My Run to the Hospital…

I intended my 4.5 mile run through downtown on Tuesday as an “easy” run but now have to call it my “hospital run” because that’s where I ended up afterward.

Despite a slow pace, my heart rate went waaaay over my maximum possible of 179. I hit 212 bpm. I sat, rested, then tried again and it went into the 200’s again. I laid down on grass, got it lowered, then as soon as I tired to run again, it shot back up. My average for the last mile (which I pretty much walked) was 185, still over my max. Kinda scared me, so I went to see the City Nurse after my run and he said I had an irregular HR even then, 30 minutes later. He sent me to the ER.

Six hours an IV and 12 vials of blood samples later, I was told I had preartrial fibrillation, a common form of cardiac dysrhythmia. No heart damage, just something to watch and be careful about. If I’m racing and it happens, I’m supposed to lie down until it passes as everyone else passes me. The idea of laying down during a race is not sitting well with me, but I’m trying to accept that I may have to make that decision. 

I’ve attached a screen shot of my Garmin’s HR monitor pattern for this run. Keeping in mind my “pass out at the finish line” max bpm is 179, this pattern was pretty wild for me.

A memorable run, to put it mildly.