Ahmet Ulusoy College

Biology Higher Level Internal Assessment

The Effect of Body Mass Index on Heart Rate
During Cardiovascular Exercise







Candidate Name: evval Beli
Candidate Number: 006615-006



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Research Question
Do body mass indexes (BMI) of humans affect their heart rate during cardiovascular
exercises?

Objective
Determining whether body mass index of same aged males and females affect the change in
their heart rate during cardiovascular exercises such as stair climbing.

Background Information
Body mass index (BMI), is an index used to measure the body type of individuals. It is
basically used to classify underweight, overweight and obesity in people. (World Health
Organization, 2013). This index is commonly used and is recognized as a legit method of
determining the body shape of humans by the World Health Organization (WHO). Body mass
index is measured via using this formula:
BMI=

( )

Cardiovascular exercises are used to promote improved capacity of the cardiovascular system.
The contraction of major muscle groups must be repeated often enough to elevate the heart
rate to a target level determined during testing (The Free Dictionary by Farlex, 2003). Hearts
of the people that have high BMI, 25.00, will have to work harder that those with normal
BMI, between 18.50 and 24.99, to supply energy to the body; hence their heart rate will be
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higher during and after exercise (David E. Mohrman, 2010). Overweight or obese people also
will have a lower recovery heart rate (National Emergency Medicine Association, 2003).
In this experiment, climbing stairs is used as a cardiovascular exercise as this activity allows
each participant to show the same effort, enabling the experimenter to adjust the variables as
intended and thus providing more accurate results.

Graph 1: Body mass index according to body weight and height can also be calculated using
a BMI chart (World Health Organization, 2013).

Hypothesis
Heart rate of participants with higher BMI will show greater difference before and after
cardiovascular exercise than those with normal ranged BMI.
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Design
Variables
Independent Variable
Body mass index of participants; same number of male and female underweight,
normal weight and obese people will be volunteering.

Dependent Variable
Heart rate of participants before and after exercise will vary according to their BMI
values.

Controlled Variables
Body mass index (BMI) of the participants.
Same staircase is used for each trial.
Same stethoscope, timer, scale and measuring tape is used for each trial.
All participants are at the age of seventeen.
Three volunteers with BMI values under, in and over the normal range from both
sexes is going to participate.

Materials
Timer (1 s) (1)
Measuring tape (0.5 mm) (1)
Scale (0.1 g)
Stethoscope (1)
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Ten step staircase (1)
o Three male and three female volunteers with different weights.

Setting up Experiment
1. Make sure that the staircase is clean and dry before the experiment.
2. Clear any obstacles and distracting objects from the staircase.
3. Bring the participants to the location of the staircase.
4. Measure the height and weight of the participants and record the measurements.
5. Remind the participants that they will be required to go up and down the stairs as
quickly as they can for one minute.
Caution: Make sure that the participants are wearing comfortable clothing and have not had a
large meal at least three hours before the experiment to not force their hearts. Participants
should guarantee that they do not have any medical conditions that will restrain them from
cardiovascular exercises. If a participant feels pain, especially in the chest area, stop the
experiment immediately and get medical assistance if necessary.

Procedure
1. Place the stethoscope on the left side of Participant As chest and count the heart beats
for twenty seconds. Multiply the result by three to get the number of beats per minute
and record the number in the data table.
2. Tell Participant A to begin climbing the stairs and start the timer. Tally and record the
number of times the participant goes completely up and down the stairs.
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3. After a minute, stop the timer and count the heart beats of Participant A for twenty
seconds using the stethoscope. Multiply the result by three and record the result in the
data table.
4. Count the heart beats of the participant one minute later and record the number. Let
Participant A rest until the second trial begins.
5. Repeat steps 1, 2 and 4 for participants B, C, D, E and F respectively.
6. Repeat steps 1 to 4 five times and record the results.






Pictures 1 and 2: Pictures were taken in the experiment location. Picture 1 shows the
Participant A and Participant C can be seen in Picture 2.





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Calculations
Classification BMI(kg/m
2
)

Principal cut-off points Additional cut-off points
Underweight <18.50 <18.50
Severe thinness <16.00 <16.00
Moderate thinness 16.00 - 16.99 16.00 - 16.99
Mild thinness 17.00 - 18.49 17.00 - 18.49
Normal range 18.50 - 24.99
18.50 - 22.99
23.00 - 24.99
Overweight 25.00 25.00
Pre-obese 25.00 - 29.99
25.00 - 27.49
27.50 - 29.99
Obese 30.00 30.00
Obese class I 30.00 - 34.99
30.00 - 32.49
32.50 - 34.99
Obese class II 35.00 - 39.99
35.00 - 37.49
37.50 - 39.99
Obese class III 40.00 40.00

Table 1: The International Classification of adult underweight, overweight and obesity
according to BMI (World Health Organization, 2013).

