Rate-pressure product (RPP)

Rate-pressure product (RPP) is heart rate times systolic blood pressure.^{1Schoenfeld and Snarr (eds.), NSCA’s Essentials of Personal Training, 3rd ed., p. 34.} It is also called the double product.^{1Schoenfeld and Snarr (eds.), NSCA’s Essentials of Personal Training, 3rd ed., p. 34.} RPP stands in for how much oxygen the heart muscle uses.^{2Ozemek et al., ACSM’s Guidelines for Exercise Testing and Prescription, 12th ed., p. 301.} It is easy to measure from outside the body. It gives a good sense of how hard the heart is working.^{3Schoenfeld and Snarr (eds.), NSCA’s Essentials of Personal Training, 3rd ed., p. 103.}

To find it, multiply heart rate by systolic pressure, both taken at the same moment.^{2Ozemek et al., ACSM’s Guidelines for Exercise Testing and Prescription, 12th ed., p. 301.} This can be at rest or during exercise.^{2Ozemek et al., ACSM’s Guidelines for Exercise Testing and Prescription, 12th ed., p. 301.} Say the heart rate is 70 beats per minute and systolic pressure is 120 mmHg. The RPP is 8,400.

RPP rises during exercise, along with heart rate and cardiac output.^{3Schoenfeld and Snarr (eds.), NSCA’s Essentials of Personal Training, 3rd ed., p. 103.} In an exercise test, ACSM gives a normal peak range of 25,000 to 40,000.^{2Ozemek et al., ACSM’s Guidelines for Exercise Testing and Prescription, 12th ed., p. 301.}

When the heart’s own blood supply is limited, signs of too little blood flow can show up during exercise. RPP gives a repeatable estimate of the point where that starts. ACSM calls it more reliable than the external workload.^{2Ozemek et al., ACSM’s Guidelines for Exercise Testing and Prescription, 12th ed., p. 301.}

In practice

• Record peak RPP in an exercise test. If signs of too little heart blood flow appear, record RPP at that point too.^{2Ozemek et al., ACSM’s Guidelines for Exercise Testing and Prescription, 12th ed., p. 301.}
• Resistance training changes the response over time. At the same load, heart rate, blood pressure and double product rise less.^{4Haff and Triplett (eds.), Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning, 4th ed., p. 120.}