I think that walking, and elbow-knee touches will give me a heart rate way lower than my target heart rate (which is 125 bpm), because it does not take a lot of energy. We walk everyday! However, running takes a lot of energy, so I think that will give me a heart rate too high. My hypothisis is that jumping jacks will give me a heart rate closest to my target heart rate.

What is heart rate?

Heart rate is the amount of times your heart beats per minute and it doesn't always stay the same. It changes a lot, actually, when you exersise, your heart rate goes up, and it also gets higher when you are stressed. A resting heart rate is what your heart rate is while at rest. A typical resting heart rate for most adults is around 60-100 bpm (beats per minute). It is dangourous to have a heart rate too high or too low, and a resting heart rate is different for evryone, depending on age, and other medical conditions.  Here are some things that can affect your resting heart rate:

-Smoking-smoking can make your resting heart rate quite high, but quitting will bring it back down.

-Dehydration-an increased heart rate can be a symptom of dehydration, especially on a hot day.

-Stress-stress can highly increase your resting heart rate.

How do you find your heart rate?

You can easily check your heart rate using a device, or you can check manually. Here's how to do that: first, take two fingers (index and middle) and press on your neck in the space between your windpipe on the front and your sternocleidomastoid (the big muscle on the side of your neck). Next, count the beats you feel in one minute (if you don't feel any beats, try moving your fingers around that area of your neck until you do) Make sure you are sitting still while counting, and use a timer or stopwatch so you know how many beats you felt in exactly a minute. For example, if you feel 81 beats in a minute, your heart rate is currently 81 bpm.

What is a target heart rate? 

Your target heart rate is a range of numbers that reflect how fast your heart should be beating while exercising, it gives you an idea as to how hard you should work out. During exercise, you can monitor heart rate and try to reach your target heart rate.  Also, whatever your target heart rate is, is the minimum heart rate you need to give your heart a good, and safe workout. 

How do you find your target heart rate?

Your target heart rate is usually a percentage (about 50%-80%) of your maximum heart rate. To find your maximum heart rate, simply subtract your age from 220. As an example, I am 11 years old, and 220 minus 11 is 209. So my maximum heart rate is 209 bpm. 50% of 209 is 104 and 80% of 209 is 167 which means when exercising, I want to aim for a heart rate around 104-167 bpm.

Why is it important to know your target heart rate?

Understanding your target heart rate helps optimize workouts and improves cardiovascular health. Here are some other advanteges of understanding your target heart rate:

-Staying inside your target heart rate range, you can get the most out of your exercise sessions without overexerting yourselves and without wasting time on ineffective routines. 

-If you are looking to manage or lose weight, understanding how hard you need to work is crucial to achive those goals.

-Exercising without measuring your heart rate can lead to overtraining or even injuries. Knowing when your body reaches its limits helps prevent these situations and keep you safe. 

What are target heart rate zones?

There are different target heart rate zones, which makes it easier to achive your goals while exercising. Here is a chart showing the different zones, and what perentage of your maximum heart rate they are:

Controlled: I did each exersise for the same amount of time. 

Independent:The type of exersise I did (I did four different ones).

Dependent:The heart rate I measured after each exersise

*Note: After each exercise (and measuring my heart rate) I sat down and let my heart rate get back down to my resting heart rate before beginning the next exercise.

1. Check your heart rate either manually or with a device (I used a device), make sure you are at rest and not stressed out.

2. Walk around in a small circle for 30 seconds

3. Check and record your heart rate

4. Do 30 elbow-knee touches

5.  Check and record your heart rate

6. Do 30 jumping jacks

7. Check and record your heart rate

8. Run on the spot for 30 seconds

9. Check and record heart rate

10. See which exersise gave you a heart rate closest to your target heart rate

While doing this experiment I was quite shocked at some of the heart rates I got after doing some exersises. Before I begun doing exersises, I checked my heart rate which was 89 bpm. After I walked around in a circle for 30 seconds, I checked my heart rate and it was 105 bpm. Then I did 30 elbow-knee touches and checked my heart rate. Surprisingly, it was at 115 bpm. I then checked my heart rate after 30 jumping jacks and it was at 147 bpm! This was not as surprising, but I did expect it to be a little lower. And then, finally, I ran on the spot for 30 seconds. This gave me a heart rate of 156 bpm. I did actually expect this to be quite high, because running does take a lot of energy. 