BMI of each participant should be calculated via using

( )

formula:
Participant A:
mass= 42.3 kg
height= 158 cm
BMI=

= 16.94
Participant As BMI shows that she is
moderately thin according to the data in
Table 1.


Participant B:
mass= 55.6 kg
height= 165 cm
BMI=

= 20.42
BMI of Participant B shows that she is in
the normal range.


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Participant C:
mass= 98.0 kg
height= 169 cm
BMI=

= 34.31
BMI of Participant C shows that she is in
obese class I.
Participant D:
mass= 54.5 kg
height= 176 cm
BMI=

= 17.59
BMI of Participant D shows that he is
mildly thin.
Participant E:
mass= 66.2 kg
height= 180 cm
BMI=

= 20.43
BMI of Participant A shows that he is in
the normal range.
Participant F:
mass= 101.5 kg
height= 182 cm
BMI=

= 30.64
BMI of Participant A shows that he is in
obese class I.








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Data Collection
Results for female participants:

Trial

Heart Rate Before
Trial (

Heart Rate After
Trial (

Flights of Steps
(

Difference
(After-Before)
1 78 126 9.0 48
2 81 123 9.5 42
3 81 126 8.4 45
4 90 129 8.0 39
5 84 126 7.8 42
Average 82.8 126 8.54 43.2
Table 2: Experiment results for underweight Participant A (BMI 16.94).

Trial

Heart Rate Before
Trial (

Heart Rate After
Trial (

Flights of Steps


Difference
(After-Before)
1 81 135 9.8 54
2 78 129 9.6 51
3 84 132 10.0 48
4 87 144 8.7 57
5 75 129 9.0 54
Average 81 133.8 9.42 52.8
Table 3: Experiment results for normal weight Participant B (BMI 20.42).

Trial

Heart Rate Before
Trial (

Heart Rate After
Trial (

Flights of Steps


Difference
(After-Before)
1 81 138 8.8 57
2 84 144 8.1 60
3 81 144 7.5 63
4 93 147 7.4 54
5 78 129 8.0 51
Average 83.4 140.4 7.96 57
Table 4: Experiment results for obese Participant C (BMI 34.31).
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Results for male participants:

Trial

Heart Rate Before
Trial (

Heart Rate After
Trial (

Flights of Steps


Difference
(After-Before)
1 90 141 11.0 51
2 87 135 9.4 48
3 81 132 9.3 51
4 90 144 8.8 54
5 81 129 8.5 48
Average 85.8 136.2 9.4 50.4
Table 5: Experiment results for underweight Participant D (BMI 17.59).

Trial

Heart Rate Before
Trial (

Heart Rate After
Trial (

Flights of Steps


Difference
(After-Before)
1 84 141 10.0 57
2 87 135 10.3 48
3 78 138 9.7 60
4 84 138 8.5 54
5 93 144 9.0 51
Average 85.2 139.2 9.5 54
Table 6: Experiment results for normal weight Participant E (BMI 20.43).

Trial

Heart Rate Before
Trial (

Heart Rate After
Trial (

Flights of Steps


Difference
(After-Before)
1 78 132 9.0 54
2 93 144 8.6 51
3 87 144 7.8 57
4 90 150 8.0 60
5 96 162 7.5 66
Average 88.8 146.4 8.18 57.6
Table 7: Experiment results for obese Participant F (BMI 30.64).

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Processed Data
Data obtained from experiments can be used to compare the effect of independent variable,
BMI, on the dependent variable, heart rate. Firstly, the heart rate measurements of
underweight participants (A and D) are compared in order to derive a conclusion.

