What is heart rate variability?

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What is heart rate variability, and why should we care about it?

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It isnt a metronome, says Emily Capodilupo, WHOOPs VP of data science and research.

Instead, it could beat once, then again after 0.95 seconds, and then again after 1.12 seconds.

As such, HRV measures the changes in milliseconds between successive heartbeats.

Woman walking on a treadmill at the gym.

The more of a difference there is in the timing between two beats, the higher your HRV.

The autonomic nervous system is made up of two branches: the sympathetic nervous system and parasympathetic nervous system.

Your HRV is an indicator of how these systems are working in tandem.

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What does it mean to have high or low HRV?

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But sometimes, you may find yourself trying to figure outhow to slow down your heart rate.

These things place your body on high alert and kick your activating fight-or-flight response into high gear.

Healthy female training in the gym, performing a hip thrust.

What can heart-rate variability tell you about your health?

In a phrase: a lot.

Whats more,researchhas directly connected a decline in heart rate variability with declining health.

A young black woman doing post-run stretches in the park on the road amidst green grass and trees.

Your HRV can even be used as an indicator that you might begetting sick.

What is a good HRV metric?

Or, if it suddenly jumps to 80 ms, it means youre taking good care of your body.

If youre interested in improving your average HRV, there are a few lifestyle changes that can help.

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