Here is a heart rate chart similar to what they have at my local Curves: Target heart rate chart Age / Target Zone 50-75% (beats per minute) / Average Maximum Heart Rate (100%) 20 100-150 200 25 98-146 195 30 95-142 190 35 93-138 185 40 90-135 180 45 88-131 175 50 85-127 170 55 83-123 165 60 80-120 160 65 78-116 155 70 75-113 150

I use one every day , chest type and love it the key is keeping them clean washing them after each use. Sweat and dead skin builts up on them so keeping them clean is a must. Im to the point if I dont wear mine I feel naked. I love knowing my heart rate and carloies burned for each workout . My goal is to be in the burn zone for 60 min a day so the HRM is a must . Also must mention you do have to keep it tight on your chest but I have no issue with it messing up and have been wearing it for the last 18 months . Good luck

Although my husband does have a left bundle branch block of the heart, which is more like a different way it conducts it's electricity than most, it's not something that impedes his ability to exercise or it's functioning. He works a physically difficult job & has always exercised both with weights & aerobics (running). He's under the care of a cardiologist b/c of family history to heart disease, which he does not have. One does not get a heart rate monitor only b/c they have a problem - one reason would be to monitor target heart rate which is at the best way one should be exercising to get maximum benefit. I think he exercisie harder than he needs to. We both know how to count pulse rate & check but when you're exercising one usually stops to check this & not that is not accurate. Michie

No, I don't know an "official name" for the test. Checking the heart rate (number of beats per minute) and respiration rate (number of breaths per minute) are exactly that - heart rate and respiration rate. But the statement "200 being good and my number was 16" is counterindicative of those two rates being checked. The average (note I said "average" and not "normal") respiration rate for an adult at rest is 12-20 per minute (women generally would be at the lower end, men at the higher end). The averge (again, "average," not "normal") resting heart rate has a larger variance, 60-80 beats per minute. It's at the lower end (and can even be lower than 60 bpm) for people who are very physically fit. It can vary depending on whether you're lying down or sitting up, etc., and it rises with age. If your respiration rate was 16, I'd call that good. A respiration rate of 200 is not good. If your heart rate was 16, I wouldn't call that good (unless you're an extremely physically fit pro athlete, and even then it would be too low), but a heart rate of 200 is definitely not good. Another device that can operate by a clip on the earlobe would be a pulse oximeter. This displays the amount of oxygen saturation in your blood, as a percentage of what it should be. The "normal" range is 95% to 100%. If your "pulse ox" is down to 16, you should be hospitalized, but it shouldn't be 200! So..... As I said in an earlier post, I completely agree that a person's heart and respiration rates can be indicative of stress, and stress can cause pain. But, the woman's comment that "200 is good" is not a comment that makes sense when talking about heart and respiration rates or oxygen saturation levels. If I were you, I'd be contacting that office for a further, and more thorough, explanation.