HR very high during first mile, afterwards gets back to normal

by sergio vieira
(NY)

HI. I have been doing the MAF training for 1 year, using the wrist HR monitor from my watch. Recently I started using a chest HR monitor and noticed that during the first mile my HR is spikes very easily, requiring me to walk to bring it back to my MAF level. After the first mile, I can run at the usual pace. Is this normal?

Nicole's Reply:
Hi Sergio, the most likely reason for a high heart rate at the start of a run is probably that you didn't warm up enough.

If the body is not properly warmed up, then there is a reduced flow of blood to the muscles . This means that as soon as you start to exercise, your body tries to get more blood to the muscles quickly, by diverting it from your major organs such as your heart and lungs. This causes a stress to your heart, hence the increase in heart rate.

The best solution is to do either a longer warm up to what you are doing (aim for 15 minutes) or do your warm up at a slower pace. This will give your muscles and blood vessels time to prepare themselves for the activity ahead.

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Jun 03, 2021
 Same problem here - very helpful
by: Mike

Yes I noticed the same thing. I just started running 3/4 weeks ago but have a good walking base. And am 72 yrs old. I thought going from a walk to a run would do. But sends heart rate up and takes 10 mins to come down. Based on your advice will go from walking to a shuffle to a slow run. Seems to work.
Some figures:
Resting HR 48, Walking HR 75, start run HR 135, drops to 117.
Now Walking HR 75 shuffle HR 100 Run HR 115.


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