low pulse? 54? scared wittles

[rachy_babyx]

hiya
for the last 6 weeks ive been going gym three times a week and spend about an hour and a half on treadmills etc. but ive been feeling a bit light headed so made the mistake of checking my pulse

it was 54 (normal is 60-100) apparently athletes can be 40- 60 but im not sure if i come under this category as im over weight. i was exercising this week during menstration so is this why?

if i challenge my system by running about it does increase so its not permenantly low

also after having high blood pressure when its decreased ive always felt dizzy for a while as i seem to be overly concious of it

i dont know if its relevant but i buried a friend last monday (she was 21) so im not sure if thats whats making me this emotional train wreck

so can anyone please help put my mind at ease ? ive looked online (big mistake) and some of the stuff is really scary.

also if anyone else has low pulse please let me know, im so scared

[russ]

Hi Rachy,

Well I read when you sleep (something we all do for about 1/2 our lives) your pulse can drop to 40 and when you exercise it can go up towards 200, so have you really a problem here?

If you are worried go to the doctor who will just take your blood pressure and listen to your pulse.

Also dehydration can reduce your pulse, so be careful you are not over-doing the exercise.

Clearly when someone who er care for dies we become hypersensitive. I'm sorry to hear about your friend.

Try not to be scared, take a rest from your exercise until you can get a general check-up with a doctor or nurse and ask them of your concerns and about exercise.

Look after yourself, grief can do strange things to your body, when my dad passed away my body started showing signs of a low white blood cell count etc, within a few weeks this just disappeared, the docs were at a loss but said stress and anxiety can have such effects!

[joelhall]

a low pulse is usually a good sign. Mine, even though im a smoker is around 58-72 when resting, depending on how anxious i am. Some people juust have a metabolism which can repair tissue better and the heart is stronger (and contrary to popular belief, heavy people actually have a higher metabolic rate!).

In fact the world record for a low pulse was for a cyclist - 28bpm if i remember rightly. As Russ said, it can go up to around 220 when exercising, though this diminishes with age.
Obviously if you are worried, then have an ECG done to check for other possible causes, as it could be a symptom of an underlying problem., and make sure you keep hydrated.

[cazza]

Hi i agree a low pulse is usually a good sign mine is usually around that when im resting and can go up to 160 while exercising
i suffer from missed heartbeats all the time as well! so dont worry[^] if you keep worring go and have an ecg to put your mind at rest
take care carol

[rachy_babyx]

thanks for all your replys i feel really reassured now.

the doctor said that my blood pressure is a little high thats why she thinks my pulse is lower. as my bodies compensating or something.

i hate this feeling like they're missing something all the time. even if they say everythings ok i think there's something wrong they're missing

i've had about 2 years without any serious panic attacks so this time its hit soo hard.

there seems to be a relationship between when i lose a lot of sleep and anxiety, i don't envy anyone who has to live with this all the time its so frightening

thanks everyone
rachel
xxx