Heart rate and breathing rate activity
Your task:
In partners your going to measure your heart and breathing rate before and after exercise.
What you need:
A stopwatch
A partner
What you’ll do:
1. Measure your resting heart rate by finding your jugular artery in your neck and counting how many beats
per minute your heart rate it. Use your forefinger and middle finger, NOT YOUR THUMB to measure your
heart rate. Have you partner tell you to ‘go’ and ‘stop’ using the stopwatch to time one minute. Record your
resting heart rate.
2. Repeat for your partner.
3. Lie flat on your back and measure your resting breathing rate. Put your hand on your abdomen (stomach)
and have your partner tell you ‘go’ and ‘stop’ using the stopwatch to time one minute. Count how many
times your stomach rises. Try to breath as normally as possible (not taking deep breaths). Record your
resting breathing rate.
4. Repeat for your partner.
5. Measure out a distance of 20m-25m.
6. Sprint from one point to the other, and back again. Immediately after your sprint lie on your back with one
hand over your abdomen and the other hand on your jugular artery (neck), have your partner time one
minute while counting your breaths, and you count your heart beats per minute. Record your results.
7. Repeat for your partner.
Results:
Before exercise
After exercise
My heart rate:
Beats per min.
My breathing rate:
Breaths per min.
Partner’s heart rate:
Beats per min.
Partner’s breathing rate:
Breaths per min.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1.What is cellular respiration? What is the word equation for cellular respiration?
2.What triggers you to INHALE?
3.How are the cardiovascular and respiratory system linked?