<P> For each heartbeat , blood pressure varies between systolic and diastolic pressures . Systolic pressure is peak pressure in the arteries , which occurs near the end of the cardiac cycle when the ventricles are contracting . Diastolic pressure is minimum pressure in the arteries , which occurs near the beginning of the cardiac cycle when the ventricles are filled with blood . An example of normal measured values for a resting , healthy adult human is 120 mmHg systolic and 80 mmHg diastolic ( written as 120 / 80 mmHg , and spoken as `` one - twenty over eighty '' ) . </P>
<P> For each heartbeat , blood pressure varies between systolic and diastolic pressures . Systolic pressure is peak pressure in the arteries , which occurs near the end of the cardiac cycle when the ventricles are contracting . Diastolic pressure is minimum pressure in the arteries , which occurs near the beginning of the cardiac cycle when the ventricles are filled with blood . An example of normal measured values for a resting , healthy adult human is 120 mmHg systolic and 80 mmHg diastolic ( written as 120 / 80 mmHg , and spoken as `` one - twenty over eighty '' ) . </P>
a systolic bp value is the pressure when
a systolic bp value is the pressure when
the ventricles are contracting
the ventricles are contracting