Supraventricular tachycardia and exercise?

Amy, exercising is very important for your health and you should not under any circumstances stop exercising because of SVT. remember it is a benign condition and there is no scientific evidence that exercising triggers attacks. what can, however, trigger attacks are flus and virus infections. so lets say you have had a cold for a few days and then push yourself on a 10k run you are more likely to have an svt attack than if you didnt have a cold.

What you have to try and think about when you have an attack are the various things you can do to make it stop, what works for many people are changes in position such as lying down, squatting, or fetal position. this can stop an attack. in short what i am saying is learn to live with it and dont be scared as it just causes stress which can trigger attacks.

again it is a benign condition that you can manage yourself, drink lots of water, avoid stimulants get regular sleep and live a healthy life. and dont be scared, big hug

all the best!!!! D.

p.s. I have run several 10ks with SVT and regularly play 3 hours of power tennis and never had a single episode. but i do get episodes while sitting in the office being stressed. whats the worst that can happen if you get an SVT on kilometer 28 of a marathon? think about it? you do your usual maneuvres to make it stop and keep running, wear your heart rate watch keep an eye on it. i dont see a problem. it is just in your head.

Hi Amy. I had SVTfor about 20 years and it never seemed related to physical exercise. Most times it just seemed to occur out of the blue when I was sitting down relaxing. Elsewhere here I have mentioned cutting out all caffeine. I'm really sorry the ablation did not workfor you, can you have another one?

Dear Amy. I don't know if this is too late, but I'm 40, and also run races and have never had an episode while running. At first (after my failed ablation in 2006) I ran with a heart monitor and stayed below 180 bpm, but today I run without one and feel fine. 

My episodes also mostly come when I'm relaxing, or emotionally stressed. 

Good luck with running

Hi Amy. I hope this doesn't sound too weird to say but it's really refreshing to find someone else who's asking questions about running with SVT. I started running about 6 months ago becuase I knew it would help with my SVT episodes (I would get up to 10 a day but lasting no more than 10 minutes at a time. I can't even begin to imagine what it must be like having an episode for 3 hours!) I do get SVT episdoes when I run (and rest, sleep etc) but I use breathing exercises and the vagal manouvers to control it. If I have an episode whilst out running I just have to stop, sort my heart rate out, then carry on. I guess I'm lucky that I can control it. Are you able to stop it when it starts? Do you have any other symptoms apart from the rapid heart rate? I'm equally as keen as you to run further distances so it would be great to hear how you're getting on.

Hi, I'm in South Africa and my 70 year old husband has just been diagnosed with SVT - unbelievably, he has been having these "turns" for over 30 years and has always thought it to be a reflux related problem - and we've never been able to co-ordinate an attack with a visit to the GP. However yesterday an attack started and I persuaded him to see the Dr. After an ECG - heart rate 190 - doctor immediately gave the diagnosis and referred him to a cardiologist who confirmed the diagnosis. He was given shock treatment to reset the heart rate and will have the "ablation" done next week. He is an avid tennis and bowls player - so with regard to exercise has never let the fact that he gets the attacks stop him, but obviously when he has one is left weak and debilitated afterwards. I am so relieved to finally have a diagnosis - immense relief. It has been a long road.

Hi Amy, I'm 22 and I've got my SVT diagnosed a few months ago, after a bad SVT attack. I was physically very weak after that episode - started feeling tired and needed rest after 15 min of slow walk. Since I do think exercise helps strengthening my heart (and also for my low blood pressure), I started fast walking exercise. At first, I just started with 2 to 3 min of fast walk, and stop immediately when I felt my heart starting to get wrong. (The feeling was similar to the mild palpitation feeling when I gagged in brushing teeth.) After a few days, I walked slightly longer, and so on. Now it's been almost 4 months, and I can have 45 min fast walk (or 10-15 min run) without SVT or palpitation signs during the exercise. And amazingly, SVT happens less frequently now! My goal was also to join some charity marathons (e.g. 10 km runs). Hope we can achieve our goals one day!

hi,,I have been running for many years and at times have had svt episodes when out runningI have to stop running and wait for it to pass and settle down. If I push the pace ever then I am more likely to have a episode.In total I get abou6/7 episodes a year.

Hi Amy,

i have svt and i have been goin to the gym religiously for about 4 years :-) i wouldnt let it stop you. its good to keep it pumping and strong i say :-) x

Hi, Amy. My name is Kristen and I've been doing a lot of research about different types of heart conditions and symptoms. Your story came up when I was searching and so I was reading it. I'm 30 and my episodes started about 10 years ago. I was really active in sports in high school and a pretty fit person. I took my first plane ride to Boston when I was 20 and was quite nervous about it. While I was in Boston, I was walking up a flight of stairs and all of a sudden my heart started beating fast and I thought I was going to pass out. It was hot and I probably wasn't eating or drinking like I should have been. The next couple days were brutal. Every time I went out I had a horrible stomach ache. When I returned back home I felt ok and then we had a wedding to go to - as soon as we walked in it stated again - hot flashes, heart beating fast, dizzy, just feeling like I was going to die. I was in and out of the doctors office and hospital because I just felt horrible. Meanwhile, my husband just thought I was crazy, which is very frustrating. I had an EKG done, wore a heart monitor, blood tested - everything. It all came back normal. I was diagnosed with panic disorder. They think since I was so scared about flying for days that it just set this fear in. Then about a year later after all of that, I would get these new episodes .. My heart would feel like it was off beat and then beating fast. It wouldn't happen all the time. Just every once in awhile. This past year it has been happening a lot more frequently. Especially the last two months. Does it sound silly that when i touch my heart to feel the heartbeats, that it gets more off beat? Last year I started exercising and would walk at 4-4.5 speed on the treadmill. I was in the best shape but then gained some weight back. Lately I've been so scared to get back on my treadmill or really do anything, shop -

Go out- anything .. In case it would happen. I'm so ready to just feel normal again and get my life back. About two years ago I words another heart monitor but never could get an episode recorded. So frustrating. I don't know what I can tell my doctor to do so that she'll believe me. I feel like if I walk fast and then stop by heart is beating so fast. Heat triggers it too. Anything encouraging words would be great.

I just turned 53 and was diagnosed with PSVT a few months ago.  I felt as though I was going to faint and called 911.  It was very scary.  I wore a 30 day monitor and it caughts lots of PSVT's.  I am on 12.5 mg of metoprolol twice a day and it hasn't nearly stopped the episodes. I was having 5 or 6 a day and now just one or two a week.  I have exercised 4-5 times a week for the last few years.  Just started going back to the gym a couple days ago.  Also started driving again and going into stores by myself.  I have been too afraid to do that since being diagnosed because I fear I'll have one and at times they make me feel very weak and faint.  I have never fainted yet but feel like I could.  Well anyway I hadn't had any major episodes for a week or so and I just started to feel like I had my life back. Then yesterday I was in a store with my husband.  I felt very weak and faint. My heart quickly went up to 150. I felt just like I did the first time I had my husband call 911.  It was so scary.  Luckily there was a place I could lie down so I did.  I can usually get them to stop if I lie down.  I did my "bearing down" manuever and my heart rate started coming down after five minutes or so.  The problem is now I am fearful again.  I'm afraid to go back to the gym or drive or go anywhere by myself.  How do you guys cope with this?  If I didn't feel so faint I wouldn't mind it so much.  But the feeling I get is SO scary to me.  The first couple times I felt this way I seriously thought I was going to die!!!  It was the same feeling yesterday.  It brought all the fear back!