Abnormal heart rate for a 34 year old

Training Advice/Discussion

2 years ago 10/09/2021 11:00am EDT

Hello let's runners.

Today I ran a 19 min trail race. According to my tool for analysis it was 35% hilly amd and the temperature was 50 degrees Fahrenheit, 86% humidity. During these 19 minutes my average heart rate was 200 bpm and the highest heart rate was 205 bpm. I use chest strap from Garmin.

A week ago I ran a 10k km race. It was 22% hilly. The weather was similar, 58 degrees Fahrenheit, humidity 74 %.

My average heart rate was 199 bpm and it peaked at 204 bpm.

The data is pretty consistent. I know that I have a high maximum heart rate and it's always been like this. Even when I was much faster, my heart rate was a lot higher than my competitors of same age. Three years ago I managed to peak at 201-204 bpm for 5k-10k races. Normally the maximum heart rates drops by 1 bpm as you get older. In my case it seems to be relatively constant and this year even higher.

Should I be worried about this? Let me hear your thoughts and experience.

2 years ago 10/09/2021 11:33am EDT

re: high bpm

High max HR by itself is a neutral or good thing just like low resting HR is a good thing: you have a higher reserve HR capacity with either. Yours is higher than average but not rare. The 1bpm drop per year is an average thumbrule, not an exact expectation.

It is unlikely for your max HR to increase over time. Based on the information you provided, it looks like you don’t actually know your max HR (through a lab test for example), so the seemingly 1bpm increase is more likely measurement noise or your increased ability to push closer to your true max HR.

I assume you have consulted your doctor about this, and if not, should to rule out arrhythmia. He probably won’t be concerned about it if you are generally healthy and are feeling in control even while running hard.

2 years ago 10/09/2021 3:45pm EDT

re: runne

There are top athletes with bpm of 180 and there are top athletes with bmp over 200. Doesn't matter the least. I agree it doesn't seem like you've found your true bpm max. Perhaps you didn't have the best possible day the time you ran a 5k, while you had a perfect day now I managed to squeeze the apple maximally. Who knows. Also, a beep up or down could be technical issue with the clock.

Nothing is out of the ordinary when it comes to bpm. Yes, 205 is not as normal as 195 for a 34 years old, however not unheard of. I've heard of people having up to 220 bmp.

An analogy; 5'10 may be more normal than 6'7" but not unheard of.

2 years ago 10/09/2021 3:50pm EDT

re: high bpm

just stop overanalyzing hr

2 years ago 10/09/2021 3:51pm EDT

re: high bpm

high bpm wrote:
Hello let's runners.
Today I ran a 19 min trail race. According to my tool for analysis it was 35% hilly amd and the temperature was 50 degrees Fahrenheit, 86% humidity. During these 19 minutes my average heart rate was 200 bpm and the highest heart rate was 205 bpm. I use chest strap from Garmin.
A week ago I ran a 10k km race. It was 22% hilly. The weather was similar, 58 degrees Fahrenheit, humidity 74 %.
My average heart rate was 199 bpm and it peaked at 204 bpm.
The data is pretty consistent. I know that I have a high maximum heart rate and it's always been like this. Even when I was much faster, my heart rate was a lot higher than my competitors of same age. Three years ago I managed to peak at 201-204 bpm for 5k-10k races. Normally the maximum heart rates drops by 1 bpm as you get older. In my case it seems to be relatively constant and this year even higher.
Should I be worried about this? Let me hear your thoughts and experience.

I regularly get high BPMs too. I don't use a chest strap, but my watch (when it doesn't seem to do the cadence lock thing which happens maybe twice a month) tells me I often get over 190 BMPs on what I perceive as easy runs, and I'm 55 years old. I have an annual checkup in November, and I'm going to bring it up to my doctor. I don't experience shortness of breath or chest or arm pain, so I think it's just normal for me or a bad reading from the watch, but my advice is to ALWAYS talk to your doctor about it.

2 years ago 10/09/2021 4:07pm EDT

re: high bpm

The 1 bpm per year of age is an old formula no one should use. It fits almost none.

In the average population the max HR drops with age, but for those training and running actively the max HR changes surprisingly little with age.

My brother is 47 and has a max HR of 220. I have 190. Both are normal and run approx an hour a day.

Don't worry 😊

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