What Is A Good Resting Heart Rate For My Age

How To Calculate Resting Heart Rate

What is a Good Heart Rate for My Age? Both Resting & Maximum

To check your normal resting heart rate, you can use a heart rate monitor, or use this 10-second pulse count method:

Take your pulse at either the base of your thumb on the palm side of your wrist, or the base of your neck on either side of your windpipe.
Using two or three fingers, press lightly on your skin until you can feel your blood moving underneath.
Count the beats for 10 seconds, then multiply that number by six.

What Is Pulmonary Vein Isolation

The four pulmonary veins are blood vessels that carry oxygen-rich blood from the lungs to the left atrium. There is a narrow band of muscle cells that surrounds the openings of the pulmonary veins where they enter the left atrium. This band of muscle cells may begin to actively discharge electrically, and this discharge may initiate atrial fibrillation. During pulmonary vein isolation , the band of muscle cells is destroyed by energy applied through a catheter. This effectively blocks the electrical discharges from crossing over from the band to the left atrium and, hence, prevents atrial fibrillation.

The procedure

Before PVI, the doctor performs a history and physical examination, an EKG, a 24-hour Holter monitor, and a transesophageal echocardiogram to exclude blood clots in the atria, and, sometimes, a CAT scan of the chest. The doctor also may ask the person to stop certain medications, particularly blood thinners such as aspirin, clopidogrel , or warfarin, several days before the procedure. The doctor may check a blood prothrombin time and INR level to make sure that blood clotting is adequate for the procedure.

Course after pulmonary vein isolation: After PVI, patients remain in the hospital telemetry unit so that the heart’s rhythm can be monitored.

Patients usually will have an EKG and a CAT scan of the chest 3 months after PVI. The CAT scan is done to make sure that there is no narrowing of the pulmonary veins due to the scarring.

Measure Your Heart Rate

To determine your heart rate, use your first two fingers to press lightly over the blood vessels on your inner wristthe side by your thumb. Count your pulse for ten seconds and multiply this number by six.

If your heart rate is 50 to 85 percent of your maximum heart rate, you have hit your target heart zone and are working at the right level of intensity.

Wearing a multifunctional fitness tracker such as the Fitbit, or Nike+ FuelBand SE, does the work for you. The device is worn like a bracelet or watch and measures your heart rate.

Exercising at the right level of intensity improves heart and respiratory endurance and helps keep your workout at a level that is vigorous enough to meet your health goals.

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Heart Rate Tips To Keep In Mind

Start at your beginning. Before getting overly concerned about your heart rate, Martin says, its best to simply get moving. If you havent exercised much before, start where youre comfortable and gradually exert yourself more over time.
Listen to your body. Your body provides other indicators of how hard its working that you need to consider along with heart rate. Pay attention to how hard youre breathing or sweating, and stop if you feel very uncomfortable, Martin says. Devices recording your heart rate have been known to malfunction, for exampleanother reason listening to your body is important.
Remember that target heart rate is just a guide. Dont get overly fixated on numbers, Martin says. Ideally, they just push you to work a little harder.

An Ounce Of Prevention

When you have discomfort or pain in your feet or lower body, you wont have much motivation to get off the couch and get active. Happily, there are many ways to up your comfort factor and prevent some common sources of pain when exercising.

Take a stand: Alternate periods of sitting, standing, and moving throughout the day. If youre on your feet a lot, put them up when you sit down to take a break. If youre more sedentary, try a standing desk or walking breaks. Experts suggest standing or walking for at least two hours per eight-hour workday, or about 15 minutes out of every hour.3
Lighten up: Stay active and maintain a healthy weight. Being overweight can put extra stress on your feet, knees, and body.
No fungus among us: Wear flip flops or water shoes in public showers, locker rooms, restrooms, pools, and other wet areas.
Cross train: Vary your activities to avoid repetitive impact. Walk, bike, swim, run, dance, skate with so many fun ways to move your body, you dont have to limit yourself to just one.

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How Do You Know Your Heart Rate

Your heart rate is a measure of how fast your heart beats and is also an important indicator of good health. Your doctor will always make it a point to measure your heart rate whenever you visit him for your routine health checkup or any health-related problem.

While the heart rate is routinely examined by your doctor, you can also measure your heart rate. With the help of your middle finger and index finger, you have to first try to feel and locate your pulse at any of the following places

Wrist
The inner side of your elbow
The base of the toe
The side of your neck

The wrist is the most commonly used and convenient place to check your heart rate. Once you locate the pulse on your wrist, you have to gently press on it for 60 seconds and count the beats. This is how you will know your heart rate, which will be in beats per minute.

