 Member
    it's a device that you buy at a sports supply store that cost half as much as the Nikes they stock on the shelf. it's not a medical device. i mean, go ahead and see your doc for peace of mind but a reading on a HRM that you are just learning how to use really isn't something to get alarmed about
  • AlwaysInMotion
    AlwaysInMotion Posts: 409 Member
    Normally I would wonder the same thing - perhaps the OP is just out of shape, maybe she's having HRM issues, or maybe she's just fatigued or dehydrated. When the OP mentioned her doctor was "very, very concerned" and referred her to a cardiologist, I figured it's best not to downplay the OP's concern. Hopefully the doc was just being hyper-cautious (as they often are nowadays) and there's nothing serious going on. The only way to rule out cardiovascular problems is to get checked out.
  • alexisdc
    alexisdc Posts: 117 Member
    Okay, the best thing is not to panic until you see the cardiologist and get a full workup. Your doctors will give you much better answers than you can get from a public diet/fitness discussion board. Very few people here are medical professionals - and even if they tried to give you some sound medical advice, they really have no way to determine what's going on with you specifically. And you really don't want people guessing - that might freak you out!

    Knowledge is power. Once you see the cardiologist, you will have the knowledge you need. But for now, don't worry too much. I've dealt with a LOT of serious heart disease in my family and even the most terrifying conditions can be successfully managed/treated.

    The most important thing is 1) you noticed something wasn't quite right early on, 2) you made that appointment with you doctor and now the cardiologist, and 3) you are taking steps to get healthier. Let the doctors figure out what's up and help you develop a plan. It'll be OK.
    ^^^ This. I actually have Supraventricular Tachycardia (erractic heart beat). I found out in 2010 when my heart felt like it was coming out of my chest. I was working out and noticed just holding on the machine heart rate thing it was getting up in the 200s. I saw the cardiologist and this is what he diagnosed. In my case he told me to ditch ALL caffiene. My heart rate has been normal (for me) ever since. Sometimes it will get erratic if I eat dark chocolate, but other then that I don't seem to have any issues. So, good luck to you on your finding :)

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