Heart Rate

Master heart health with our Heart Rate Chart: A crucial guide for monitoring and understanding heart rate patterns.

By Priya Singh on Aug 2, 2025.

Fact Checked by Ericka Pingol.

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What is a Heart Rate Chart?

A Heart Rate Chart is a visual reference tool that allows individuals and healthcare practitioners to monitor heart rate. The chart illustrates the ranges of normal heart rates for healthy individuals within their respective age groups.

Other charts may also include more information about heart rates, such as Resting Heart Rate Charts and a Target Heart Rate Chart. Resting heart rate is the number of times the heart beats per minute when awake at rest (American Heart Association, 2024). These are pulses felt in arteries running through the neck, wrist, or elbow. Every time the heart beats, it contracts to circulate blood through the body to working muscles and organs, which creates pressure in the arteries that causes the pulse feeling (Cleveland Clinic, 2024). Heart rates automatically adjust to the environment or activity. When individuals are relaxed, they maintain a resting heart rate. However, the heart rate may spike when they are excited or active.

Heart Rate Charts enable healthcare practitioners to monitor patients' heart rates, tracking their health and progress. Heart rates can indicate underlying health conditions; low heart rates can cause dizziness or fainting, while high rates can signal conditions such as overactive thyroids or anemia (American Heart Association, 2024; Prendergast, 2022).

As a resource, the chart enables individuals and healthcare practitioners, such as general practitioners and health coaches, to determine whether someone's heart rate falls within their designated target heart rate zone for their age (American Heart Association, 2024). This can ensure ongoing heart rate monitoring, enabling individuals to maintain their health and remain proactive in their overall well-being.

Heart Rate Template

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How does it work?

Our Heart Rate Chart is an effective tool designed to help individuals and practitioners, like health coaches and nurses, monitor heart rate. The chart presents the recommended heart rates by age, both at rest and during exercise. The heart rates of your patients can provide insight into their potential heart function, exercise intensity, fitness levels, and other factors that may indicate any underlying cardiovascular system conditions they might have.

Step 1: Obtain the Heart Rate Chart

Begin by clicking "Use template" to access our free, printable Heart Rate Chart here. Alternatively, you can download the chart as a PDF version for reference.

Step 2: Determine pulse of heart rate

Heart rate can be determined in several ways. You can collect a manual heart rate by finding your patient's or your own pulse on the inside of the wrist near the thumb or the top of the neck at the corner of your jaw. Press over the artery using the tips of your index and middle finger, and count how many pulses you feel over 30 seconds. You can multiply this value by 2 to determine beats per minute.

Alternatively, some smartwatches may also automatically count one's heart rate.

Step 3: Interpret the chart

Identify whether the individual is within the recommended rate for their age. If the heart rate is operating at a rate lower or higher than the age range, it would be necessary to schedule an appointment with a healthcare provider to complete further screenings regarding heart functioning.

Additionally, if the patient's heart is operating irregularly, they should contact their healthcare provider for guidance and to address any health concerns. When using the chart for exercise intensity, observe whether the individual's heart rate falls within the recommended light to moderate intensity heart rate range.

If it is lower, individuals should increase the intensity by increasing the load or reducing the rest periods between intervals. If their heart rate is higher, they may lower the intensity by taking longer rest breaks or decreasing the load.

When would you use this chart?

Healthcare practitioners such as general practitioners, health coaches, and nurses can use a Heart Rate Chart to track a client's heart rate. This can be used to indicate overall health and help inform plans around exercise and health. Other scenarios in which the Heart Rate Chart would be beneficial include:

