Day 22: My Heart On Stimulants

Today was the treadmill- or strength-only workouts, so I doubled up and did the treadmill first. Halfway through the workout, I thought, “Why has my heart rate been so low this whole time?” I pushed a little harder and managed only 8 minutes (compared to my usual ~25) in the exertion zones (aka Splats). I had another slightly lower heart-rate day (18 minutes) on my birthday, which led me to realize what might have caused the dip. The common denominator between the two days was not taking my Adderall before the workout (which makes total sense, it’s a stimulant), but then the additional drop today was because I also didn’t have caffeine this morning.

I had to have bloodwork done this morning before heading to the studio, and I remembered to pack a healthy breakfast (cottage cheese, apples, and cereal) but forgot to grab my meds or caffeine. I am amazed by the difference in heart rate when on stimulants compared to when not. While I’ve only been mildly worried about my higher Splat count, I mostly chalked it up to not having worked out in a while. I will be curious to see if things stabilize over the coming months. I used to work out with caffeine and Adderall during my peak fitness and would struggle to get double digits with my Splat count.