Definition: Resting Heart Rate
Resting heart rate is the number of beats your heart beats during rest - i.e. when you are lying down and relaxing.
Your resting heart rate can be affected by several different things, such as illness and training instensity, but also coffee, stress etc. In general, the best way to measure your resting heart rate is in the morning before you get up. Here you should be as relaxed as posible, and thus your chances of getting a good reading are optimal.
What is a normal resting heart rate?
It is strangely not quite as simply as you would expect, when explaining what a "normal" resting heart rate is. If we look at the relevant statistics available at the moment, 39% of the world's population is obese according to the WHO, based on data from 2016. And according to a recent study from Denmark, 52% of the population in the country is obese - the same picture is seen in many countries; meaning that more and more people are becoming overweight. The statistics also show large proportions of the population who are physically inactive.
As you know, an expression of what is 'normal' must apply to everyone. That's why I think it is always worth aksing yourself whether it even makes sense to compare yourself to what is normal, since having 'average' health metrics is not necessarily optimal - have a little think about that!
According to the Swedish Heart Association, a normal resting heart rate is around 60 for men and 70 for women.
Is a low resting heart rate good?
In general, it seems that it is greatly beneficial to have a low resting heart rate, and it is not unusual, for example, to see a resting heart rate of 30-40 beats per minute in elite athletes.
A low resting heart rate is, amongst other things, a sign that the heart is big and strong - this means it can pump out more blood with each individual heartbeat, and therefore the heart does not have to beat as often.
In a review study from 2017, thought-provoking results were also found regarding the resting heart rate; an increase in resting heart rate of 10 beats per minute showed an increased risk of death by 17%!
How does running affect your resting heard rate?
There are many types of training that are good when it comes to training the heart and thus lowering your resting heart rate, but one category of training in particular has a extra good effect – endurance training. Endurance training includes, such as running, cross-country skiing, cycling and rowing etc.
If you want to lower your resting heart rate, then running training is a very good way of doing so. In order to have a good effect on your health, it is recommended that you remember both low-intensity and high-intensity training during the week. Generally speaking, this is also just sensible if you want ot get the most out of your training.
Sources
- Reimers AK, Knapp G, Reimers CD., Effects of Exercise on the Resting Heart Rate: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Interventional Studies, (2018)
- WHO
- Friis, K. et al., Hvordan har du det? (2021)
- Aune, D. et al., Resting heart rate and the risk of cardiovascular disease, total cancer, and all-cause mortality – A systematic review and dose–response meta-analysis of prospective studies (2017)
- Hjerteforeningen (https://hjerteforeningen.dk/alt-om-dit-hjerte/hjerte-og-kredsloeb/puls-og-styring-af-hjertet/)
