From the Guidelines
When someone runs, their heart rate typically increases to about 120-180 beats per minute, depending on their age, fitness level, and running intensity. This increase occurs because during exercise, muscles need more oxygen and nutrients, requiring the heart to pump blood faster throughout the body 1. A common formula to estimate maximum heart rate is 208 – (0.7 × AGE[years]) 1, with moderate-intensity exercise targeting 50-70% of this maximum and vigorous exercise reaching 70-85%. Fitter individuals generally have lower resting heart rates and may not reach as high a pulse rate during running compared to less fit people. The pulse will gradually return to normal after stopping exercise, with faster recovery times indicating better cardiovascular fitness.
Key Factors Influencing Heart Rate During Running
- Age: maximum heart rate decreases with age 1
- Fitness level: fitter individuals have lower resting heart rates and may not reach as high a pulse rate during running 1
- Running intensity: more intense running results in higher heart rates 1
Monitoring Heart Rate During Running
Monitoring heart rate during running can help ensure that an individual is exercising at an appropriate intensity for their fitness goals and health status. It is essential to consider individual factors, such as age and fitness level, when determining a target heart rate zone.
Heart Rate Recovery
The change in heart rate immediately after termination of exercise, termed heart rate recovery, has received an increasing amount of attention in recent years 1. Abnormality of heart rate recovery has consistently demonstrated prognostic value 1. Faster recovery times indicate better cardiovascular fitness.
From the Research
Heart Rate During Exercise
- The heart rate increase during exercise is a complex phenomenon that involves various physiological mechanisms, including a reduction in vagal tone 2.
- The relationship between heart rate and exercise is influenced by factors such as physical fitness, age, and sex 3, 4.
- Studies have shown that a high heart rate during exercise is associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular mortality 5, 6.
Heart Rate Recovery After Exercise
- The recovery of heart rate after exercise is a function of vagal reactivation, and a delayed fall in heart rate after exercise may be an important prognostic marker for mortality 2.
- A low value for heart-rate recovery, defined as a reduction of 12 beats per minute or less from the heart rate at peak exercise, is strongly predictive of death 2.
Maximal Heart Rate During Exercise
- Maximal exercise-induced heart rate is inversely associated with cardiovascular mortality, and the difference between maximal exercise-induced heart rate and resting heart rate may contain prognostic information from both variables 6.
- Studies have shown that a high maximal heart rate during exercise is associated with a lower risk of cardiovascular mortality 6.
Resting Heart Rate
- Resting heart rate is directly associated with cardiovascular mortality, and a high resting heart rate is associated with an elevated risk of cardiovascular disease 5, 4.
- Physical exercise can decrease the resting heart rate, and taking the resting pulse should form part of prophylactic health monitoring procedures 4.