Know Your Numbers: Maximum And Target Heart Rate By Age

This table shows target heart rate zones for different ages. Your maximum heart rate is about 220 minus your age.3

In the age category closest to yours, read across to find your target heart rates. Target heart rate during moderate intensity activities is about 50-70% of maximum heart rate, while during vigorous physical activity its about 70-85% of maximum.

The figures are averages, so use them as a general guide.

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What Is A Normal Heart Rate In Your Age

Heart rate, also known as pulse, is the number of times a persons heart beats per minute. A normal heart rate depends upon the individual, age, body size, heart disease, whether the person is sitting or moving, medication use and even air temperature level. Even feelings can have an impact on heart rate. For instance, getting excited or scared can increase the heart rate. But most significantly, getting fitter decreases the heart rate, by making heart muscles work more efficiently.

Resting Heart Rate During The Night

Why does your resting heart rate decrease?

Nightly average RHR varies widely between individuals. A normal heart rate can range anywhere from 40 to 100 beats per minute and still be considered average. It can also change from day to day, depending on your hydration level, elevation, physical activity, and body temperature. As with many of your bodys signals, its best to compare your RHR with your own baseline. Avoid comparisons to those around you.

When looking at your RHR curve, pay special attention to these three things:

Your trend: Does your RHR go up, down, or stay level during the night?
Your lowest point: When is your RHR lowest?
Your end: Right before you wake up, does your RHR change?

With these questions in mind, here are three patterns you may recognize in the night-time heart rate curves you can see with Oura:

What Is The Role Of Physical Activity And Exercise In Obesity

The National Health and Examination Survey showed that people who engage in limited recreational activity were more likely to gain weight than more active people. Other studies have shown that people who engage in regular strenuous activity gain less weight than sedentary people.

Physical activity and exercise help burn calories. The amount of calories burned depends on the type, duration, and intensity of the activity. It also depends on the weight of the person. A 200-pound person will burn more calories running 1 mile than a 120-pound person because the work of carrying those extra 80 pounds must be factored in. But exercise as a treatment for obesity is most effective when combined with a diet and weight-loss program. Exercise alone without dietary changes will have a limited effect on weight because one has to exercise a lot to simply lose 1 pound. However regular exercise is an important part of a healthy lifestyle to maintain a healthy weight for the long term. Another advantage of regular exercise as part of a weight-loss program is a greater loss of body fat versus lean muscle compared to those who diet alone.

Other benefits of exercise include

improved blood sugar control and increased insulin sensitivity ,
a reduction in abdominal fat,
reduced risk of heart disease,
release of endorphins that make people feel good.

General exercise recommendations

Exercise precautions

The following people should consult a doctor before vigorous exercise:

Children Have Higher Resting Heart Rates Than Adults

According to Purvi Parwani, MD, director of Women’s Heart Care at Loma Linda University International Heart Institute, children tend to have a higher resting heart rate than adults because of a faster metabolism. “For example, a newborn heart rate of 100 to 150 bpm is considered normal,” Parwani says.

However, the average resting heart rate of a child also depends on age and activity level during the day. According to the US National Library of Medicine, the resting heart rate range for children changes every few years until around 10 years old:

Newborns 0 to 1 month old: 70 to 190 bpm
Infants 1 to 11 months old: 80 to 160 pm
Children 1 to 2 years old: 80 to 130 bpm
3 to 4 years old: 80 to 120 bpm
5 to 6 years old: 75 to 115 bpm
7 to 9 years old: 70 to 100 bpm
10 years and older: 60 to 100 bpm

Factors That Affect Resting Heart Rate

Prolonged stress can increase RHR and lead to a higher risk of heart attack and stroke. Overall, 60% of the time WHOOP members input experiencing stress it results in an increase in resting heart rate. Our data indicates men and women see similar changes in RHR due to stress in most age groups. Other emotions, such as happiness, can also raise your RHR.

More factors that affect RHR include:

Weightthere is a correlation between RHR and body mass index . High BMI is associated with elevated RHR according to this study.
Consuming alcohol can increase RHR.
Blood pressure medications such as Beta blockers and some migraine medications can lower RHR.
Disorders such as anemia, hyperthyroidism and hypothyroidism can affect RHR.
Chronic sleep deprivation can lead to a lower metabolism and raise RHR.
High air temperatures and high humidity can increase RHR.
Body positionRHR can be 3 bpm higher when sitting versus lying down and rises upon standing, according to Harvard Health Publishing.

When WHOOP members report stress, RHR increases by an average of 1 beat per minute.

How Common Is Obesity

Obesity has reached epidemic proportions in the United States. Over two-thirds of adults are overweight or obese, and one in three Americans is obese. The prevalence of obesity in children has increased markedly. Obesity has also been increasing rapidly throughout the world, and the incidence of obesity nearly doubled from 1991 to 1998. In 2015, nearly 40% of adults were obese in the U.S.

