IN FOCUS HRV TESTING
“When you have good HRV, it means your body and
heart are able to respond to diff erent demands”, explains
Tiina Hoff man, exercise physiologist at performance analytics
company Firstbeat (fi rstbeat.com). Your HRV is a refl ection
of how quickly your body reacts to a stimulus: a high fi gure is
considered good and a low fi gure is less desirable. Professional
athletes are able to recover faster and better, as their heart rate
returns to resting quicker; whereas the heart rate of a less fi t
individual stays more regular, indicating continued stress. You
can thank (or blame) your parents for some of yours: “around
30 per cent of a person’s HRV is genetically determined,” says
Hoff man. However, the remaining 70 per cent is impacted
by a host of external factors – all of which can have bigger
repercussions than you might expect.REST TEST
One of the key elements HRV highlights is the vital role
sleep and recovery play in achieving and maintaining
good performance. “Th e most important, and often most
overlooked, area for athletic progression is recovery – and
sleep quality is key,” states Dave Ryding, alpine ski racer for
Team GB. Indeed, research shows poor sleep can lead to
decreased energy, concentration, speed and accuracy during
exercise(1) and, when it comes to health, increased risk of
heart disease, diabetes, obesity and depression.(2) “Whether
you’re a professional or recreational athlete, if you don’t sleep
well and recover, it’s very diffi cult to maintain any kind of
hard training regime,” Hoff man adds.
Your HRV reveals whether you’ve had a bad night’s
sleep and, if so, fi gures from the previous day can indicate
what may have aff ected it. “From there, [you can] look at
things to help improve sleep,” says Hoff man. “Alcohol, for
example, is a talking point. When you have several drinks in
the evening, almost without exception, sleep is far worse.”
Culinary decisions can send you into a negative cycle, too.
“If you’re not eating enough, or eating poor quality food,this increases your stress level during the day, which aff ects
sleep quality in a negative way,” states Hoff man. Meal times
can also aff ect athletic recovery, reveals Jai Geyer, alpine ski
coach for Team GB. For his athletes during the World Cup
Tour, he requests “an earlier dinner, [to] allow the winding
down process to start earlier, improving sleep.”KNOWLEDGE IS POWER
In addition to helping us understand how nutrition impacts
sleep, HRV analysis provides a view into the relationship
between the functionality of our workouts and recovery. For
example, you may discover those after-work gym sessions are
having a less-than-desired-eff ect on your already overloaded
body. “If you do HIIT later in the evening, it will usually
have a dramatic impact on sleep that night,” Hoff man
reveals. While exercising later in the day sometimes can’t“One of the key
elements HRV
highlights is the vital
role sleep and recovery
play in achieving and
maintaining good
- sleepfoundation.org performance”
2.nhs.uk