Unexplained significant increase in heart rate, especially during exercise. With PVCs.

[ERSH]

Hi everyone,

I'm wondering if anyone has ever had a similar experience to this and can shed some light for me!

I'm a serious athlete (boxer) and train about 3 hours a day - i'm really in tune with my heart rate etc. because I monitor my fitness and interval training very carefully.

I had a fight just over 2 weeks ago, rested for three days afterwards and then went back to my normal training. However, since I've got back to training my heart rate has been a lot higher than normal on all my interval training and recovers much less well between intervals. For example normally I'd get to 180 ish on my second interval and recover to about 130, now I'm getting to 190 and recovering to 150. My resting heart rate in the day has gone up from 40 ish to 60 ish. I had an ECG and it showed 'extra heart beats' which I think are PVCs? Interestingly my HR without the extras was 47 (not far off normal for me) whereas with the extra beats it was 56. I'm not sure then if my heart rate is actually 'higher' in general or if I'm experiencing these extra beats all the time which makes heart rate monitors think it's higher.

The doctor has suggested it could be because of a virus - but I don't feel ill. I had a bit of a sore throat for about 3 days and have felt a little like i'm fighting a cold from time to time, but nothing I would have really noticed if I wasn't looking for it.

I'm really worried about this - not least because I've got important fights and competitions coming up. 2 weeks seems like a long time for it to go on for if it's just a virus? Obviously I can't have lost fitness in the 3 days I rested after my last fight so there must be something up. Other suggestions have been that it's due to stress - but again it seems like a big difference to be caused by stress - and I wasn't especially stressed out before this all started (although I am now!).

Background context is that I've had hyperthyroidism (graves disease) but have been off the medicine (block and replace) for three months now and thryoid levels have been consistently in range - including in two tests that I had last week to check that wasn't the reason for HR increase.

Any insights would be really appreciated!

Thanks so much!

[NiNii]

I had an elevated pulse after my third bout of pericarditis with pericardial effusion. Get your GP to have you tested for Sinus Tachycardia which is what I was diagnosed with. Like you the elevated heartbeat came out of nowhere after 6 days in ITU and loads of antibiotics and fluids and I had never had it before. I now have to take bisoprolol to try to get my heartbeat rate down (it went from 80+ to 122, twice the rate it should be for a female lower end)

Good luck