Heart Rate In Males & Females

Historically, the heart rate for both sexes was calculated using the same formula based on a study that only included male participants. Only recently have physicians created a formula unique to each gender. The nervous system has a major influence on how fast the heart beats, increasing the flow of oxygenated blood around the body depending on exercise, anxiety or adrenalin levels.

Male Heart Rate

The formula for calculating the peak heart rate in men, according to the American Heart Association, is 220 minus the age of the individual. To calculate your resting heart rate, apply pressure with your index and middle finger to your carotid artery found in the neck, the femoral artery in the groin, behind the knee on the popliteal artery or the ulnar artery on the wrist. The success with any of these options depends entirely on the individual. Count the beats over a period of 15 seconds, then multiply this figure by four to get your resting heart rate per minute. The best time to take your resting heart rate is after you wake up in morning. To achieve your average resting heart rate, take a reading over a week and divide the total figure by seven.

Female Heart Rate

A study by lead author Martha Gulati, published in 2010 in "Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association," highlights the need to separate the sexes when it comes to calculating peak heart rates. The new formula, now 206 minus 88 percent of your age, "promises more accurate prognoses from exercise tests." Gulati also claims "Women are not small men," and "there is a physiologic response in women that is different from men."

Variability

There are several factors, not just gender, that have an impact on the rate at which your heart beats. Your age has a significant impact, with men and women over 65 found to have the lowest heart rate of between 70 and 73 beats per minute. Exercise is the most influential factor on your resting and peak heart rate. The more exercise you do, the more efficient your heart becomes at pumping blood around the body. Combine increased exercise with a diet that reduces fatty deposits around the arteries and your heart rate will reduce and as a consequence your health improve.

Benefits

When it comes to improving the health of your heart, your gender is irrelevant. Not only does moderate physical activity improve blood circulation and reduce the risk of heart disease, a 30-minute session every day also has other health benefits. These include preventing and managing high blood pressure, improving blood cholesterol levels and reduces heart disease in women by 30 to 40 percent, according to the American Heart Association.

Considerations

If you decide to try and improve your peak and resting heart rates with exercise or improved diet and have any concerns or you've had any previous conditions that involved your heart, consult your doctor. He will be able to measure your heart rate and blood pressure, and give you advice on a implementing a steady increase in physical exercise.