Please help with my heart rate. I'm scared

Hi @Moxxi - first of all I’m 67 so perhaps my situation is not a good comparison! But if it’s of any interest I’ll describe it. My resting heart rate is now 65 but it’s always been low - I did a lot of sport when younger. I get it up to 120 in the gym, but I don’t overdo it. The AF before beta blockers had it spiking to 160 (without exercise) and varying between 60 and 100 over the day which did make me feel bloody awful (thought I was having a heart attack) and I did stop exercising. Once I got the beta blocker dose properly adjusted I lost some weight and started exercising again and here I am. BTW the best thing I did was to give up alcohol entirely.

However my oldest school friend, who was never that keen on sport, had and has a much higher resting heart rate than me, she told me it’s currently 85. She’s fit and healthy, the only exercise she does is walking and a weekly swim (though she hasn’t been in the pool for over a year now).
I suppose the point I’m making is that we’re all different. As pp have said, between 60 and 90 is normal, so your 85 is safe. You shouldn’t be worrying about heart failure or heart attacks. What people have suggested about couch to 5K, starting by walking, is a really good idea. Swimming and yoga too. Hopefully your HR will come down a bit further and you’ll feel better and less anxious. Keep your GP informed on your general health and keep your medication under review. Who knows, you may be able to reduce it further! Good luck x

Have you had your thyroid level checked, OP? Because tachycardia and anxiety can be caused by an overactive thyroid.
Secondly, if your resting heart rate is over 90 on beta blockers, it sounds like the dosage is inadequate.
You really need to speak to your GP rather than random albeit well meaning strangers on MN!
And it might be worth recording a 24 hour ecg, including during exercise, to see if you have an intermittent condition like paroxysmal AF, which won’t be picked up on a one-off ecg unless you happen to be having an episode during the test.

@Wiltshire90 I can't really say how long it took to come down as I didnt always wear a wrist HR watch, but I noticed it got a lot lower in about 6 months when I was going a lot of running and walking.

I'm pregnant now though so it's gone back up again by 10-12bpm

Even just walking will get it down. Try finding interesting new routes on OS maps and making it fun!

Ah, the sudden racing heart is enough to alarm anyone. I’ve had that happen with a post viral problem (pericarditis) - walking along minding my own business and suddenly had a heart rate thrumming along at 180. It’s good that you’ve had scans and ECGs to check that out.

If you want to improve your heart health, you need to exercise it. Brisk walking is always a good place to start. Hills give extra challenge. When and if you try running again then the 'couch to 5k' type approach is usually best for most people - short intervals of running interspersed with walking.

Tabata type intervals are reckoned to be very good too for improving quickly. Really simple and adaptable ... just do anything you can do (running, jumping jacks, step ups, marching on the spot etc etc) for 20 seconds as hard as you can, rest for 10 seconds, repeat this 8 times. Then rest for a couple of minutes and do another set of 8. There are loads of tabata timer apps.

I think one of the best things you could do for both your heart and anxiety is yoga or meditation.
Try something like this video m.youtube.com/watch?v=bJJWArRfKa0
Your HR sounds perfectly normal but everyone can benefit from yoga or meditation.

I have atrial fibrillation (I’m a lot older than you) and also on beta blockers. I take the lowest dose I can get away with, as they cause me breathlessness and make it more difficult to exercise. I won’t use a Fitbit or similar as I know I’d check it too often, instead I check my pulse using the second hand on a clock/watch (15 sec and multiply by 4, it’s surprisingly accurate). Exercise more, not less, but not intensely. Keep losing weight. Walk or slow jog, swim, use light weights, maybe join a class such as yoga or Pilates. Your heart rate should go down over time, though it will probably always be on the high side of normal. Get rid of the Fitbit. If you feel OK you probably are OK.

Perhaps start with fast walking, aerobics so your heart doesn't go too high?

It's very scary to have a high heart rate when you are going nothing. It happened to me when I had pneumonia.

@Moxxi just keep exercising if you want it to come down. 90s RHR is high for a young person so keep moving, you will only ever feel better for it.

Are you on beta blockers because your HR was too high? Then it's understandable that you feel anxious.

Talk to your GP about what happens when you run.

It seems odd to wear a Fitbit that you don't understand and that is adding to your anxiety.

If you want to reduce your HR then you need to get fitter.

Star with regular brisk walking if you're anxious and consider adding in some high intensity workouts as you get more confident.

If you have concerns about your heart then check with your GP

You need to get rid of the fitbit or work towards doing so as you have an unhealthy relationship with it and it is probably making you feel worse in all honestly. My rhr is 59 and when I run it goes up to 180

If my heart rate doesn't get into the 170s during a workout then I feel I've not worked hard enough!
Short bursts of max heart rate are fine.

Wrist devices aren't terribly accurate

Why are you on beta blockers? When will you next be seen by a doctor? Might be worth talking about safe exercise then. Or if it's ages in the future, ring your GP practice to make an appointment about safe start toman exercise programme.

Also look to see if your council runs Move More or other similar classes. These are very safe, as tailored for beginners with underlying issues.

parkrun returns soon. If you have ambitions to run, go to that and walk it. When you are more confident, do C25K (perhaps allowing 2 weeks for each step, so it's really gentle and well consolidated).

And well done, recognising that something needs to be done is the first step an you've got it

My vague memory is that ‘220 minus your age’ is a good ballpark for max heart rate, so you’re fine.

Mine certainly goes over 172 on occasion when I run, and I’m twice your age and not dead yet.

My HR gets to over 200 when I'm doing sprint sessions

I'm not sure what specifically you're worrying about here. That your RHR is going down? That can only be a good thing and means the exercise is working. My RHR got as low as 37 at times when I was very fit so I really wouldn't worry OP - it's safe to have a huge range of heart rates. The more your RHR comes down the better.

Like others have said, just ditch it if it's making you anxious.

Normal resting heart rate for a woman is between 60 and 100 beats per minute so you are within normal range and have nothing to be concerned about.

I agree that it doesn't seem that the Fitbit is helping your health anxiety.

You need to exercise