How quickly and how dramatically did your RHR drop when you started to exercise?

[4077girl]

For four years I have not done ANY purposeful exercise. When I got pregnant with triplets I was so ridiculously sick I couldn’t even move. After they (twins) were born I was just exhausted and busy so never got back to exercising. I was still checking my rhr regularly during pregnancy and found that it fluctuated like crazy between 65-115. Once the girls we’re born it dropped down and settled in the mid to high 60s (low for me, but I assumed was because being pregnant with twins was an extreme workout 24/7!). It slowly increases over a few months time to the mid-high 70s (which made sense because I was not active at all other than bouncing my kids to sleep or slow walks, etc). Stayed there several years.

fast forward to a few weeks ago- I started jogging. It was only for 10-15 minute but it was really hard work for me!  my heart rate even briefly reached the 180s! After doing this only 4 days my rhr started to drop! I exercised a couple more time soon after that, and it continued to drop rapidly! Even days I didn’t exercise it kept going down. I know a low rhr is a sign of better fitness but This just seemed way too quick of a drop to be from the exercise! So I got kinda freaked out and stopped. Even though I stopped a week ago my rhr has stayed at 62!! I have not changed anything else and I have checked my pulse  against the Fitbit many times and it’s accurate? Has anyone else  seen this fast/dramatic of a change? Can you share a pic?? My doctor said it couldn’t be the exercise that quickly and wants to keep an eye on me. Ecg and thyroid tests are normal.

Note this is my rhr over the last 3 months. First day of exercise was July 23.

[USAF-Larry]

@4077girl, your RHR does not appear to me to be abnormal or having dropped too rapidly.  I can't post any pictures/charts of mine changing because it remains constant between 52 and 56.   Before I started regular exercise, my RHR was always in the high 60's to low 70's, but as soon as I started regular exercise it dropped into the high 50's to low 60's - and the drop was within a week's time. My doctor says that my RHR in the mid-50's is excellent for a man in his mid-70's.

[emili]

there are other factors that go into a lower RHR such as a difference in weather.. high humidity can cause higher RHR in some. Your girls are older and may be sleeping longer so you are sleeping more soundly which lowers RHR and exercise may be having an impact on that as well. you may be eating less salt unconsciously. It is a good thing that you reached out to your doctor, ultimately they are the only ones who can advise you on what's normal for you, but I think physical activity is a great thing for heart health and I would encourage you to go back to it. just monitor how you feel during it and if you aren't dizzy or pukey or exhausted.. I would say keep doing it. 

[4077girl]

That’s reassuring. I was just shocked because it had never been below 70 for months and months and mostly was 73-74, and then it dropped within a week down to 61-62 and has stayed there. My sleep, diet, medication, etc haven’t changed. I didn’t think exercise could work that fast.

[4077girl]

I think my sleep is the same, if anything it’s worse. And if anything I’ve been eating more salt because my doctor told me to see if that helped because it could be an autonomic thing and a little salt could help increase blood volume. I’ve tried to think of anything it could be, but really things either haven’t changed or have gotten worse! 

[Bill_k]

If i even stop exercising for 3 days my resting HR can go up 3 points. If you feel good and your tests came out ok, like all the Tee shirts say these days :

"Stay calm and keep exercising" .

[Colinm39]

@4077girlI have found good sleep has a massive affect on the RHR.. Mine went up one point because I put an extra blanket on 3 nights ago and then I experimented by pulling it off about 3am last night..

RHR went from 57 to 59 and back to 58 over those 3 nights.  The 3 years image below shows how the seasons affect the RHR as @emili has posted.. You can see in the image how that shows.  This year we have had a sudden abnormal cold snap in Melbourne (never snow).

But in 2017, we had a mild winter and unfortunately my GP was away and I had to get repeat script for my pre-hypertension and the locum gave me a new medicine ... Wow did it affect me, from an Ace Inhibitor to a Calcium Blocker.. It basically froze my legs etc.. My GP was back, and reversed the meds immediately. The effect shows in yellow in the image.

As @USAF-Larry  has found, and I'm slightly older, I'm 80 in a few weeks but we have a similar RHR, mine varies between 51-58. I just keep active and my average sleep is about 8 hrs/night with and average score of 81.

I have left the 2015/2016 results because in the 2015 winter I had a hip replacement and the RHR went to 71 next day and that took nearly 6 months to get back to 58, then another few months to get back to 51..

Our bodies are amazing mechanism's and I have definitely found that when wearing the Fitbit 24/7 you can use the RHR as a precursor to ailments..

[Colinm39]

Slightly warmer night and I did 4 laps of our court at 9pm (11 minutes) which has the effect of HiiT and my RHR dropped down from 58 to 56 this morning.

My wife gets concerned if I walk around our neighborhood at night, so I have found multiple laps of our court and around the corner  gives me 480 steps/lap and 12'( 1 x floor) and HiiT as you can see from the Google pedometer elevation graph. I vary the walk from the court itself and then relax by going around the corner on the flat to recover..

Ideal and very close top home..

[Colinm39]

Four nights on from my sleeping post with the RHR graph and my RHR has gone done 4 points and the only change is lighter weight blankets....and a couple of 15 minute brisk walks around my court area... otherwise over the week, normal domestic activity.

RHR                        58, 58, 56, 55 and 54..

Ave Sleep HR         62, 60, 55, 57 and 58 

Sleeping Temp oC   5,   6,   9,   9 and   6

The week leading up to the 58 bpm from typically 54 bpm the night temperatures were in the 5oC to 6oC and my average sleeping HR was 61, and the average step count for this week was 5,242 and last week 5,083..

[Gregg7]

Really, technically I'm not so sure about that

[Colinm39]

@Gregg7  I have posted in this link to show a correlation between sleep and RHR and last night I changed to woolen blankets from a synthetic type doona. 

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@Gregg7 wrote:

Really, technically I'm not so sure about that

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[Gregg7]

I want to say you're quite an inspiration to this community

[Colinm39]

@Gregg7 I appreciate the thoughts.. This is what many retired Production Engineers and IT Specialists like doing..  I love my baselines and examine cause and effect.  Also keeps the brain matter active.  I also like to engage positive Fitbit users and help them analyze their issues.

My mother and maternal grandmother both died with vascular dementia. I'm clear of all of that and family tree wise there is no common illness on the lines in my family tree. Fortunately no cancer or arthritis   My GP has discarded any future issues there

So Fitbit keeps me in check.. I'm back logging food again because winter weight has caught up on me.. Let's hope I can keep healthy and contribute for a few more years. 

I have updated this link