Can Innactivity Cause a slow heart rate?

Question

Hi guys,

I'm wondering if Innactivity can cause a slow heart rate, I'm 19 years old (male) and slightly overweight. 

I'm not very active and yet I sometimes have a slow heart rate of around 45 - 60 bpm when resting.

I don't have a problem getting my heart rate up when I do physical activity, but it always seems to slow down again VERY quickly after any activity.

I posted another post about this but wanted to just know if Innactivity can cause this problem?

Thanks guys :)
Jay

JayRhodes · Answer

Hi there, thanks for getting back to me.

I'm measuring it using a stopwatch and my finger to my carotid artery. I normally measure it for the full 60 seconds rather than 30 seconds and multiply it by 2 as I was told this is more accurate?

It's normally around 55 - 60 when I'm sat at my desk or sat down in a chair somewhere, I just worry that maybe it's too slow?

My doctor told me it's nothing to worry about and I've had full blood tests which they tested for literally everything, as well as ECGs and Ultrasounds of my heart etc...

DrAnitha · Answer

Hi, when we refer to the normal heart rate, we refer to the resting heart rate. Normal is 60 - 100 and generally it slows as we age. The slower your resting heart rate, the more efficient your heart is. An ideal resting heart rate would be around 60 - 70. How are you testing it? The most accurate way to measure a resting heart rate is to measure it along with your BP first thing when you wake up, this is your true resting heart rate baseline. Heart rate is dynamic and changes based on the body's needs or outside stimuli. If you ate within an hour, your heart rate could be higher as it could if you exerted yourself within an hour or two it could still be elevated. Try taking it first thing for a few weeks and track the numbers to determine your average. Regards.