Heart Rate

The heart rate of most adults is between 60 and 90 beats a minute (bpm), usually fractionally higher in women, and it's thought that anything above 100bpm when at rest is cause for concern (you can measure your heart rate by taking your pulse, although an ECG is the most accurate method). Heart rates are a useful way of assessing physical fitness: those who take hard exercise are likely to have much lower rates than couch potatoes and the obese.

A good indicator is to work out your maximum heart rate (MHR), which is the fastest rate your heart can reach when exercising. It declines with age - a 20-year-old's is likely to be 200bpm, and a 60-year-old's 160bpm. The number crunch: To work out your MHR, subtract your age from 220, eg 220-55 is 165. Your target rate while exercising should be no higher than 60 to 75% of the figure you have calculated. You can also buy heart monitors from sports shops which will do the measuring for you.

Source - saga magazine