HRV baseline for users with low HRV

Hello,

My HRV is always at low levels (20-30). I used Whoop before (for 2 years) and I considered levels above 30 as good. Their app has never considered it a problem, as they acknowledge that HRV is an individual metric: https://www.whoop.com/us/en/thelocker/what-is-a-good-hrv/

However, Garmin seems to not accept my differentiation in that area. It has never set my baseline and keeps marking it as "poor", basically telling me that I am never fully recovered, flashing those red alerts at me every day. 

I'm a 34 old male, in decent shape - not a pro athlete, I am definitely aiming up but I already know that I can't expect any miracles in terms of my HRV levels. I have consulted it with a doctor and he agrees. I couldn't find any particular reason indicating that there is some "health issue". My HRV will never get to 80 as it "should" according to Garmin.

I think Garmin approach is currently wrong and it should be fixed within an app. This is pretty annoying and definitely not helpful in anyway.

 

  • What does your 4-week average look like?

  • It's visible on the screenshot. Around 25. It's been like this for a long time. 

  • HRV is individual, but it remains at good levels when you are a long-time athlete.

    To better determine your situation you should post at least 3 screencaps of your HRV reading during sleep and also your resting heart rate.

    another question: do you suffer from panic attacks? or are you an anxious type?

  • Another question, do you drink alcohol or take any form of medication a few hours before bed?

    Alcohol absolutely destroys HRV.

  • Missed that. Your picture does not show the thresholds as mine does. HRV will be poor if it strays outside of the thresholds irrespective of the level. That sharp increase for the last couple of weeks might well be the reason, not necessarily the level of your HRV. 
    What does it look like on the watch or GC interweb? Do you have any images that show the thresholds? How long have you been recording HRV with the watch? Perhaps you have insufficient data for the watch to determine your thresholds.



  • Also, can you confirm what you've configured your sleep window to be? Are getting a sleep summary at all in the mornings?

  • Thanks Nick, these are very good questions. No panic attacsk, but yes, I think I should consider myself an anxious type. And actually this is the only direction which sometimes led me think that indeed there is some physiological problem, therefore, there is some way to actually change and improve (long term). I used to be treated with prescriptions (antidepressants) drugs for years. About 2 years ago I made a decision that this path isn't leading me anywhere (taking medication) and became certain that I want to fully focus on lifestyle/dietary changes and pursue a goal of being an athlete (mostly inspired by podcasts, eg Huberman Lab). But few months back I had one depression relapse and currently I am withdrawing last prescription drug (duloxetine, lowest dose). 

    I am super curious if this will create any change in HRV, but honestly, I doubt it. I haven't found any information online that could indicate that drugs can suppress HRV this much. Do you have access to any case studies where people doubled or tripled their initially low HRV levels? Any sources would be highly appreciated. There is a lot of marketing buzz about HRV in the internet, but I haven't found many valuable scientific long-term studies.

    Currently, I am still far away from my athletic goals, but I feel I am on the right path. I don't drink alcohol (maybe once every 3 months), I sleep 7-9 hours daily, I train moderately 3-5 days a week (running, mountain biking, gym). I run 10K in 50mins. I walk every morning with my dog for an hour. I don't overtrain. I drink quite lot of coffee, but never after 4PM. Sometimes I don't train 3 days in a row. 

    I am also attaching VO2max (50 - excellent) and RHR (~60 - rather bad, seeing signs of improvement).

    Thank you for your time and insights, I appreciate it.

         I

  • Thanks, this is a good question. I know about it and I don't drink. Observing HRV drops while using Whoop (even after 2 glasses of wine) was one of the reason I really limited alcohol consumption to maybe once every 3 months, on special occasions. 
    Regarding medications, I elaborated in the other thread, replying to NicK. 

  • My sleep can use improvement but I would say it's rather consistent. 7-8hours, 70-75 sleep score. I am getting a sleep summary, yes. And I always see that my HRV is poor. 


  • Thanks . Baseline should be established after 3 weeks. I got my watch in February. 

    Garmin docs says: 
    If your personal baseline drops below age-based standards associated with good health, then your HRV status is classified as poor. When this happens, your baseline range is no longer displayed. This is to avoid scenarios where your HRV might be considered both balanced and below healthy norms. (https://www.garmin.com/en-US/garmin-technology/health-science/hrv-status/)