Pandemic Winter Health Hacks

Take Care of Your Resting Heart Rate

Get to know it and nurture it

As can happen, my life went haywire for a few harried years. While navigating divorce with young kids in the mix, it wasn’t uncommon to notice my heart rate escalate into weirdly rapid territory. This was new. I chalked it up to circumstance-driven anxiety, but I never got used to the sensation. So I bought a Fitbit to track my resting heart rate — and hopefully dial it back.

I hadn’t previously thought much of wearable devices. To my mind, watches, rings, brain sensors, and heart monitors strapped on in the name of health all seemed a bit excessive and invasive. Though I appreciated the trend’s possible role in preventive medicine, I simply never felt the need for all that 24/7 about-me data (until one day I did).

Instead of becoming fitness-obsessed as a result of the new gadget on my arm (a slope I saw myself at risk of sliding down), I started reframing exercise, however challenging, as a way to ultimately slow down. I started caring more about my resting beats per minute than I did about calories burned, miles logged, or hours spent sweaty. I also took note of my heart rate after uncomfortable conversations or stressful meetings. When it topped familiar range, I took that as a signal to get out in nature…