HR Over 200 while Running?

CharityD
CharityD Posts: 193
edited September 24 in Fitness and Exercise
I have been dieting and exercising for over a year and am near my goal weight. I've gone from 167 to 145 lbs. My exercising has consisted of programs like Slim in 6 and Bosu. In October I started the Couch to 5K program. I have enjoyed running but as my distances have increased, so has my heart rate. My resting rate is about 60, but while running I have been hitting 196-204. This is from my HRM and correlates with my pulse (I have checked! I'm a RN and a firm believer of "treat your patient not your monitor").
Should I push thru and just keep going? My body isn't hurting or fatigued, I just have trouble breathing. I also wonder about the ratio of fat burned vs muscle with rates that high.
Any thoughts?
I can tell you I drink about 2-3 liters of water a day, so I'm not dehydrated. I eat balanced meals with minimal caffeine and no medications.
At first I wrote it off as lack of conditioning, but now after all these months I wonder!

Replies

  • Kristie18
    Kristie18 Posts: 332 Member
    i have been wondering this same thing. Hope someone tunes in with some answers :)
  • mtngoddess
    mtngoddess Posts: 17 Member
    That sounds really high. I have atrial tachycardia and was seeing similar HR during attacks, but I would get dizzy and faint in addition to being short of breath. I'd discuss it with your dr. and make sure this is right for you.
  • Natural
    Natural Posts: 461 Member
    i don't know the answer either but a trainer did say something along the same lines of treat the patient and not the hrm. how do you feel.

    i've noticed mine has gone over 200 a few times and i wasn't even working my hardest and there were times when my hrm said 174 and i felt like crap and slowed down. oh and my arm went numb. that's all i needed.

    go with how you feel, but do keep an eye on your HRM. sometimes those things are wacky on their own, sometimes not.
  • tjsusong
    tjsusong Posts: 195 Member
    Hi, I have trained on and off as a runner for 7 years now. I'm pretty sure that is very high. To calculate your max heart rate take 220, subtract your age and since you are very active you can add back 10. This gives you the max your heart rate should be. You really should only get to 80% of that. I would suggest if your going over your max to slow down and/or walk for those time periods when you hit those really high numbers and allow your heart to adjust.

    I'm 37 and I like to keep my heart rate between 155 and 165 when I'm running. When I hit those "Peaks" or sprints, I let it go up to 170 - 175, but never for very long.

    I hope this helps you a little. I'm not an expert, but I've read up on this kind of stuff over the years. Best of luck to you and congratulations on your weight loss so far!!
  • hotmooglelove
    hotmooglelove Posts: 84
    Unfortunately, no max heart rate calculation has ever proven to be more than "acceptable" as far as it's predictions. If you arent feint or in pain, you are probably just hitting your max.

    In the max zone, your body eats anything and everything it can, including fat and protein, but it will mostly burn carbs. Try to only stay at this point for no more than a few seconds-minutes at a time to train your heart, and carb up before doing it or failure will come quicker.
  • reejam31
    reejam31 Posts: 2
    ok, here's some info that may help... there's a formula for target heart rates you can use to tell where you should be... take 220 and subtract your age. Then subtract your resting heart rate and multiply that number by the percent of that you want to achieve i.e 90% then add your resting heart rate back in. do this again for a lower percentage lets say 75% that will give you a zone that you can train in... weight loss goals have lower heart rate zone and cardio has a higher zone. I'm 32 so if I want to train between 75 and 90% I would calculate it like this...
    220-32= 188- 60=122X.75=91.5+60=151.5
    220-32= 188- 60=122X.90=109.8+60=169.8
    that would give me a range of 152 to 170 bpm

    for a beginner I would make my zone for 55 to 75 percent to start and slowly work my way up to 65 to 95%
  • CharityD
    CharityD Posts: 193
    Good info. The problem is that although my "resting" rate is 60 (taken before I get out of bed in the morning) as soon as my feet hit the floor I'm at 100. Today it was 120 sitting at my desk. I have an apt w my doc in the morning to get it checked out. He's a runner too so hopefully he can help!
  • hjollyrn
    hjollyrn Posts: 208 Member
    Good info. The problem is that although my "resting" rate is 60 (taken before I get out of bed in the morning) as soon as my feet hit the floor I'm at 100. Today it was 120 sitting at my desk. I have an apt w my doc in the morning to get it checked out. He's a runner too so hopefully he can help!
    Thyroid??
  • tjsusong
    tjsusong Posts: 195 Member
    Good info. The problem is that although my "resting" rate is 60 (taken before I get out of bed in the morning) as soon as my feet hit the floor I'm at 100. Today it was 120 sitting at my desk. I have an apt w my doc in the morning to get it checked out. He's a runner too so hopefully he can help!