Routine checks: In consultations with patients, healthcare providers such as nurses or general practitioners may measure heart rate as an indicator of cardiovascular health and overall health and fitness. These may inform recommendations for patients to adjust lifestyle behaviors to stabilize heart rates within the normal age range (Prendergast, 2022).
Individuals using prescribed beta blocker medication: Individuals using beta blocker medication to decrease their heart rate, lower blood pressure, or control arrhythmias (abnormal heart rhythms) may be encouraged by their healthcare providers to monitor and document their heart rate and any changes they experience. Monitoring heart rates can help individuals track any changes, which can enable their general practitioner to make informed decisions about dosage and medication options (American Heart Association, 2024).
Exercise training: Health coaches who focus on cardiovascular fitness may use the chart to help inform their clients' exercise or physical activity plans, using it as a measure of exercise intensity. Specifically, the Heart Rate Chart can be used as a reference for maximum heart rate (MRH) to inform exercise plans. For example, it is recommended that individuals complete 150 minutes of low to medium-intensity exercise and 50% to 70% of MHR, respectively. Using the Heart Rate Chart and measuring heart rate can help clients stay within the range.

Potential readings and results

The results obtained using our free Heart Rate Chart may be multifaceted and vary among individuals, depending on several factors that influence health and fitness. These may include air temperature, prescription medication use, physical fitness, exposure to stress, and body positioning (American Heart Association, 2021). However, here are some common results and what they may hold for an individual:

Normal resting heart rate: Individuals may be within the normal resting ranges for their age group, indicating good health and fitness. However, it is essential to monitor heart rate throughout one's lifespan by, for example, completing routine checkups with healthcare providers to be proactive in maintaining one's health and reducing the risks of developing health complications.
Tachycardia: This occurs when the heart rate is abnormally high, typically over 100 beats per minute (bpm) during rest. Although the causes differ, it may be due to experiences of dehydration or fever, and may also indicate underlying health conditions, such as anemia and heart rhythm abnormalities. If an individual has an abnormal heart rate, it is essential to contact a healthcare professional (Cleveland Clinic, 2024; Prendergast, 2022).
Bradycardia: An individual may have a very low resting heart rate under 60 bpm, which can cause dizziness, fatigue, or fainting. This can cause dizziness or fainting; contacting a healthcare provider or completing screenings is essential (Cleveland Clinic, 2024; Prendergast, 2022).
Irregular pulse (arrhythmia): Individuals may identify an irregular or unstable heart rhythm when checking their heart rate, which may be irregular, also called an irregular pulse. Individuals may sometimes feel their heart muscle racing, jumping, off-beat, or unusually slow in this state. Though typically harmless, individuals and healthcare professionals must check this using an electrocardiogram (ECG) machine, as it can be an indicator of an underlying heart disease or condition like atrial fibrillation. This can help mitigate health complications such as stroke (Heart Foundation, n.d.).

It is crucial to consult with healthcare providers if individuals face any concerns regarding low, high, or irregular heart rates. Making use of this prescription template can uplift your practice and improve client experiences.

References

American Heart Association. (2021, March 9). Target heart rates chart. American Heart Association. https://www.heart.org/en/healthy-living/fitness/fitness-basics/target-heart-rates

American Heart Association. (2024, May 13). All about heart rate. American Heart Association; American Heart Association. https://www.heart.org/en/health-topics/high-blood-pressure/the-facts-about-high-blood-pressure/all-about-heart-rate-pulse

Cleveland Clinic. (2024, March 12). What’s a heart rate? Cleveland Clinic. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diagnostics/heart-rate

Prendergast, C. (2022, May 3). Normal resting heart rate by age (Chart). Forbes Health. https://www.forbes.com/health/wellness/normal-heart-rate-by-age/

Commonly asked questions

Anyone seeking to monitor their heart rate or compare it with the age-related ranges based on activity can request a heart rate chart. These may typically be requested by general practitioners, nurses, health coaches, or individuals.

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Heart rate charts are primarily used as a reference tool for managing and monitoring heart rate. Scenarios that may typically be used include routine health checkups, exercise prescriptions, or intensive care units.

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These charts are used as a visual reference tool to compare measured heart rate, either during rest or immediately following activity, with the recommended age ranges specific to the training status. For example, when identifying if the resting heart rate is healthy, general practitioners may measure the patient's heart rate at wakeful rest and compare it to the resting heart rate range relevant to the patient’s age.

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