On exercise and heart rate

I have to, have to, have to exercise at least once a week (but typically, I go three times a week) to keep my fibromyalgia in check. If I don't give my muscles something to do, they develop all sorts of knots and fascia stickiness that causes pain and reduced function. 

We know that exercise is a total catch-22 in fibromyalgia -- research tells us it works, doctors tell us to do it, but it's exhausting, painful, and hard. Not something that is easy to stick to.

The number one thing that allows me to do keep exercising is continuously monitoring my heart rate. 

I started about two years ago after reading an article about exercising with fibromyalgia. The TLDR: if you're wiped out after exercise you're probably over-doing it. Heart rate is a good biofeedback mechanism for knowing when to tone it down. 

I got this Polar Heart Rate Monitor. It automatically calculates my "workout safe zone" (65-85% of maximum heart rate).  Let me tell you, an hour of working out at the top of your heart rate versus an hour at 80% is a world of difference.

This tool gave me some great insights. First, my resting heart rate was about 90 beats per minute -- not in the abnormal range, but kind of borderline. Second, my heart rate would shoot up with relatively minor physical activity. Working out, I stopped if my heart rate hit 180, which happened easily. I didn't realize this was abnormal until I talked to my friend Adam, who is a cardiac nurse. He encouraged me to see a doctor about it. A day with a Holter monitor and I found out I have tachycardia. 

My final diagnosis came in as inappropriate sinus tachycardia syndrome -- an uncomfortable, but benign condition. I now also take a small dose of beta blocker to help keep my heart rate down. 

Between the monitoring and the beta blocker, I can exercise at a fairly high level without wearing myself down to nubbins.