Heart rate - pulse - the number of times a person's heart beats per minute.

A normal heart rate depends on the individual, age, body size, heart conditions, whether
the person is sitting or moving, medication use and even air temperature.

Even emotions can have an impact on heart rate. For example, getting excited or scared
can increase the heart rate. But most importantly, getting fitter lowers the heart rate, by
making heart muscles work more efficiently.

How to measure heart rate

The easiest places to measure your heart rate are on the wrists or one side of the neck. For
an accurate reading, put two fingers over one of these areas and count the number of beats
in 60 seconds. You can also do this for 20 seconds and multiply by three, which may be
easier, Bauman said. Using your thumb may be confusing because sometimes you can feel
a pulse in the thumb, she said.

You can check your pulse the first thing in the morning, just after you wake up but before
you get out of bed. This is called a resting pulse. Some people like to check their pulse
before and after they exercise.

Your resting heart rate is your pulse when you are calmly sitting or lying. It’s best to
measure your resting heart rate it in the morning before you get out of bed, according to
the American Heart Association (AHA).

adults 18 and older, a normal resting heart rate is between 60 and 100 beats per minute
(bpm) depending on the person’s physical condition and age. For children ages 6 to 15, the
normal resting heart rate is between 70 and 100 bpm, according to the AHA.
 Sit and Reach Sit and Reach
Boys (cm) Girls (cm)
9- 37 9- 37
10- 39 10- 39
11- 41 11- 41
12- 43 12- 43
13- 45 13- 45
14- 50 14- 50
15- 55 15- 55
16- 56 16- 56
17- 64 17- 64
18- 69 18- 69
19- 70 19- 70
20- 72 20- 72
21- 72 21- 75
Zipper Test
0 - did not touch fingers
1 - touched only tip of
fingers
2- fingers overlapped
by 1 to 2 cm
3 - fingers overlapped
by 3 to 4 cm
4 - fingers overlapped
by 5 to 7 cm
5 - fingers overlapped
by 8 cm or more