Physical abilities tests that evaluate your endurance, aerobic and cardiorespiratory capacity may use your heart rate to determine your current fitness level, set goals and measure your progress. Physical abilities testing may document your heart rate before, after and in between bouts of physical exertion. Determine your heart rate by placing two fingers on the thumb side of your wrist or place your index and third finger on your neck next to your windpipe.
Resting Rate
Your resting heart rate provides information about your current level of fitness for a physical abilities test. Lower resting heart rates generally indicate higher cardiorespiratory physical abilities. Young children may have a resting heart rate between 70 and 120 beats per minute. Adults and children older than 10 may have resting heart rates between 60 and 100 beats per minute. Athletes may have a resting heart rate between 40 and 60 beats per minute.
Maximum Rate
A physical abilities test uses your maximum heart rate to determine your functional capacity. Your functional capacity is the maximum rate that your heart and cardiovascular system can pump oxygen and nutrients to working tissues and meet energy demands during physical activity. A physical abilities test may document your physical exertion as a percentage of your maximum heart rate. Calculate your maximum heart rate by subtracting your age from 220.
Recovery Rate
Your recovery heart rate is the target rate that your heart beats between exercise sets during your workout. Workout regimens that prescribe a higher recovery heart rate provide more of a cardio effect. A physical abilities test may document how much time it takes for your pulse to reach your recovery heart rate between multiple bouts of physical exertion. More time indicates a higher degree of physical exertion. The National Federation of Personal Trainers recommends a recovery heart rate of 100 beats-per-minute for bodybuilding exercises, 115 BPM for general strength exercises and 125 BPM for cardio and endurance exercises.
Exercise Rate
A physical abilities test uses your exercise or target heart rate to measure and monitor your progress while following a fitness program. The American Heart Association recommends an exercise heart rate between 50 and 80 percent of your maximum heart rate. Higher heart rates indicate more intense physical exertion. A physical abilities test may document the amount of time it takes for your pulse to reach your target heart rate. Longer time generally indicates greater physical fitness.
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