The Medicine Cabinet: Ask the Harvard Experts: Track Your Heart Rate for Fitness and Heart Health

The Medicine Cabinet: Ask the Harvard Experts: Track Your Heart Rate for Fitness and Heart Health
To track your heart rate with exercise, you will need a smartwatch or fitness tracker. Dreamstime/TNS
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Q: How does tracking your heart rate provide information about your heart health?
A: Checking your heart rate at rest and with exercise can provide information about your fitness level and may suggest a heart problem if your pulse is too slow, too fast or irregular. Three good times to check your heart rate are soon after you wake up in the morning; during exercise, and in the immediate post-exercise recovery period.
Howard LeWine
Howard LeWine
Author
Howard LeWine, M.D., Harvard Health Publishing
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