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Taking your pulse
is a valuable way of measuring how healthy your heart is, as you
can measure how hard your heart has to work.
Resting Heart Rate
It is important to take a measurement of your heart when you are
resting. A good time to take your heartbeat is first thing in
the morning before you get up. You need to take a measurement
in seconds so find an appropriate watch or clock.
When you take you
heart beat there are two places it can be found, on the side of
the neck or the wrist. The Radial artery (wrist) and Carotid artery
(neck) pass in those places. When looking for the pulse in the
wrist place your fingertips (not thumb - it has its own pulse)
on the underside of the wrist and move them around till you feel
a beat. If looking for the artery in the neck, draw a line down
from the base of the ear to the top of the breastbone.
Keep an eye on
your watch whilst counting the number of beats in 15 seconds.
Multiply this figure by four. This allows you to get the number
of beats per minute (sixty seconds). The result should be somewhere
in between 50-100 beats per minute.
Check the top two
tables.
Then take your pulse the same way for 15 seconds after 3 minutes
of exercise. For example you could go to the bottom of your stairs
at home and step up and down on the bottom step for three minutes
or try it at the gym using one of the cardiovascular machines,
(ask the staff). After you have completed the exercise wait 30
seconds then take your pulse again. Using the same procedure to
work out your active pulse. Use the bottom two tables to assess
your active heart rate.
If you are in the
poor range of the resting heart rate ask your doctor before you
embark on a new exercise routine or try the active heart test.
Check Your Pulse
Important: Before taking the active test for heart rate assessment,
make sure you, do not have a history of heart trouble, regularly
feel faint or dizzy, you are over 65 and unused to exercising,
you are taking medication for heart problems or blood pressure
or you are easily tired when walking or going upstairs.
Pulse Rate Checkers male rest
age
18-29
30-39
40-49
50-70 |
great
60-low
62-low
64-low
66-low |
ok
64-82
66-82
68-86
70-86 |
poor
85+
85+
90+
90+ |
female rest
age
18-29
30-39
40-49
50-70
|
great
70-low
70-low
72-low
72-low
|
ok
74-92
74-94
76-96
78-100 |
poor
96+
98+
100+
104+ |
male active
age
18-29
30-39
40-49
50-70
|
great
74-low
78-low
80-low
82-low |
ok
78-98
82-98
84-102
86-102 |
poor
102+
102+
106+
106+ |
female active
18-29
30-39
40-49
50-70 |
great
86-low
86-low
88-low
90-low |
ok
90-108
90-110
92-112
94-114
|
poor
112+
114+
116+
118+ |
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