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What is a resting heart rate?

A resting heart rate is the number of times your heart beats in a minute while you are at rest. The NHLBI says most adults have a resting heart rate of between 60 and 100 beats per minute, and that some people, especially people who are young or physically fit, may normally have slower rates.

Action level Worth checking

Why you are seeing it
It is shown by fitness watches and mentioned at medical visits as one number, in beats per minute.
Why it matters
It is a basic measure that a doctor can read in context, and it varies between people.
What should I do?
  • Count your pulse when you have been at rest for a few minutes.
  • Compare it with the range for most adults as a description, not a diagnosis.
  • Ask a doctor about a pulse that worries you, or if you feel unwell.
A common misunderstanding
A rate outside the range for most adults is not automatically a problem, and one inside it is not a clean bill of health: this page cannot judge your number.

What it is

Your pulse is the number of times your heart beats each minute. Your resting heart rate is that count when you are at rest, not just after moving.

A simple example

Turning a count into beats per minute

Count the beats for 30 seconds and double the number, or count for a full minute.

35 beats in 30 seconds is 35 x 2 = 70 beats per minute, inside the range the NHLBI gives for most adults.

This page does not tell you what your own number means.

The range the NHLBI gives

The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) says most adults have a resting heart rate of between 60 and 100 beats per minute. It adds that some people, especially people who are young or physically fit, may normally have slower heart rates.

The range describes most adults. It is not a test of one person. A person who is worried about a pulse, or who feels unwell, should ask a doctor rather than rely on a web page.

Try these tools

  • Activity Minutes CalculatorAdd up the minutes of walking, running, cycling and strength activity in a week and see the total and the daily average.

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