Resting heart rate as a measure of mortality risk

[Smurfy]

Interesting study. Sadly I doubt 40bpm is achievable for most people.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/sci...art-beats-predicts-if-you-will-die-early.html

http://www.cmaj.ca/content/early/2015/11/23/cmaj.150535

 

[summerdays]

Well just measured mine, not expecting it to be absolutely fantastic but hoping for better than average and I got 60 bpm. Look up the table for a female my age and 60 just scrapes into athlete category.... I'm feeling pleased whilst knowing other measures would show I wasn't quite as healthy as that!

 

[Hip Priest]

Mine is 42, which according to this article, means I could be at lower risk than someone with a higher HR. But I'm also overweight, which puts me at a higher risk than someone with a lower BMI. I also exercise regularly (good), drink too much booze (bad), have low cholesterol (good) and experience a lot of stress (bad).

I don't know whether I'm coming or going.

 

[Drago]

51 at the moment, so I guess I'm mortal after all.

 

[numbnuts]

I should be dead

 

[G3CWI]

I am reliably informed that dead people have the lowest resting heart rates.

 

[Markymark]

I thought it's all about the recovery time back to resting?

 

[Smurfy]

I find that with little more than 10 miles a day for 5 days a week my resting heart rate is scraping into the athlete category. I do push quite hard though, and one direction of my commute is mostly uphill. I'm probably riding several hundred metres of ascent every day.

 

[screenman]

I am well into athlete, which had a nurse scratching her head at a recent ECG seems they are used to hearts beating about 30 to 50 bpm more than mine.

 

[ColinJ]

A low heart rate may generally be a sign of fitness and good health, but a VERY low heart rate may cause problems. I read a lot of health articles after suffering my DVT and I remember reading about athletes potentially being more at risk because slow-moving blood clots more easily - EXAMPLE. Very low pulse rates may also result in bouts of atrial fibrilation - EXAMPLE.

When I was fit my RHR was only 34 bpm. When I was obese and unfit it was more like 60 bpm. I haven't actually measured it recently, but I was lying in bed the other day and noticed that my heart was beating significantly more slowly than the second hand on my alarm clock was ticking.

 

[Flying Dodo]

My resting heart rate is 45 and has been for years (just checked it again), even when I was 15 kg heavier. Any time I go to the the doctors, they always do a double take and wonder if they've miscounted!

 

[Hip Priest]

Funnily enough, I caught at episode of a daytime TV quiz show called 1000 Heartbeats (or similar), where contestants' heart rates are recorded, and a high HR can cost you. I was wonder if they even let cyclists take part!

 

[MissTillyFlop]

Well, I have hypotension and the lowest mine's ever been was 43 and I only know that cause I passed out when it happened....

 

[sarahale]

My resting heart rate is around 40 and I have a low blood pressure of 110/50.

I do a fair bit of exercise, nothing very intense though just walking and cycling probably average about 2 hours a day. Then I own a horse so riding that and its care is another hour or so of light exercise a day.

I'm a 25 yo female but they keep a close ish eye on my heart due to my family history. My resting heart rate used to be around 80 and they suggested exercise to help bring it down so I am quite happy with what it is now.

 

[sarahale]

How come in the study posted by the OP none of the subjects had a resting heart rate of less than 45, in such a large sample size I would of thought there would be a number lower than 40 even, but maybe I am missing something?