Forums >General Running>Wild swings in HR - is this unsurprising?
Looking for any kind of advice or useful info from other running folks here.
Please see my last run this morning here. I did a comfortable hard effort but thats about it. At no point in time did i get breathless or feel my heart pounding. Yet my garmin recorded the HRs that it did.
Have others faced similar problems? Can the HR actually go as high as 226? Is this a malfunction of the HR monitor or is it a sign that i should visit a doc? A couple of times on the run, i manually pulled the HR strap higher as it seemed to be slipping because of the sweat but that still doesnt explain the HRs recorded.
I dont sweat. I ooze liquid awesome.
Every once in awhile people report these wild fluctuations with their Garmin. 226 bpm would be high for a 30 year old. So, unless your heart was pounding through your chest while running easy (you would feel a rapid heart rate most likely), then it has to do with one or more of the following:
--strap battery getting low
--you mentioned slippage. If it is slipping, that means in isn't on tight enough. This could do it. If you can't get it tight enough, bunch it with a safety pin.
--running with a cel phone on the side of your body where you wear your watch.
--dirty transmitter. Make sure you wash the transmitter and strap once in awhile.
--running under high tension power lines
--not wetting the strap when you start
--having other hrm transmitters too close to you, or certain electrical appliances.
If it worries you that you might have a heart problem, next time it goes to 226 on the monitor, stop and take your pulse manually. In the years I've been hanging in heart rate training forums, there have been some people who have been saved by their heart-rate monitors. By keeping track of their heart rates they did notice a problem with racing heart rate, or abnormally slow paces for a particular training or race heart rate. THey went to the doctor and found there was a serious problem. So, when it does this spiking, rule out the above things I've listed, and take your pulse.
You can also go to a particular setting on your Garmin and reconnect the watch with the transmitter. I can't remember what it is right now. I think it is under the General, Accessories menus
Good luck.
--Jimmy
Is this a malfunction of the HR monitor ...?
That's my guess. (But I'm no doctor, so see one if you think your heart could have been acting that crazy!)
When mine has done something similar, the culprit has been static electricity caused by my technical-fabric shirt. I have a Nike Pro shirt and a couple race shirts that screw up the HRM pretty seriously.
"I want you to pray as if everything depends on it, but I want you to prepare yourself as if everything depends on you."
-- Dick LeBeau
That's my guess. (But I'm no doctor, so see one if you think your heart could have been acting that crazy!) When mine has done something similar, the culprit has been static electricity caused by my technical-fabric shirt. I have a Nike Pro shirt and a couple race shirts that screw up the HRM pretty seriously.
How did you discover this, Clive? And how did/do you remedy the situation?
I've heard about this problem a few times.
Jimmy is pretty spot on in my experience.
Top 3 issues I've had
Calculating HR from ECG isn't simple when you're running, so spikes can be expected. My experience is that if I eliminate those 3, I can usually get a dependable HR reading. That last one rarely occurs also, usually only once in the life of the battery, unless you leave it in the freezing cold overnight in your car. I guess the battery could also lose voltage if the weather was extremely cold and your body heat wasn't enough or air exposure on the strap.
Loves the outdoors
My experience with the new Garmin premium HR monitor has not been good. After a couple of months use it started constantly go high, up into the 200's. My graphs looked very similar to yours. I tried many many different options and it simply got worse and worse. I eventually went out and bought the older style HR monitor and have had no issues since. It's a pain though as the premium strap is much more comfortable. Here's a link to a thread on an Australian running site discussing the issue http://www.coolrunning.com.au/forums/index.php?showtopic=27721 . Garmin have changed the premium HR strap again and there is a new design coming out with the latest cycle Garmin's, so it looks like they have recognised that there is an issue for some users.
One day I decided I wanted to become a runner, so I did.
How did you discover this, Clive? And how did/do you remedy the situation? I've heard about this problem a few times. --Jimmy
I just noticed there were days when my HR data was abnormally high, and obviously too high for the effort I'd experienced. I actually tracked what shirt I wore, as I suspected static might be a cause. (Of course, I'd also replaced the battery and started fairly sopping the contacts before donning the HRM.) Sure enough, I had a race shirt that always correlated with crazy HR data. Took it out of rotation, but that didn't completely resolve the issue. Rinse and repeat, I identified two more shirts. Once they were gone, HR information was normal again. I also have a Mizuno jacket that always correlates to crazy-high HR data.
In the winter when it's dry, I notice the HR data is weird for the first mile, more often than not, then it settles down to normal again. I deal with that -- it's just more trouble to try to "clean it up" than I'm willing to take on.
+1 to jimmyb's comments. It could be any number of issues, but it could also be a heart issue where you're not feeling any different. Check your pulse manually to see if it's high (consistent with your hrm) or whether it's normal (suggesting hrm / belt has an issue). In the beginning of a run, I'd suspect a hrm issue, but toward the end like that makes me wonder if there's something else.
Thanks everyone for the wealth of information, advice and tips.
The reason why i suspected it to be a HRM problem is that my 14th km / 14th lap was run at a pace of 5:48/km and my HRM registered an ave of 191 and a max of 226. My 19th km / 19th lap which i ran at a pace of 5:38/km had an ave HR of 168 and a max of 178 which looks a lot more realistic. And to boot, i would think that i would have definitely felt my heart pounding if my HR had raced above 190. It doesnt go beyond 190 even when i do track intervals so dont quite think it should do that on road.
On the battery issue, i dont know for my HRM was a pre-owned set bought of Ebay so i will try this one. I used a vaseline glide to prevent chafing of the nipples but i dont quite think this would affect HR readings - would it?
I just noticed there were days when my HR data was abnormally high, and obviously too high for the effort I'd experienced. I actually tracked what shirt I wore, as I suspected static might be a cause. (Of course, I'd also replaced the battery and started fairly sopping the contacts before donning the HRM.) Sure enough, I had a race shirt that always correlated with crazy HR data. Took it out of rotation, but that didn't completely resolve the issue. Rinse and repeat, I identified two more shirts. Once they were gone, HR information was normal again. I also have a Mizuno jacket that always correlates to crazy-high HR data. In the winter when it's dry, I notice the HR data is weird for the first mile, more often than not, then it settles down to normal again. I deal with that -- it's just more trouble to try to "clean it up" than I'm willing to take on.
Thanks, Clive. That's great information, and will pass it on to the heart rate training forum.
I've noticed that first mile "erratica" in the winter. A good remedy is to put the strap on way before you get out for the run. Half hour or so.
--JImmy
Petco Run/Walk/Wag 5k
Thanks Clive - has me wondering if static electricity was contributing to the erractic HRM readings I've gotten on cold mornings. HR is ok when warm up walking then goes erratic shortly after starting to jog. Gets "right" again if I slow to a walk. I know my hr is not that high since it's been measured at 137 max and is medically controlled. A 226 max reading (or whatever it is) would mean I was already dead but brain hadn't noticed! LOL.
As to other erratic causes, contact is a good one to look at . I slop Aloe Vera Gel I bought at Walmart on the contacts and can still get erratic readings at times. Note too I've used three different HRM's and have had similar results from all three so its not necessarily a particular brand.
bob e v 2014 goals: keep on running! Is there anything more than that?
Complete the last 3 races in the Austin Distance Challenge, Rogue 30k, 3M Half, Austin Full
Break the 1000 mi barrier!
History: blessed heart attack 3/15/2008; c25k july 2008 first 5k 10/26/2008 on 62nd birthday.