    Keep us posted because I'm very interested in hearing the result of your HR; if is a concern or not.
  • CharityD
    CharityD Posts: 193
    Well my doc is a little concerned. He's setting up a Cardiology consult for a 24 hour halter monitor and Echocardiogram and he could hear an abnormal rhythm when he listened to me. So we'll see!
    I have had a high HR my entire life and up until now I have written it off as lack of conditioning, but if that were true it would have long since been resolved.
    But he told me to be sure and run with the monitor so that should be fun! :noway:
  • TheIncredibleShrinkingDan
    TheIncredibleShrinkingDan Posts: 19 Member
    Seeing your doctor is the right thing to do (as you know being a nurse) :smile: . I'll offer a couple of thoughts for once you get his okay to keep running...

    Because HR monitors measure the electrical impulses in your heart they can be really erratic at the beginning of your workout before your start to sweat. Sweat helps the connection. Parker Spectra Electrode Gel on Amazon is popular and I use it for cold weather runs in particular. I wear a HRM religiously on runs and mountain bike rides and looking back over my historical data I have a lot of cardio sessions with an impossibly high HR early in the workout. That has not happened since I've been using the gel on the electrodes on the monitor. Getting the sensors wet on the strap before a workout also helps. Here is a really good blog post by a guy that absolutely geeks out (in a good way) on exercise technology. http://www.dcrainmaker.com/2010/04/troubleshooting-your-heart-rate.html

    With respect to your question about how high your HR should be...there is a lot of good information on-line about how to use them like figuring out your heart rate zone and what zone to be in. Google "How To Use A Heart Rate Monitor" and you will find basic articles from Runners World, Women's Health and others. Runners World advises recommends this formula and result for your age...

    MHR = 205 - (.5 x your age)

    188.5 = 205 - (.5 x 33)

    Further they recommend running at 75% max while getting in shape.

    141 = 188.5 x 75%

    So yes, 200 seems high. :smile:

    If you find that you love running and want to know more about training including using HR monitor zones The Runner's Handbook by Bob Glover was really useful to me when I was a new runner. It looks like Runner's World also has a women specific book that is popular. Good luck!
  • CharityD
    CharityD Posts: 193
    I have used electrode gel since I got my HRM and I have spot checked my rate manually when I thought there was no way it could be that high. For now, I'm waiting on my cardiology appointment and am still running...just slower!
    Thanks for the training book tips!
  • jereworthington
    jereworthington Posts: 2
    I was curious what the cardiologist said about your high heart rate.

    I just setup an appointment with my Dr. to discuss my high heart rate during running. I have been doing sprint triathlons for the past 3 years and I still run with a high heart rate. I too have a resting HR of 60 and I can run a 5k with AVG HR of 186 peaking at 200 sometimes. I feel like I am putting in a good hard run but no where near the point of stopping. When I bike, my heart rate never goes that high, its only when I run.

    Any info you can share would be helpful...thanks.
  • Pebble321
    Pebble321 Posts: 6,423 Member
    Interesting, I'll be back to find out your results - I hope it is all OK for you.
    I have only had an HRM since Christmas and am pretty puzzled as to what to set for my max heart rate. All the calculations out there come out at around 177 or so (with a pretty big range depending on the formula I use) .... but 170 is only a comfortable run for me, nowhere near maximum and I've had numbers over 200 before. My resting HR is under 60 pretty consistently so it's a big range to be working in.
    I'll be checking out the Runner's Handbook - thanks for the recommendation Dan.
  • AirCircleI
    AirCircleI Posts: 334 Member
    I'll be interested in the outcome of this. I also have a high heart rate, and when I run (and I job more than run) my heart rate is consistently between 175 and 185, and can go up to 195 if I kick up the speed a little bit. I did a 50 min run last weekend and when I checked my HRM after, it said my average for 50 mins was 184. But I didn't feel like I was particularly pushing myself on speed. I haven't ever been above 200 though.
  • Jambe
    Jambe Posts: 58 Member
    Everyone is different. Some people can get much closer to their maximum heart rate before their body starts to buildup junk faster than it can oxygenate. You could have a doctor test and figure out for you for accuracy if you are that concerned with HR. I haven't myself. I just took the highest my HR has ever been and use it as my max ( 205 ) Dunno if this matters but my resting HR is 42-44 generally...

    You will have to figure out your body yourself. Personally, I don't reach the anaerobic state until above 90%( 185 ) of my MHR, some people are higher/ lower. You don't want to be in this state for longer than a minute at a time. It depletes glycogen very fast and burns less fat % ( still overall more fat calories since it burns more calories but more effort ) You can normally tell when you hit this state... you'l have trouble keeping your breath and also it will give you this unique " high." I usually hover around 170-175. Dip in an out of 185.

    TLDR ; You should be able to tell if you're pushing too hard ;) If you can't hold a conversation generally while running at your pace then you probably can take it down a notch!

    edit- coffee, soda, supplements inflate HR as well. Something to consider.
  • Azdak
    Azdak Posts: 8,281 Member
    Good info. The problem is that although my "resting" rate is 60 (taken before I get out of bed in the morning) as soon as my feet hit the floor I'm at 100. Today it was 120 sitting at my desk. I have an apt w my doc in the morning to get it checked out. He's a runner too so hopefully he can help!

    It is likely that your heart rate, while higher than average, is perfectly "normal". For your age, the numbers are high enough that it's probably worthwhile to rule out any clinical tachycardia.
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