Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsMeasuring Heart RateInterpreting ResultsWhen to See a Healthcare ProviderFrequently Asked Questions
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
Measuring Heart Rate
Interpreting Results
When to See a Healthcare Provider
Frequently Asked Questions
Your heart rate is the number of times your heart beats in one minute. While heart rate normally increases with activity, your resting heart rate (the number of times that your heart beats in one minute while you are sitting at rest) is an indicator of yourheart function.
If a heart beats too much or does not beat enough, it’s a sign that it’s not functioning properly. This means your heart is either working too hard or not hard enough to support your body.
Verywell / Danie Drankwalter
When your heart rate is measured at any location other than the heart itself, it can also be called your pulse.
This article describes how to check your heart rate (or pulse), what your results mean, and when to see your healthcare provider.
You can measure your heart rate at several different artery locations on your body, or through technology like smartphone apps and wearable heart rate monitors.
To manually take your heart rate at the location of an artery, you’ll hold your fingers over the artery until you can feel it beating.
Once you start to feel beating in the artery, you can get your pulse in one of three ways:
Radial Pulse
Carotid Pulse
Pedal Pulse
To take your pedal pulse at the dorsalis pedis artery, take your index and middle fingers and place the fingertips on the top of your foot between the first and secondmetatarsalbones.
Brachial Pulse
Heart Rate Monitors
Heart rate monitors can include a strap that is placed around the chest or wrist (like a watch) that contains sensors to monitor your heart rate. Heart rate monitors that record your heart rate at your chest are the most accurate, but wearing one at your wrist is much more convenient and comfortable to use.
Smartphone Apps
A healthy resting heart rate falls within the range of 60 to 100 beats per minute. However, very active, athletic individuals may have healthy heart rates below 60 beats per minute.
A resting heart rate lower than 60 beats per minute is classified asbradycardia, or slow heart rate, while a resting heart rate higher than 100 beats per minute is calledtachycardia, or high heart rate. A resting heart rate that falls outside the recommended range is often a sign of a cardiac condition that requires medical attention.
Factors that can influence your heart rate include:
You should see a healthcare provider if your heart rate falls outside of the recommended range, eitherlower than 60 beats per minuteor higher than 100 beats per minute. These are possible signs that your heart is not functioning properly, especially if your heart rate is on the higher end. You may need to make certain lifestyle changes, take medication, or have a surgical procedure to help your heart function better.
Extreme fatigue, dizziness, lightheadedness, chest pain, nausea, vomiting, shortness of breath, or fainting are signs of a medical emergency. Warning signs of aheart attackthat can result from an abnormal heart rate include sudden chest pain or pressure, radiating pain down the left arm and into the upper back or to the jaw, excessive sweating, shortness of breath, and dizziness.
Summary
Your heart rate, also known as your pulse, is the number of times your heart beats in one minute. It can be measured through heart rate monitors and smartphone apps, or it can be taken via a radial, carotid, pedal, or brachial pulse at one of your arteries. A healthy resting heart rate falls within the range of 60 to 100 beats per minute. If your heart rate falls outside of this range, it may be a sign that your heart is not functioning properly, and you should schedule a visit with your healthcare provider.
A dangerous resting heart rate can be anything that falls outside the healthy range of 60 to 100 beats per minute for adults, especially if your heart rate is on the higher end. Very low heart rates can be dangerous as well, but they’re also commonplace among active, athletic individuals who have undergone efficient cardiovascular training.
You canlower your heart ratethrough exercise, adequate hydration, avoidance of stimulants like caffeine, getting enough sleep, losing weight, lowering stress, and taking medication.
2 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.De Ridder B, Van Rompaey B, Kampen JK, Haine S, Dilles T.Smartphone Apps Using Photoplethysmography for Heart Rate Monitoring: Meta-Analysis.JMIR Cardio.2018 Feb 27;2(1):e4. doi: 10.2196/cardio.8802American Heart Association.All About Heart Rate (Pulse).
2 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.De Ridder B, Van Rompaey B, Kampen JK, Haine S, Dilles T.Smartphone Apps Using Photoplethysmography for Heart Rate Monitoring: Meta-Analysis.JMIR Cardio.2018 Feb 27;2(1):e4. doi: 10.2196/cardio.8802American Heart Association.All About Heart Rate (Pulse).
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
De Ridder B, Van Rompaey B, Kampen JK, Haine S, Dilles T.Smartphone Apps Using Photoplethysmography for Heart Rate Monitoring: Meta-Analysis.JMIR Cardio.2018 Feb 27;2(1):e4. doi: 10.2196/cardio.8802American Heart Association.All About Heart Rate (Pulse).
De Ridder B, Van Rompaey B, Kampen JK, Haine S, Dilles T.Smartphone Apps Using Photoplethysmography for Heart Rate Monitoring: Meta-Analysis.JMIR Cardio.2018 Feb 27;2(1):e4. doi: 10.2196/cardio.8802
American Heart Association.All About Heart Rate (Pulse).
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