Heart-Rate Recovery After Exercise Reveals Key Risk Data

Knowing how fast your heartbeat returns to normal may encourage you to make lifestyle changes that can help prevent a heart attack.

Published: May 22, 2007

Youre on a treadmill, your heartbeat accelerating with every stride during a doctor-supervised stress test. At your maximum effort, your heart rate is measured. A minute into the cool-down phase, its measured again. If its plummeted, consider yourself lucky. A quick recovery after exercise is good news. If your heart rate remains high after youve stopped exercising, your heart is at risk.