70 BPM · Free heart rate app for iPhone
70 BPM: see what caused every heart rate spike
70 BPM lays your Apple Health heart rate over your calendar, so every spike has a name: the standup, the client call, the commute home.
Free to download · Optional Pro in-app purchases · Reads from Apple Health · Stays on your iPhone
What the autonomic nervous system does
Your autonomic nervous system runs things you do not think about, including your heart. Its two branches pull in opposite directions: the sympathetic side speeds you up for action ("fight or flight"); the parasympathetic side slows you down for rest and recovery ("rest and digest"). Your heart rate at any moment reflects the balance.
The two signals
- Heart rate rises when the sympathetic side dominates: stress, effort, excitement.
- Heart rate variability, the small changes in time between beats, tends to be higher when you are relaxed and recovered, and lower under stress, illness or fatigue.
What a nervous system tracking app can and cannot say
| Can | Cannot |
|---|---|
| Show when your body was in a more activated state | Tell you how you felt emotionally |
| Show trends in recovery over weeks | Diagnose anxiety, burnout or any condition |
| Compare situations against each other | Separate stress from exercise, caffeine or illness on its own |
Why context is the missing piece
An app that says "your nervous system was activated at 2 pm" is only half an answer. 70 BPM supplies the other half by showing heart rate against your calendar: 2 pm was the budget review. Over a few weeks you learn which parts of your life keep you in "on" mode and which let you recover.
Practical ways to recover
- Slow breathing with a longer exhale, a few minutes at a time.
- Short walks between demanding events.
- Regular sleep and wake times.
- Fewer back-to-back high-stakes meetings.
Not medical advice. 70 BPM shows heart-rate data your watch has already written to Apple Health. It is not a medical device and cannot diagnose anything. If your heart rate is often high at rest, or you have chest pain, dizziness or breathlessness, talk to a doctor.