WHAT IS HRV? (HEART RATE VARIABILITY)
You may have heard a coach (or even your fitness tracker) refer to HRV. Is this new? Why is it being talked about and why might it be important for you to pay attention to yours?
So what is HRV?
Heart Rate Variability or HRV is simply a measure of the variation in time between each of your heartbeats. This time variation is measured in milliseconds and will vary based on various factors. Just like the body itself, our hearts are incredibly adaptive and must adjust to their environment. As a result, HRV will speed up and slow down accordingly.
Your heart rate and rhythm are regulated by your autonomic nervous system. Your autonomic nervous system is thought of as two branches:
Your parasympathetic nervous system (rest and digest).
Your sympathetic nervous system (fight or flight).
When the parasympathetic nervous system is activated, we are more relaxed and our heart rate lowers due to a chemical in the body called acetylcholine. This also increases our heart rate variability. A high HRV indicates a body that is well recovered and a body that is not under a significant amount of stress.
On the flip side, when the sympathetic nervous system is stimulated, the body releases more epinephrine and norepinephrine which increase the heart rate and will in turn decrease the HRV.
You can see in the image below that if your average time between heart beats is a bit longer, your HRV will be higher.
SO WHY WOULD YOU WANT TO TRACK YOUR HRV?
Measuring your HRV (or at least being aware of it) is a non-invasive way to objectively see how your body is responding to daily stress, dieting and training. How many times have you said something like “ have a lot going on, but I don’t FEEL stressed"? Well, now we have a tool to help us determine what your body is actually saying about all that stress (even if your perception of it is different).
A body that is well rested, well fueled and is managing stress well, will reflect a more consistent, higher HRV.
Tracking your HRV consistently can help you start to see trends and how your body responds to lifestyle factors such as sleep quantity and quality, your nutrition, hydration status, heavy training days, rest days and periods of high life stress.
For instance, you may notice after a heavy leg day or after a night of drinking, your HRV decreased from your “typical” average. This is a reflection of the body's perceived stress and ability to recover.
HOW CAN HRV BE TRACKED?
Thankfully, modern day technology has made it much easier for us to measure data and learn more about our own body's. While we love listening to our body, sometimes we need these external cues to help us realize it’s necessary to make some adjustments or to slow down.
Examples of wearable devices that measure and track HRV:
Whoop Band
Oura Ring
Polar Strap
Naturebeat
Lief
Newer Apple Watches
There are also great apps that can help you track your HRV
HRV4Training
EliteHRV
Welltory
AppleHealth
Each will work differently so do your research and find which one best suits your needs.
Now you may be wondering “what are you even looking for when you track your HRV”?
When tracking HRV, we are looking for an overall trend. Your age, sex, health history and genetics will absolutely play a role in your overall average HRV.
The average HRV for healthy 20-25 year olds usually fall in the 55-105 range, while 60-65 year olds are normally between 25-45, so you can see how this average can vary. If you begin measuring your HRV and are finding you are consistently on that lower end, you may want to evaluate what lifestyle factors could be contributing to your lower HRV.
The goal isn’t necessarily to compare yourself to what is “normal” or to compare your HRV to someone else’s. What is important is to pay attention to YOUR trends.
HOW CAN HRV BE IMPROVED?
You have identified that you want to improve your HRV, but now what? We're so glad you asked…
You can improve your HRV by improving regulation of your central nervous system and improving your body’s ability to be in a parasympathetic state. In plain english - we do this by lowering stress.
Examples:
Improve your sleep and try to stick to a more consistent sleep/wake schedule. Reduce blue light before bedtime and get natural sunlight in your eyes upon waking. Also, going to bed BEFORE 12am will improve that quality of sleep you get.
Avoid eating large meals close to bedtime as this can affect your sleep.
Reduce your intake of alcohol and avoid caffeine in the afternoon (caffeine has a half life of about 5-6 hours).
Take more rest days or modify your training schedule to include less intense models of activity for a period of time.
Improve your diet. Eating more nutrient dense foods can absolutely improve our nutrient status but also reduce inflammation in the body which in turn reduces stress on the body.
Come out of a caloric deficit if you have been dieting for an extended period of time.
Try cold immersion such as hot/cold contrast therapy.
Add in deep breathing exercises such as box breathing.
Add mediation to your routine.
Add in daily journaling to your morning or bedtime routine.
Practice daily gratitude journaling.
Try EFT tapping.
This looks like a long and overwhelming list but start with the lowest hanging fruit first and choose just one or two things to work on. It doesn’t have to be all or nothing here!
THE OVERALL GOAL
The overall goal of learning about your HRV is to find a balance between the parasympathetic and sympathetic nervous systems.
Most of us are living our lives in a sympathetic nervous system state and we need to be mindful and learn to train our bodies to find that balance and tap into the parasympathetic state more often.
You’ll find when you do this, you will feel more resilient, more balanced, and will likely have more energy.
We can thrive in this life, not just survive.
WITH GOOD VIBES - COACH COURTNEY