Graph 2: Comparison of heart rate change values between underweight Participants A and
D.
Underweight female (A) and male (D) participants showed similar changes in the heart rate
throughout the experiment. Even though the visual data shows the relationship between the
heart rate change of Participants A and B as reasonably analogue; the variation between the
average differences of heart rate change before and after experiment shows that the
underweight male participant experienced more alteration in the heart rate. The average
difference before and after exercise for the number of heart beats of Participant A is 43.2, the
lowest result among all participants while the difference for Participant D is 50.4. Percentage
change shown in the graph is fairly low for all data points, except for the line showing
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Trials
Heart Rate Comparison Between
Underweight Participants A and D
Before Trial (A)
Before Trial (D)
After Trial (A)
After Trial (D)
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Participant D's heart rate after trial. This may be caused by additional factors such as emotions
and effort of the participant and will be further evaluated at the end of this report.
The BMI values of Participants A and D are very close, being 19.94 and 17.59 respectively.
Thus the variation between the average differences of heart rates should be caused by a
different reason such as the difference between the metabolic and consequently heart rates of
males and females. Males are considered to have a higher metabolic and heart rate than
females, however this still does not clearly explain the fairly large difference between the
heart rate values of underweight participants. Further investigation for this problem is given in
the evaluation part of this report. A conclusion can be achieved after investigating the
differences between normal weight and obese participants.

Graph 3: Comparison of heart rate change values between normal weight Participants B
and E.
Heart rate measurements of normal weight participants (B and E) showed an even more
similar pattern than those of participants A and D. BMI values of Participants B and E are
nearly the same, being 20.42 and 20.43 respectively. As expected, results for the average
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Trials
Heart Rate Comparison Between
Normal Weight Participants B and E
Before Trial (B)
Before Trial (E)
After Trial (B)
After Trial (E)
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differences in the heart rate of normal weight participants are very close, being 52.8 for
Participant B and 54 for Participant E, indicating a direct relationship between the body mass
index and the increase in the heart rate during cardiovascular exercises. The percentage
change between the measured heart rates in each trial is fairly low, as seen in the graph. Thus,
it can be concluded that the results obtained for Participants B and E are more accurate than
those for Participants A and D.

Graph 4: Comparison of heart rate change values between obese Participants C and F.
BMI values of Participants C and F showed the biggest difference among all participants,
being 34.31 and 30.64 respectively. However, they are both still considered to be in obese
class I according to the values determined by WHO in Table 1 and the records for their heart
rate showed resemblance as expected. Again, the percentage change between the heart rate
measurements in each trial is fairly low with and exception of the data recorded for the heart
rate of Participant F after exercise. Comparing the differences between the heart rates
measured before and after exercise shows that the variation between the average difference is
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Trials
Heart Rate Comparison Between
Obese Participants C and F
Before Trial (C)
Before Trial (F)
After Trial (C)
After Trial (F)
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the smallest for Participants C and F. Hence, the values suggest that there is a direct
relationship between BMI and heart rate increase during aerobic exercise. Taking this
argument into account, collected data can be used to show the relationship between BMI and
heart rate change:

Graph 5: The relation between BMI and heart rate difference of each participant.
As seen in Graph 5, the average heart rate difference before and after cardiovascular exercises
generally rise as body mass index value increases. This could be called a gradual increase but
the difference recorded for Participant C with BMI of 34.31 the slightly lower than the heart
rate difference recorded for Participant F. This situation is most likely caused by the
difference in the metabolic activity rate of the male and female participant and is not enough
to overrule the hypothesis given in this assessment. Visual and calculated data clearly
suggests that people with higher BMI values experience a bigger heart rate change during
cardiovascular exercises.
Average flights of steps climbed can be used to show the fitness level of each participant and
the effect of BMI on the general endurance of participants during cardiovascular exercises.
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16.94 17.59 20.42 20.43 30.64 34.31
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BMI Values of Participants
The Relation Between BMI and Heart
Rate Difference
BMI and Av. Heart Rate
Difference of Participants A,
D, B, E, F and C
Respectively
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Graph 6: The relation between BMI values and flight of steps climbed by each participant.
Graph 6 shows that the participants with BMI values in normal range were able to climb most
number of steps in one minute. Underweight Participant D has nearly reached the average
steps climbed by participants with normal weight. Obese participants, on the other hand, have
managed to climb least number of steps among other participants. This observation suggests
that people with BMI in the normal range have higher endurance in cardiovascular exercises
that the ones under or over the normal range. Higher BMI values than normal range mean that
the heart needs to work harder to pump blood to whole body; and lower values indicate the
existence of malnutrition which leads to irregular heart rhythms and mounting more force to
the heart (Javis, 2013). Thus, it can be said that keeping BMI in normal range is essential to
live healthy.



