will dehne

Trust me that I did.

The good old manual test. Of course I did that while OFF the bike. My HR was near normal both measured with the HRM and manual. BTW I do not have a very strong signal for a manual test.
As I go on the bike and bike at a reasonable speed, the HR starts accelerating up over 200. I tried but did not succeed in testing manual while pedaling the bike. As someone said: I was somewhat freaked out.

will dehne

Yeah I know. Genglish! As also called German English.

German for male or female chest is "Brust". I translated to Breast without considering Gender. I call a female breast something else you know?

MNBikeguy

I had a cateye wireless comp for a weekend then returned it.
Other electronics anywhere near it would show me traveling over 100 mph.
Wireless has since improved, but not that much.
Any chance you could test the HRM indoors with no chance of interference?

Road Fan

Will,

I work with German engineers all the time. Genglish is easy to understand, especially when the thinking is logical.

I think your manual test is good. I doubt that a true cycling HR of 216, has recovered down to 130 in the minute or so it took to stop and look at your watch - 20 or 30 beats, maybe, but not nearly 100. So try to get away from powerlines, phones and microwaves (this may include an LED headlight and a cyclocomputer), et cetera, for a little while, and see if there are any conditions for which it works right. If it just races away every time you ride no matter what, then I think you have a bad HRM.

If it's a Polar, contact the Polar service center, it's here in Michigan. They've been very accommodating in dealing with hardware problems.

Road Fan

cccorlew

I've tried and tried, but I can never find my pulse anywhere to count it.

howsteepisit

IF you checked manually very soon after you saw the 200+ spike and it was somewhat normal I wold also think it was some kind of interference affecting the HRM. What happens if you go back to where the high readings occurred? Can you download your HRM data and look at it? The again as I recall you are not a fan of the western medical system, so you could just keep riding without regard. After all, say your heart did spike up to over 200, would you go to the DR? I had something similar happen last summer, my HR Max is 198 bpm. I was getting ready for a ride and my resting HR was way high, and pretty much as soon as I started riding HR went up to190+ and stayed there the entire ride. As I am not one to go to the Dr unless I am unconscious, I believe it was something I had eaten that I had a bad reaction to. I am just fine, and its not happened again.

NOS88

OK, so this thread was started two days ago. What did the doctor say?

will dehne

This Polar HRM has been used by me for several years. Indoor and out. Never did act up like this.

My thinking and I am no expert: The flapping Polyester dry shirt idea? That could be it since I never used that shirt before.
Interference from some nearby transmitter? (But why only as I bike?)
A new idea: Low batteries? (but now it works and I can not find where to put new batteries)

will dehne

Yes I agree with your thinking except a power line or such should also create a problem as I am off the bike and it did not. So I am thinking it is the Polyester shirt. I did the exact same ride again Today wit a different shirt and had no problems with the HRM.
I will try that same shirt again and report if I get the same results.
Interesting is it not?

will dehne

+1 for me.
I have to get off the bike. Be very focused and fiddle around to find my pulse. That is if the pulse is in a normal range like 100 or below. At 150 I would feel the pulse very clearly. This why I thought it had to be the HRM and not me.

will dehne

It is just a Polar HRM. Nothing there to download.
I agree NOW that it is the HRM with some interference. Someone suggested Static electricity from a flopping Polyester shirt. IMHO could be?
--------
Would I go to a doctor? Yes if I am sure that it is not a false positive test. I was on my way to an LBS and would have bought another HRM to verify the first results. That was not needed after I did what I did. But I like to clearly state that my dislike of the medical profession does not extend into total avoidance.
Just minimize it.

will dehne

I will go to a doctor after I have exhausted all other avenues of diagnosis.
My family has suffered the consequences of false positives several times. My wife's Mammogram, false MRI diagnosis for me, false x-ray diagnosis for my son.
Let us say that I do not think that doctors walk on water.
But if all else fails........

brokenknee

I agree that doctor do not walk on water, they make mistakes, their human, however I would much rather have a false positive (even with all the extra stress that causes) than a false negative.

Do not be misled because you may be in good or even great shape physically. A childhood friend of my wife's dad was an avid runner (20+ miles per week) One day he went out for his run and never came back (heart attack). I think he was only about 50 at the time, this happened years ago.

If at all in doubt, have it checked out.

