Heart rate variability

Heart rate variability (HRV) refers to the timing differences between your heartbeats. It varies from heart rate because instead of counting the number of beats, it counts the time between each beat in milliseconds.

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There are many factors that can impact HRV, including exercise, breathing, hormones, stress, cognitive activities, recovery, and metabolic processes. As such, HRV can give insight into the activity of the autonomic nervous system, which is the control center for some of the body’s involuntary functions. Thus, providers often use HRV as a non-invasive indicator of the health and activity of the autonomic nervous system.

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In addition, HRV can provide information on someone’s cardiovascular health. In fact, studies have shown that a high HRV is linked to lower cardiovascular risk, while a low HRV is linked to a higher cardiovascular risk. With increased cardiovascular risk, someone is more susceptible to complications such as stroke, atrial fibrillation, and major adverse cardiac events. As such, healthcare providers use HRV as an indicator of a healthy or unhealthy cardiovascular system.

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HRV can also inform on someone’s fitness performance and recovery, enabling athletes to tailor the intensity of their training programs to prevent injury and optimize performance. HRV can also be a great tool in psychology and counseling settings, where practitioners are managing conditions like chronic stress and anxiety.