Now I also tried this experiment on my mom who is 50, to see if we would get the same heart rate. Before we began the exersise I checked her heart rate which was 88 bpm, which is one beat below what I got. After my mom did the exact same exersises as me for the exact same amount of time we checked her heart rate in between each exercise and these were the results:

Walking-97 bpm

Elbow-knee touches-106 bpm

 Jumping jacks-121 bpm

Running on the spot-124 bpm

I also did this experiment on my dad, who is 53, and these were the heart rates he got after doing the same exercises my mom and I did for the same amount of time as we did:

Walking-82 bpm

Elbow-knee touches-104 bpm

Jumping jacks-123 bpm

Running on the spot-132 bpm

My target heart rate is 125, so the heart rate I got that is closest to my target heart rate out of all the heart rates I recorded after doing exersise is 115 bpm. Before getting to the heart rate of 115 bpm, I did 30 elbow-knee touches then checked my heart rate, which means elbow-knee touches give me a heart rate closest to my target heart rate.

I'm very surprised that these exercises gave my mom a heart rate lower than they gave me. I actually thought that because she is an adult and I'm a kid, hers would be higher than mine, but it was lower than mine. My moms target heart rate is 102 bpm, so that means the best exercise for her to get close to her target heart rate is elbow-knee touches, just like myself, because 121 is closest to 102 out of all the heart rates we recorded after she did some exersises.

I was extremely surprised with the results when my dad did the experiment. Each heart rate he got after each exersise was even lower than the ones my mom got after doing the same exersises. My dads target heart rate is 100 bpm, which means the best exersise for him to get closest to his target heart rate is elbow-knee touches, like my mom. 

Two things my mom, my dad, and I had in common while doing this experiment is every time we did an experiment more intense than the last, our heart rate would go up, and the exersise that gave us all a heart rate closest to our target heart rates was elbow-knee touches for each of us.

To conclude this experiment, the best exercise to get closest to my target heart rate is elbow-knee touches (out of all the exersises I tried). So when it's time for a quick exercise break, elbow-knee touches are the way to go for me!

My hypothosis was wrong. My hypothisis was that jumping jacks would give me a heart rate closest to my target heart rate, but my target heart rate is 125 bpm and jumping jacks gave me a heart rate of 147 bpm. That is way further away from 125 than 115, which is the heart rate elbow-knee touches gave me.

It's very important to know your target heart rate so you can see how hard you need to work out. Here is how this experiment could help me in real life:

Out of all the exercises I did, the one that got me a heart rate closest to my target heart rate was elbow-knee touches. This means that when I need to take a quick exercise break, elbow-knee touches will be the best choice and be healthier for my heart.

The only possible sources of error in my experiment were:

• There were only 4 exersises to test and see what heart rate I get after doing them. There could have been better, or more exersises used in the experiment, for example I could have done 6 exersises instead of 4, and then see which is best for my target heart rate out of all 6.
• Everybodys heart rate is different, so walking is only the best for me and it could be something else for anyone.
•  

Websites:

https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/wellness-and-prevention/understanding-your-target-heart-rate

https://www.calculatorsoup.com/calculators/health/target-heart-rate-zone-calculator.php

https://www.wikihow.health/Check-Your-Heart-Rate#Checking-Your-Heart-Rate-Manually

https://www.forbes.com/health/wellness/normal-heart-rate-by-age/

https://biostrap.com/academy/three-surprising-things-that-change-your-resting-heart-rate/

https://www.yourweightmatters.org/what-is-your-target-heart-rate-and-why-is-it-important/

https://wellwisp.com/why-is-it-important-to-know-your-target-heart-rate/

Thank you to my parents, who helped me with my experiment and tried it out for me to see the difference.

Thank you to my older sister for helping me fill out information, and giving me ideas on what to write.

Thank you to Ms.Spelay, who helped me start my project and answered all my questions.

Thank you to my mom and my younger sister for helping me colour my trifold. 

Thank you to my dad for buying me the things I needed for my experiment and my trifold.