Velo Dog

Ahh, c'mon... This doesn't sound like arrogance to me, which is what you seem to be implying.
I think it's possible to be TOO reliant on technology in cases like this. I've been in chronic fib for more than 20 years, and run marathons and ridden centuries with it. A certain amount of attention is prudent (as it is in anybody in his 60s), but you drive yourself crazy if you worry about it all the time.
I can't go as hard as I used to, or sometimes as hard as I'd like to, but I'm not just going to sit down and count my hearbeats until I die. With the approval of my cardiologist, I took the monitor off and gave it away. What's the point of having one if it flashes 76...190...110...64...135...85? Barring special circumstances, anyone who's exercised regularly over a period of time learns to read his body.

will dehne

We are not having an argument here, OK. Just different experiences.
I am strictly talking biking.
I am assuming but not sure that HR150 is sort of at the high end what I should do. I did go to a Sports Doctor one time who said HR140 should be my sustained maximum. On what basis he said that I do not know.
Anyway, there were a few scares for me recently were healthy looking bikers died and/or had heart Attacks. Because of that I have become more careful.
BTW HR150 does require a very big effort by me.
---------------
Now to the need for HRM. I was recently in a competitive situation and racing some guys. I look at my HRM. It was above 150 and I told the guys I will slow down.
Please believe me if I tell you that I could have pushed harder but made that decision based on available information.

europa

Will, I get the feeling that there's a certain level of over reaction in this thread. That is NOT to say that I don't think you should get checked out if you feel it's warranted, of course you should.

However, I'd like to make a few observations.

First, by far the greatest probability is that your HRM had the hysterics, not your heart. Whether this was due to the contacts being a bit dry (your water treatement cured that) or spurious signals, is unknown and never will be, but believe me, these units are so damned sensitive to things not being right that they can be almost useless at times ... and then you'll go months without a problem.

Second, unless you've had a stress test, you've no idea of where your maximum heart rate is and without that, no-one, not even a doctor, can guess at what level you should be working at. You sound as if you're concerned about your heart so get it tested by a doctor who understands these things. I've found that GPs tend to be very conservative about these things unless they're using a HRM personally.

Thirdly, it sounds like you're new to HRMs. None of us really understand how hard that pump works until we see some consistent numbers and I used to be freaked out a little until I got used to seeing high numbers. I'm 52, max HR in the mid 180's (tested on a long hill, not in a lab so it could be higher) and regularly get averate HRs in the 150s - that's a little scary until you get used to it.

I'm not trying to put you down or anyone else, I just feel that things are leaning a little too much towards worry when in reality, it's probably just a wireless HRM behaving like a wireless HRM. If you've got a concern, go annoy your doctor, I would.

Richard

12bar

I have had this happen many times so I checked the Polar website for possible solutions, one that worked for me is to wear the chest strap upside down. Don't ask me to explain why but it seams to work.

will dehne

Thank you for your kind advise. I do not want to overreact either.
In my defense, I have used this HRM for years and Cross Country and never had such a signal. So, yes I was worried but you all put it to rest.

abqhudson

Not to worry - electrical (RF) interference. Happens to me every once in awhile. It worried me the first couple of times.

djnzlab1

HI,
Thought I had the thing all primed and working, and was ridding out with the group, and glanced down and said aww crap I ve flat lined and don't have a pulse , the guy next to nearly fell off his bike laughing at my statement.
I guess I am still alive cause I finished the ride and changed my chest battery the next day.
Doug

I read somewhere its important to wipe the moisture off the chest reader to prevent discharge of the battery when not in use. makes sense.

PS I find that when I am sick or really tired the heart rate monitor is a good indicator of fatigue, when it shoots up to easily and dosen't coast down maybe it better to go slow.

bikinfool

So I am thinking it is the Polyester shirt

Well, there ya go. These monstrosities have been to blame for a variety of ills.

Seriously, my Polar (702?) used to freak out regularly on my rides around San Francisco, finally just chucked it, POS as far as protection from interference. Never considered it was my heart, never a doubt it was the watch getting interference.

Road Fan

Will,

Actually the flapping dry shirt thing (if that's what's happening) would be electrical, as well. Dry cloth of certain types generate static electric charges as they move, and from time to time those charges dissipate in a little (not visible) spark. That spark radiates electromagnetic fields that can link you HRM and sender, possibly causing some sort of misoperation.

I agree with the fellow who said you probably just have an HRM acting like an HRM. But my wife's Polar gave it up after three years, so yours could be at the end of its days. But it's not clear a new one would resist external fields any better than yours does.

I wouldn't ignore the medical possibility, however.

Artmo 

Will, if your HR was REALLY 216, I assure you that you would know it. You would feel a little weak and you would probably feel a fluttering sensation in your chest. I've had A-fib on a number of occasions and felt like this. I've been fully checked out and my cardiologist tells me I can ride as hard as I like unless I feel dizzines or pain, which I don't at HRmax of 161 (age 68). I don't hammer like this every day, but I don't feel restricted in how I ride. If you have concerns, get fully checked out to allay any fears.

BTW, I have the opposite problem with my Forerunnner 305; it doesn't give a constant readout no matter what I do. I've changed the transmitter, batteries, even tried a new 305, used gel, saliva, put the transmitter on my back etc, etc but it still behaves intermittently. I therefore use a Polar in addition to the 305, which is a PITA.

will dehne

Hi guys.
I was able to verify the same conditions and it is the shirt. Tucking the shirt into my shorts with some water splashed on the area of the HRM will fix the problem.
There is another cause for error. I used some body lotion on the contact area. That will not work. It needs to be clean and wet.
Thanks for all the feedback.

NOS88

I always like it when a good mystery is solved.