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What Is An Irregular Pulse

An irregular pulse is when the heart doesn’t beat in a regular, steady rhythm. This is also called an irregular heart rate or an arrhythmia.

If your heart rate is irregular, you may notice that your pulse:

seems irregular or is ‘jumping around’
is racing, even when you’re at rest
seems unusually slow some or most of the time.

Exercise And Resting Heart Rate

One study put participants through a 12-week aerobic conditioning program of cycling, Stairmaster, and running on a treadmill. Participants dropped their resting heart rate down from an average of 69 to 66, a 3 point drop. When they stopped the aerobic program, however, their resting heart rate went back to around 69 again.

It appears that you must continue exercising to keep your resting heart rate lower. What else can you do?

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What Can Resting Heart Rate Readings Indicate

Resting heart rate is an indicator of fitness and general health. They are:

In adults, a lower heart rate is correlated with a higher degree of fitness and a lower incidence of cardiac events, such as heart attacks.
Highly trained athletes can have an RHR as low as 40. This may be because the lower rate translates to a heart muscle that is stronger and can pump blood more efficiently. Another explanation is that with vigorous exercise, there is the release of nitrous oxide in the hearts blood vessels, which increases the blood supply to the heart.
However, a consistently higher heart rate has been associated with cardiovascular issues and premature death.
A 2013 research that studied 3000 men for 16 years found that men with RHR greater than 90 were associated with triple the risk of death when compared to men with RHR below 80.
An observational study conducted in Norway that looked at 20,000 participants found similar results, even when controlled for factors, such as body mass index and life.

Understanding Your Target Heart Rate

Resting heart rate and heart rate variability: What’s optimal?

Nearly all exercise is good. But to be sure youre getting the most fromyour workout yet staying at a level thats safe for you, you can monitorhow hard your heart is working.

Aiming for whats called a target heart rate can help you do this, says Johns Hopkins cardiologist Seth Martin, M.D., M.P.H. Think of it as the sweet spot between not exercising hard enough and overexerting.

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Two Caveats To Keep In Mind

If you notice a change in your resting heart rate but none of the scenarios above seem plausible, there are two other factors that may be playing a part: age and medication.

Resting Heart Rate Increases With AgeMost of the time your RHR can be modified. Unfortunately, as you get older, your RHR tends to increase. To reduce the impact that aging can have on your cardiovascular system, you can help maximize your results by exercising within your target HR zone to help lower your resting heart rate.

Medication Affects Resting Heart RateChanges in your resting heart rate can also result from over-the-counter or prescription medications. Medications to treat asthma, depression, obesity, and attention deficit disorder tend to increase your RHR. However, medications prescribed for hypertension and heart conditions typically decrease your resting heart rate.

This information is for educational purposes only and is not intended as a substitute for medical diagnosis or treatment. You should not use this information to diagnose or treat a health problem or condition. Always check with your doctor before changing your diet, altering your sleep habits, taking supplements, or starting a new fitness routine.

Target Heart Rates Chart

What should your heart rate be when working out, and how can you keep track of it? Our simple chart will help keep you in the target training zone, whether you want to lose weight or just maximize your workout. Find out what normal resting and maximum heart rates are for your age and how exercise intensity and other factors affect heart rate.

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How To Find Your Target Heart Rate

First, it helps to know your resting heart rate, Martin says. Find your pulse . Then count the number of beats in a minutethats your resting heart rate. The average resting heart rate is between 60 and 100, he says. The more fit you are, the lower your resting heart rate for very fit people, its in the range of 40 to 50 beats per minute.

Target heart rate is generally expressed as a percentage of your maximum safe heart rate. The maximum rate is based on your age, as subtracted from 220. So for a 50-year-old, maximum heart rate is 220 minus 50, or 170 beats per minute. At a 50 percent exertion level, your target would be 50 percent of that maximum, or 85 beats per minute. At an 85 percent level of exertion, your target would be 145 beats per minute. Therefore, the target heart rate that a 50-year-old would want to aim for during exercise is 85 to 145 beats per minute.

But theres an easier way to figure it out if you want to skip the math: Wear a fitness tracking device, or exercise on a treadmill or other machine that calculates target heart rate for you, Blaha suggests.

How Do I Determine Heart Rate

Good Resting Heart Rate Chart Reference Table. Have had as ...

Take your pulse on the inside of your wrist on the thumb side or on the side of your neck next to your larynx .

Use the tips of your first two fingers to press lightly over the blood vessels on your wrist or neck.

Count your pulse for the number of beats in 60 seconds or count your pulse for the number of beats in 10 seconds and multiply by 6 to find your beats per minute.