Resting HR and menstrual cycle

[Louise123]

Has anyone noticed a pattern in their resting heart rate and monthly cycle? I never knew!

Is this something the Fitbit app will tap into?

[Calathea77]

Here's their chart. 

 

[Vylent_Fyre]

So is it normal for you that in a week your RHR will increase in 10-15bpm? I have noticed that it occurs during ovulation peak, drops a bit for a few days, then rises again until either just before or day of menstrual cycle. 

I had Endocrinogloist test my hormones and he put me in the perimenopause phase..  I'm just wondering what is normal for others in non peri, peri and officially in menopause/post menopause phases. I feel like the RHR fluctuations could really help us women understand our cycles and what we are going through so much more. 

[Vylent_Fyre]

Thank you so much for that information Calathea77! I've never tracked basal body temperature before. I've thought about getting a BBT Thermometer but I am just not sure which one would be the best one or even sync (if there's a feature) to fitbit or another app that would recognize / work with fitbit. 

I've had my fitbit since 6/2018 and I've seen a lot of strange fluctuations. Like every 3 months or so my RHR will drop drastically. I believe those are months I actually have ovulated. We are talking about a 2+bpm daily for a week. I dropped from 70rhr to 59 in a week. I liked seeing my RHR get that low for once. 

I keep telling myself not to freak out when I see it rising so quickly. It has jumped 10bpm in a week already. From 59 to 69 now. I know in my head it is "normal" for perimenopause but it is hard for me to convince myself there's nothing wrong with my heart when my "episodes" of palpitations increase as well. These episodes are sudden increase in heart rate (it'll jump from 60s to 90-100s) all the while I've done nothing different. Quite a few times it happens 30 minutes after eating. Strange? Normal? Worrisome? 

I've read a plethora of articles that talks about how women's hormones plays a huge part in our digestion systems as well. And yes, it all ties into the heart as well. Interesting but I'm no doctor 9r certified in any medical fields so my emotions are different than my logic of course 🙂

[LABM]

Hi - I've noticed the same thing and am getting near the end of years in perimenopause. My RHR jumps about 10 bpm as you noted. I also notice more joint aches, headaches, and body pain during those periods of time. Once my RHR starts to drop, I usually start feeling pretty good again, at least for a couple of weeks - though things are so irregular, that it's hard to know how long it will last 🙂

[Confuse25]

I have been using a Fitbit since 2017.

I am Mtf transgender. From when I started HRT November 2018 my RHR is now showing a 28.8 day cycle. At the lows I have experienced irritability, food craving and depression, the last being severe. During the highs I've had euphoria and increase in libido.

I've discussed with my endocrinologist and GP. The next low should be the end of March and various hormonal tests will be run.

I know this all sounds strange and if I didn't see the cycling of RHR I wouldn't believe it. 

But has been occuring and, at least, the depression will need to be addressed. But I would like to get to root cause. 

Has any other Mtf transgender person reported this?

[Missieg]

Yup! Just today predicted the night before and morning of that I would start today. I'm four days early. No other way for me to have known other than my hr dropping the night before. Been following this trend all year and for the past few months Ive looked at hr the night before and it's always the lowest that it has been the entire month so I know I'll start within 24 hrs. And the correct prediction of this "unusual" early start for me of four days confirmed it!! Literally texted my friend saying the red ragon was coming cause my hr dropped and an hr later there she is!! Friend was even trying to make me feel better that maybe I still had another four days 😂. Honestly a welcoming end to a pms week. My mind's finally one step ahead of my body! I've got u figured out 😁

[statgeek]

Thanks for sharing your experience! I am 43 and only started using my fitibit versa 2 for 4 months. Initially I only used it to track my sleep, and now I start taking interest in the heart health feature.  I was puzzled by how my RHR changes over time during a menstrual cycle. It typically peaks right before the period and has a sharp decline (by 1-2 beat per day) for 7-10 days and then start rising again until next period starts.  So I have a range of RHR between 60-70 depends on the day during the month. It got me concerned at first! 🙂  That being said, the timing for these up and downs don't exactly follow my period, some times a few days off but you can definitely see a general pattern. Plus my period isn't as regular as before, it could vary by a some days. I was not diagnosed with perimenopause, but I definitely start feeling things are shifting.  I tend to feel tired/off right before the period, which never happened to me before; my sleeping has gotten more fragmented, more light sleep than deep sleep. 

I am happy to see many ladies out there have similar experience, I guess I am not alone. 🙂   This is a great forum, I wonder if there is a community group for menstrual health and related topic such as perimenopause.

Hope all the ladies out there have a great day, stay healthy, stay fit!

[statgeek]

I also noticed palpitations prior to period starts, some times it’s heart being faster than normal, like 10-15 beats more compare to those normal days doing same activities. On those days if I exercise, it takes longer for my heart rate to go down. Some times it’s a feeling of heart beating strong, like in my throat or something. I never felt anything like that before, it’s all started since last year (42 yes).