Do you ever notice your heart racing, fluttering, or even skipping beats? As we age, our bodies change, so monitoring heart rate and heart rhythm is vital. The results provide key insights into cardiovascular health and can help prevent some issues from worsening through early detection and ongoing tracking.
Is Heart Rhythm the same as Heart Rate?
The short answer is no. However, the two terms are closely related and often mentioned together when discussing indicators of overall cardiac health.
- Heart rate1 refers to how many times the heart beats per minute. Your heart rate can fluctuate based on physical activity, mood, stress, environment, sleep quality, or lifestyle choices.
- Heart rhythm,2 on the other hand, refers to the pattern of heartbeats determined by electrical signals in the heart. Unlike heart rate, heart rhythm should not change. Regular ongoing monitoring of heart rhythm can quickly reveal whether the heart is beating regularly or irregularly.
| Heart Rate* | Heart Rhythm | |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Beats per minute (bpm) | Pattern of electrical signals |
| Normal Range | 60-100 bpm is the average for an adult | Varies, but should be consistent or regular |
| Measurement | Count number of beats in a minute | ECG or EKG test |
| Control | Impacted by level of physical activity or exertion when measured | Controlled by the heart’s electrical system |
*NIH, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. June 25, 2025. How the Heart Works, How the Heart Beats. https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/heart/heart-beats
Why Regularly Check and Record Your Heart Rhythm?
- Early detection:3 Regular monitoring can help detect any changes or irregularities in patterns compared to previous checks, which may indicate underlying conditions. It also helps identify problems early, allowing for quicker diagnosis and treatment.
- Proactive Diagnosis: Taking a quick heart rate reading provides a reliable health snapshot. Serious heart problems often develop subtly enough that they’re not felt or noticed as unusual until too late. Regular checks can help detect early signs of events like stroke, heart failure, or cardiac arrest.
- Treatment Management: For those with heart conditions or a history of heart disease, regularly monitoring and recording heart rate is vital for treatment management. Ongoing checks provide healthcare professionals with crucial data for decisions on medications, treatments, or lifestyle changes.4
What Conditions Can Heart Rhythm Monitoring Detect?
- Atrial fibrillation (AFib): AFib is a heart condition causing an irregular, rapid heartbeat. Its prevalence rises with age, increasing the risk of stroke or heart failure. While Afib can affect both genders, the causes between men and women tend to differ.5 Men tend to have coronary artery disease, and women are more likely to have issues with the heart valves.
- Bradycardia: The average adult’s resting heart rate is 60-100 bpm, influenced by fitness and age.1 Bradycardia is a slow heart rate below 60 bpm. While often harmless in fit people, additional symptoms like lightheadedness, deep tiredness, or shortness of breath may indicate heart electrical issues and need evaluation by a cardiac specialist.
- Tachycardia: Unlike bradycardia, tachycardia refers to a resting heart rate over 100 bpm. It can be harmless or dangerous. It becomes abnormal when the heart rate suddenly increases without cause and is disproportionate to the person’s activity level, possibly indicating electrical system issues that, if untreated, could lead to heart failure.
- Premature ventricular contractions (PVCs): A term for a type of irregular heartbeat where extra beats start from a different chamber of the heart than usual. The sensation causes a ‘fluttering’ or skipping a beat. Usually harmless, but if felt persistently, it may signal weakening of the heart muscle, otherwise known as cardiomyopathy.
The Common Ways to Monitor Heart Rhythm
- Electrocardiogram (ECG or EKG): A simple test that records the electrical activity of the heart and can identify any irregularities in the rhythm. While ECG/EKG can be done at a healthcare provider’s office, many smartwatches with similar functionality are available these days, allowing for daily monitoring in the stress-free comfort of one’s home.
- Holter monitor:6 A wearable device issued to a patient for a 24 to 48-hour period by a healthcare provider. Its purpose is to continuously record the heart’s electrical activity as the person goes about their normal daily activities. It aims to help capture more sporadic issues that might not appear on a single EKG taken during a doctor’s appointment.
- Event monitor: A portable device given to a patient with irregular but infrequent heart rhythm symptoms, unlikely to occur within a 24 to 48-hour period. Event monitors can track and record heart activity up to 30 days. Unlike the Holter monitor, which continuously records electrical activity, event monitors only record when activated by the patient as they experience symptoms such as lightheadedness or an unusual sensation in their chest, like racing, pounding, or fluttering of the heartbeat.
Always Be Proactive. Your Heart will thank you.
Monitoring your heart rhythm is an important practice for maintaining good cardiovascular health. Regular and consistent monitoring can help prevent issues by detecting them early and managing them for better outcomes.
Schedule your appointment at Cooper and Inspira Cardiac Care for a full heart health assessment.
References
- American Heart Association. August 12, 2024. Target Heart Rates. https://www.heart.org/en/healthy-living/fitness/fitness-basics/target-heart-rates[↩][↩]
- Fogoros, Richard MD. July 23, 2025. What is a normal sinus rhythm? Verywell Health. https://www.verywellhealth.com/normal-sinus-rhythm-nsr-1746285[↩]
- CardioSmart. American College of Cardiology. December 20, 2021. Reasons to Monitor Your Heart Rhythm. https://www.cardiosmart.org/topics/heart-rhythm-problems/reasons-to-monitor-your-heart-rhythm[↩]
- Sharma, Lalit, Prakash, Ajay, Medhi, Bikash. February 19, 2025. Ensuring medication and patient safety for better quality healthcare. NIH, Library of Medicine. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11913332/[↩]
- Isakadze, N., Mehta, P.K., Law, K. July 29, 2019. Addressing the Gap in Physician Preparedness To Assess Cardiovascular Risk in Women: A Comprehensive Approach to Cardiovascular Risk Assessment in Women. Current Treatment Options Cardio Med. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11936-019-0753-0[↩]
- CardioSmart. American College of Cardiology. December 20, 2021. Types of Heart Monitors. https://www.cardiosmart.org/topics/heart-rhythm-problems/types-of-heart-monitors[↩]