7
7.5
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16.94 17.59 20.42 20.43 30.64 34.31
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BMI Values of Participants
Relation Between BMI Values and
Flights of Steps Climbed
Flights of Steps Climbed by
Participants A, D, B, E, F
and C Respectively
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Conclusion
After the investigation and evaluation of the data obtained from experimental observations, an
answer to the research question can be given. Body mass index directly affects the heart rate
change during cardiovascular exercises. As body mass index value increases, the heart rate
difference before and after exercise proportionately increases. Body mass index is also related
to the endurance of people during exercises. Underweight and obese people are shows less
durability than normal-weight people during cardiovascular activity. Obese participants'
resting (measured before trial) heart rates were observed to be higher that the heart rates of
normal weight participants, indicating that the obese people's hearts need to work harder than
normal to keep pumping blood to whole body. Even though the rate of heart and metabolic
activity differ between males and females in the same BMI range, they show similar heart rate
increases during aerobic exercise. As regular aerobic exercises increase endurance, improve
circulation and help body to use oxygen better, strengthen heart and cardiovascular system
and help reduce body fat (WebMD Medical Reference, 2013), they should be implemented
into daily routine to stay healthy and fit.

Evaluation
Even though the data obtained from the experiment were generally accurate and parallel to the
hypothesis, there were some deviations from the expected results. The average difference
between the heart rate before and after the experiment for Participant A was lower than the
expected results. It is improbable to determine the actual reason behind this deviation, but
considering that the age of all participants were the same, 17, and Participant Ds BMI value
was close to As; it could be assumed that this variation is caused by genetic determinants of
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heart rate. Neither the participant nor a close family member of her has suffered from a heart
disease, yet an extensive medical exam would be needed to prove that. Thus, to be able to
research the effect of BMI on heart rate change, the clinical and genetic background of the
participants should be investigated more in depth.
A similar problem occurred with the number of flights of stairs climbed by Participant D. He
had managed to climb nearly as many steps as normal weight participants, which was
unexpected. However, this is most probably a consequence of general fitness level of
Participant D; even though he is underweight, he has been playing basketball regularly for
two years which certainly caused him to improve his endurance. As this is an experiment
where humans' heart rates are dependent variables, most of the deviations from the expected
results will be caused by physiology and even psychology of participants attended and also,
the amount of effort that they put into the physical activity. If they get unmotivated and do not
climb the stairs as fast as they can, the flights of steps they climb will change, thus affecting
the heart rate change before and after the experiment.

Improvements
This experiment can be improved by further investigating the genetic and medical history of
the participants. All coronary diseases in the family history of the participants should be taken
into consideration. Otherwise, large variations from the expected results can be encountered
like the change in the heart rate of the Participant C.
Participants needs to be calm and well-rested before the experiment. In this experiment,
participants were only told to not eat large meals three hours prior to the beginning of the
experiment and to wear comfortable clothes. But their emotional states, excitement and
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exhaustion are also factors that may affect their heart rate and should have been taken into
consideration. The experiment could be repeated in a quiet environment in order to enable
participants to rest and the experimenter to get more accurate heart rate measurements.
Limitations of the number of participants volunteered in the experiment are another factor that
needs to be evaluated. There were only six participants in the experiment, all Caucasian, three
males and three females. Even though accurate experimental results could have been
achieved, the universality of the deductions needs to be discussed. This experiment could be
repeated with a large number of participants from different ages and races, so that a more
general and accurate conclusion can be achieved.

References

David E. Mohrman, Lois Jane. (2010). Cardiovascular Physiology, Seventh Edition. USA: The
McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
Iowa State University. (2000, February 08). Material Safety Data Sheet-Lead Nitrate Reagent ACS.
Retrieved October 06, 2013, from http://avogadro.chem.iastate.edu/MSDS/Pb(NO3)2.htm.
Javis, D. S. (2013, March 27). Patient.co.uk. Retrieved October 09, 2013, from
www.patient.co.uk/blogs/sarah-says/2013/03/underweight-issues---the-other-end-of-the-obesity-
spectrum.
National Emergency Medicine Association. (2003). Heart Rate or Pulse. Retrieved October 08, 2013,
from http://www.nemahealth.org/programs/healthcare/heart_rate_pulse.htm.
The Free Dictionary by Farlex. (2003). Medical Dictionary- Cardiovascular Exercise. Retrieved
October 08, 2013, from http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/cardiovascular+exercise.
WebMD Medical Reference. (2013). Exercise for a Healthy Heart. Retrieved October 09, 2013, from
http://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/guide/exercise-healthy-heart.
World Health Organization. (2013, October 07). Global Database on Body Mass Index. Retrieved
October 08, 2013, from http://apps.who.int/bmi/index.jsp?introPage=intro_3.html.