YMCA 3-Minute Step Test Results for a 51-Year-Old Female After the test, we measure how FAST the heart rate drops in one minute. Heart-Rate Recovery Categories: • Excellent: 131 My client’s HR dropped from 164 → 140 bpm in one minute, placing her in the Poor category — which is exactly what we expect for someone brand new to exercise. This gives us a baseline, and the beautiful thing about the human body is how quickly cardiovascular fitness improves with consistent training. This is just her st