Increase in resting heart rate / workout related?

[TheJustin]

Alright, so after years of a bad habit (smoking) my RHR was usually in the mid-70's to low-80's.  I quit smoking and started being more active, and my RHR dropped down to 64-65.  Then, about a month ago, it jumped one day to 67, then to 69 the next day, and the best I can hope for now is 67.  I chalked that up to maybe just being a combo of the weather warming up, and allergens in the air, etc.  I had gotten it down to 66-67 pretty steadily.

This week I started going to the gym to being weight lifting.  I've not done much, frankly because I've learned that over the years since high school, I've gotten a lot weaker haha.  Monday I did arms, Wednesday legs.  yesterday was a rest day and my RHR was 69.  Today, I awakened to see it had climbed up to 70.  I know this isn't a big change in numbers, but still kinda bothers me.  Could this be caused by my body recovering from the workout, even though I don't feel particularly sore?  I'm hoping that's the case.

[A_Lurker]

Mine has never been 100% flat.  It runs up and down quite a bit.  Usually it's from high 50s to mid 60s.  However a while back it went to mid 70s, which was mostly over-training and under sleeping. A couple of weeks of rest (still doing some exercise) and it started to come back down.  However, a cold and/or sinus thing last week pushed it up.  Again it is coming down, but I'm not back to my lowest numbers yet.  I've seen different websites that say increased temperature can cause an increase in resting heart rate as well.  None that I would point to as a definitive source though.

If you have concerns though you should consult a medical profession.  I'm just some random person on the internet. 

[WavyDavey]

After a fairly intense workout with weights, my RHR will often climb a point or two during the recovery phase. What I pay attention to is 3 or more consecutive days of a rising RHR. That usually means my body is fighting off something or I'm not sleeping enough.

I find HIIT training or cardio to be the best to lower the resting heart rate. But it takes time for this to happen, and it's not in a straight line. I put my RHR in a spreadsheet to track it over longer periods of time (until Fitbit hears my plea to add historical records of RHR). I tend to look at 3 month trends.

[JohnnyRow]

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@WavyDavey wrote:

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I put my RHR in a spreadsheet to track it over longer periods of time (until Fitbit hears my plea to add historical records of RHR). I tend to look at 3 month trends.

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I assume you do know you can see graphs of historical RHR, at least on the Android dashboard by clicking on the BPM tile, then near upper right the little square box with just the corners. I just recently discovered this. It doesn't give all the info you could get from the numbers in a spreadsheet, but it does show trends.

[baitedbadger]

@WavyDavey  historic data like this?

The big spike was caused by a 10 day spell of manflu.

[emili]

so first kudos to you for quitting smoking and starting to build up your health. Awesome. My RHR is really low. But after drinking or eating heavier food than I am used to, it will jump up. A cold- forget it, its 10 points higher. Not sleeping - its higher. I have come to recognize the triggers and as long as it reacts as expected, I am good and wait for it to come back down. A really good sweat session - and it speeds up the coming down for me. Having said all that, if it stays high for you when you feel like it should be lower- and just because you were a smoker- I would consult with a physician. Probably nothing major and it is work out- pollen related... but just in case...