Heart skips a beat while exercising

Hi, I am a 34 year old women who has been exercising since I was a teenager.  In August I was on the stair climber and right before I was about to finish my 30  min workout at a pretty hard pace, I felt like my heart started beating really weird, like it was skipping beats.  I immediately stopped and my chest actually hurt.  I sat down and drank some water, and felt better after about 2 minutes.  Ever since that time, when I am on the treadmill running at about 15 minutes of my 30 minute workout, my heart skips a beat and I get scared and stop. With the stairclimber, my heart starts to beat and pound really really hard.  I went to a cardiologist and he did an EKG, and looked at my heart and all the tests came back normal.  He told me that I have an extra heartbeat.  I do not understand why this is all of the sudden happening.  I have always been in good physical shape.  I am 5'6 and between 105-108 pounds.  This is very frustrating because I do not want to give up my workouts.  Please help.

[Isis613]

Hi Lulu,

I know all this can seem scary and overwhelming at first--you are in good hands here at this forum tho. I've found a ton of answers and support in my quest for wellness. This has unfolded in my life over the last two or so months and i went thru what you might be experiencing... I'm also a 34 yr old female in good shape--have lots of energy and been working out in one way or another since I was a little girl. I too have extra beats (called PVC's in my case) and another condition called VT, which like I mentioned, I've only recently discovered. It seems to come on mostly when exercising, although I've had both when just lounging on the couch. So, after tons and tons of tears, research, questioning and finally acceptance, here's what I've learned:  I went thru every test known to mankind, ekg, stress test, nuclear dye test, mri, sonograms, even had a heart catheter where the cardiologist went in thru my groin and up to my heart to look for abnormalities. Everything came back a-ok (no blockages or defects) and I was put on a beta blocker to try to control the VT. I should mention here that the PVCs are completely harmless--it's the VT the docs are concerned about. Anyhow, the beta blocker didn't work for me. Switched to a Calcium channel blocker which, thankfully, does the trick. I also added in about 1000 mg of omegas, a good (Rainbow brand) multi-vitamin for women, and 400 additional mgs of magnesium before bed. All has helped tremendously! It took me a month or more but I'm back to exercising finally, albeit a bit more slowly as I ramp up to where I was and get my mind in check (which can be the most challenging part of all of this!). Still get the PVCs at times, like you, when i am about 15 mins into my workout, but am reassured by the doc to keep going if I'm able, just not so hard, maybe. If it becomes too much, I know it's just not one of my great days and I'll just walk fast while reminding myself that my heart is healthy and strong and that these beats are harmless. I haven't made it back to the elliptical yet, still a lil nervous and exercising just on the treadmill. But my goal is to be back on sooner than later. I do miss it!
A lil about my past--I was having symptoms for the last 10 years but every doctor just listened to my heart, did an ekg, took my blood pressure (which is always amazingly good) and tells me it's anxiety and to go home. This is the first time in my life I've had someone take me seriously when I say, "no, I really have these strange beats that last for 10 seconds sometimes. I know it's not anxiety, please check this out further." And I'm very grateful because VT can be serious.
I recommend adding natural supplements and see how you do Lulu. Most likely you only have pvcs or pacs, and if your doc has given you a stress test (ekg while you're hooked up to a treadmill) and a sonogram of your heart and all came out good, keep going. Something to keep in mind is that you are young and otherwise healthy (I assume because of your exercise habits and weight). It can be scary but this sight is great to read thru and see just how much is going on with people's hearts out there. Kinda puts it all in perspective. Best thing is to get reassured by your doctor that you are healthy...and ask us lots of questions here. Take good care... hope this helps, if even a lil bit. :)
~Isis