Pulse Locations

The two most common locations for feeling your pulse are the side of your neck and the underside of your wrist. These two are the easiest to locate during exercise, do not require the removal of clothing and you can continue to move your legs while you feel your pulse. However, you can feel your pulse in other locations as your heart pumps blood throughout your body.

Head and Neck

You have two locations in your head and neck where you can feel your pulse. Your temporal pulse can be felt just behind your eyes and in front of your ears on the side of your forehead. Place two fingers on your temples to feel the beat. Your carotid pulse is located on the sides of your neck. Place two fingers into the groove behind your windpipe to feel your pulse.

Arms

You have three locations in your arms to feel your pulse. Your brachial pulse can be found by resting your slightly bent left arm on a table with your palm facing up. Using the first two fingers of your right hand, locate the pulse one third of the way in toward your body, approximately in line with your left middle finger and just below your elbow joint. Your radial pulse is located on the thumb underside of your wrist. Your ulnar pulse is located on the pinky underside of your wrist and is usually not as strong as the radial pulse.

Chest

You have one pulse location over your chest. This apical pulse can be felt near the bottom of your heart. Your heart is located on the left side of your chest. To feel the apical pulse, place two fingers to the left and two to three inches from the bottom of your breast bone. This pulse is accurately heard when a doctor uses a stethoscope to listen to your heartbeat.

Legs

Your legs have the most pulse locations. You have four choices when feeling for a pulse in your legs. Your femoral pulse is felt in your groin by pressing two fingers against your pelvic bone. Your popliteal pulse is felt by pressing two fingers in the middle of the back of your knee. You can find your posterior tibial pulse by pressing two fingers on the back of your lower leg, slightly to the inside of your leg and just above your ankle. Your dorsalis pedis pulse is found on the top of your foot just below your ankle and directly in the middle of your foot.