Originally Posted by
Carbonfiberboy
HRV maybe isn't about what you think it is. It's about HR variability over short time periods, on the order of 5 seconds, so it's a micro thing. It's not about Afib which is a macro thing. HRV in an athletic setting attempts to speak about one's readiness for exercise and stress levels.
When I've ridden with folks who had Afib events, it was quite remarkable on their part. HR rose from say 130 to 170 very quickly with no elevation of effort and it stayed there for some time. It was accompanied by a sensation of considerable weakness. Upon getting off the bike and sitting for a few minutes, it went back down to normal levels. On 2 rides with different riders, the rider elected to continue at a reduced pace and was OK. On another, the rider phoned home to be picked up, though seemed in good health. However besides exertion induced Afib, to some folks it just happens, though I think probably rare in healthy specimens.
So IME all you need to see Afib is any decent chest strap HRM. The H10 is good equipment and comes with an above average strap, though IME the most durable snap-on straps are Garmin.
Of course an ordinary HRM won't detect any of the other zillion heart abnormalities which a 12-16 lead EKG would show, OTOH I think one needs to be a trained and experienced doctor to read an EKG properly. (ECG is now preferred over EKG.)
Actually, I am aware of those things, not to dismiss what you wrote.
Where I'm coming from is that I've been diagnosed with afib, although I have never had any sensations I could say positively were Afib.
It's a bit of a story, but the day after my 60th birthday I was at work, in the bathroom, and had the sensation of being slammed in the chest. My pulse dropped to 35 from its more normal 68. In under a minute it was over and my pulse was back to normal. Some time later I was at my desk and it happened again. None of the shortness of breath, chest pains or other things that say "get to the hospital RFN!", but I went to an urgent care place. They took an ECG and said it was completely normal. Bottom line, I wore a Holter monitor for a day (about 3 weeks later) and they said I had Afib, PVCs, PACs and some more junk (I think). I had Nuclear Stress Test, echocardiogram and some other tests, nothing appeared abnormal or wrong.
I've never had the sensation of my heart racing and weakness, like you describe (and I've heard/read elsewhere) but I figure if I should watch for anything, I should watch for AFib first then other arrhythmias. PVCs don't bother me. A few times since that birthday incident, always in middle of the night, I've been woken by weird sensations. My pulse is erratic, but doesn't get particularly high, it's just weird, for lack of a better word. It feels syncopated or like there are two separate rhythms going on. Another weird aspect is that when I got those 3AM weirdness episodes, it was always accompanied by having to urinate several times, like three or four times in a couple of hours, which no one has mentioned as a symptom. I had another set of tests at the cardiologist's which continue to show nothing.
Since AFib is associated with a stroke, which I personally fear more than dropping over from "widow maker" heart attack, and they say they saw me have it, that's the one that I focus on.
The HRV is something I intend for general fitness and biohacking use.