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Comment by antirez | Hacker News Reader

I and my wife both have 50-53 bpm at rest, mine certain periods were 48 and doctor demanded to do an echocardiogram even after I explained I do a lot of sport. Everything was fine. Btw TLDR, we got those bpms doing crossfit 3/4 times-week (4/5 my wife), we rarely walk at all. I switched to crossfit recently (a few months), before I did powerlifting + cardio for years which provides very similar results from the POV of heart rate, AFAIK. Btw I think my level of cardio fitness is improving with CrossFit compared to PL.

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Be careful with crossfit, most of the instructors have no idea what they are doing and can have you doing routines bad for your back. I personally know two people that ended up with back problems from crossfit (each at a different gym).

I agree, however if you hit crossfit after 5 years of power lifting, you are much safe and know what box to avoid. In my current box the injuries rate is near zero because the two instructors are crazy about form. Still crossfit is itself partially risky like many other sports, so also self-regulation is needed, and a bit of luck.

It is to be expected that your cardio would improve more under CrossFit than under powerlifting.

Totally, but I was at least mixing PL + cardio sessions of HIIT. However it is not at the same intensity of doing mid-weights lifts for 20/30 minutes interleaved with body weight stuff and so forth without pauses.

My resting has been 36-40 since age 15. Scared the hell out of me once when I was in an ER for trauma and they say "we have to fix your heart first". It's common for athletes to have a resting heart rate below 40, though I'm not aware of any relationship between performance (e.g., VO2max) and resting heart rate. I.e., 35 is no better or worse than 50.

It seems elite cyclists resting heart rate can by < 30.

For e.g. "The cyclist Miguel Indurain was reported to have a resting heart rate of just 28 beats per minute." (Src: Google search for: elite cyclist resting heart rate)

I have similar high 40's bpm and had a similar experience with my doctor sending me for all manner of tests. All okay. He claimed, and the article seems to back him up, that unless I was a marathoner (I'm not) my heart rate should not be that low. I do high intensity (for me) exercise 3-4 times a week at about an hour a crack. There may be congenital component as both my brothers have low resting pulse and neither is as active as I.

I use the FitBit Charge HR after moving over from the version 1 Microsoft Band which had corroded under the onslaught of my profuse sweating after 10 months use. I found the Charge HR MUCH more accurate than the Microsoft Band for heart rate. Neither as accurate as the Azumio Heart Rate android app, but the Charge HR good enough for my own workout tracking.

If you train 3-4 times a week at high intensities, plus some genetic factors, it is looks entirely possible you have such a low rate. Your earth develops hypertrophy and is able to contract very well to push the blood around, so don't have to do it too many times per minute.

Exactly. I was at a different doctor's and being given an exam by the nurse. I brought this up and he pointed out that since I was perfusing just fine as shown by the oxygen sensor on my finger, ipso facto I had no coronary issues.

My RHR averages between 52 to 55 bpm. I always heard that unless you are an elite athlete, your HR should not be below 60 bpm. So I brought it up with my doctor and he told me to not worry about it. I wonder if there are other markers which would indicate if further testing is needed or not.

Don't have to be elite by any means. I run around 20 miles per week at a 8 min mile pace and my resting heart rate is in the 50s. Nothing amazing or near what I did training wise compared to when I ran cross county.

If I stop working out, it goes back up to the 60s after a prolong lapse of running (month or two).

I'm at 50 and I'm no where close to an elite athlete, just someone who likes to run. I wouldnt think much of it unless you do very little activity.

My RHR is around 40. When my GP discovered it he ran a few tests (ECG and echocardiogram) that were all clear and then sent me to a cardiac electrophysiologist. He basically said that as long as I wasn't experiencing any of the symptoms of sinus bradycardia (fainting, dizziness, fatigue, etc) then this is just a normal heart rate for my body and I didn't have anything to worry about.

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