Why does swimming stop my SVT?

[JohnWright]

I'm 68, and if I don't do regular exercise, I get SVT every 3 days to 3 weeks going to 160 BPM without any erratic beats. I read that a swimmer's maxium heart rate is 17 beats lower and more uniform than doing exercise on dry land, so I started swimming laps for 45 minutes every day using a front mounted snorkel so I could relax while swimming. Over 1 month, my SVT reduced in frequency, and now, 3 months after starting, I've had no SVT for 2 months. I don't know if this will last but resting is 62 BPM with no extra beats and the Doctor says keep swimming. Has anyone else been able to manage and even stop SVT by regular daily swimming?

[JohnWright]

I think pounding and shaking your heart from running on hard surfaces or pavement is detrimental, as electric circuits and pathways are continually being shaken and moved around. Cycling and swimming do not have this shaking and they are much better if you have any type of arrythmia. I'm swimming because my max. heartrate is 144, whereas cycling hard takes it up to 160, the same beat as my previous SVT episodes, and I don't want to trigger an episode as I havn't had one for 2 months and hope I won't have more. You should stop running and just cycle or swim.

[Bromley]

Early on when I had SVT, I'd get my episodes once or twice at the start of running season on the first couple of runs.  My left free wall accessory  pathway is gone now, but I still have exercise related PVC's on occassion.  It does seem like I get PVC's early on in the season that go away for a while after I get about a week's worth of running in. As far as I know these PVC's originate in one of the papillary muscles in my left ventricle.  And as I understand the current thinking about this, there may be some exercise sensitivity here that could be related to the fact that the papillary muscle is being pulled on and stretched during exercise (the muscle supports the mitral annulus via heart strings when the heart beats).

Not saying that this applies to you.  Just my the experience I have with my particular situation.