Sep 16, 2026 · 17 min · 10 segments
Should a low HRV reading change your workout? Is higher HRV always better? And should you trust the readiness score on your watch? CTS Director of Coaching Cliff Pittman breaks down what HRV actually…
Heart rate variability measures the variation in time between consecutive heartbeats.
The gap between beat 1 and beat 2 isn't identical to the gap between beat 2 and beat 3.
Specifically, it reflects the balance between your parasympathetic nervous system and which handles rest, recovery, and digestion, and your sympathetic nervous system, which handles stress, fight or flight, and mobilization.
Now, generally speaking, more variability between beats reflects a nervous system that's able to shift flexibly between those two states.
Less variability reflects a system that's locked into a more sympathetic, stress-dominant pattern.
A nervous system with more variability between beats is like a suspension system that can absorb a range of road conditions and adjust smoothly.
A nervous system locked into low variability is more like a stiff suspension that's braced for one condition and struggles to adapt when things change.
Now that flexibility, the ability to shift states as demands change, is what higher variability tends to reflect.
It's not really about the number itself, it's about what the number represents underneath.
Genetics, age, training history, and baseline fitness all shift where your number sits.
And comparing your raw number to someone else's or to some arbitrary target online tells you almost nothing.
Heart rate variability measures the variation in time between consecutive heartbeats.
The gap between beat 1 and beat 2 isn't identical to the gap between beat 2 and beat 3.
Specifically, it reflects the balance between your parasympathetic nervous system and which handles rest, recovery, and digestion, and your sympathetic nervous system, which handles stress, fight or flight, and mobilization.
Now, generally speaking, more variability between beats reflects a nervous system that's able to shift flexibly between those two states.
Less variability reflects a system that's locked into a more sympathetic, stress-dominant pattern.
A nervous system with more variability between beats is like a suspension system that can absorb a range of road conditions and adjust smoothly.
A nervous system locked into low variability is more like a stiff suspension that's braced for one condition and struggles to adapt when things change.
Now that flexibility, the ability to shift states as demands change, is what higher variability tends to reflect.
It's not really about the number itself, it's about what the number represents underneath.
Genetics, age, training history, and baseline fitness all shift where your number sits.
And comparing your raw number to someone else's or to some arbitrary target online tells you almost nothing.
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