Resting Heart Rate And Heart Rate Variability: What's Optimal, 1,502 Days of Data

[Mike Lustgarten]

 

[drewab]

I find the data you shared at the end between exercise frequency and recovery to be quite interesting. You mentioned stress at the end of the video and how emotional stress can contribute to an elevated daily HR (no surprises there). Stress is something I periodically struggle with and I'm curious if you have any suggestions since you said you tend to be a relatively low stress person and you are working as a university professor, something many people would consider to be quite stressful. 

[Mike Lustgarten]

I wish there was a great solution for limiting work-related stress. My actual work isn't stressful, but outside of that, I tend to be mostly solitary, in an effort to avoid nonsense (coworkers BSing with me, which achieves nothing), but sometimes that's beyond my control. In-person work is definitely more stressful (in therms of HRV and RHR) than at-home work, but that's a factor that I can't currently control.

[Saul]

I also am a university professor -- a Math prof at the University of Rochester, in Rochester NY.

I don't find it stressful at all -- the opposite.  I teach both undergrad and grad math courses; the grad courses are more fun.

My numbers are all excellent -- and I exercise vigorously 6 days a week.

Concerning stress:  We all have it at certain times.  Mindfullness, IMO, is the best way to handle it.  I attended a "Mindfullness based stress relief" optional course open to University people several years ago -- it was very useful.

  --  saul

[Gordo]

Great video, I'm impressed by your data tracking tenacity.  I have long thought that HRV is one of the best indicators, it can even signal when you are sick before you are even aware that you are sick, or when you need to focus on stress reduction. 

[Mike Lustgarten]

Thanks Gordo, and definitely. Fortunately I haven't had COVID, but after the last vaccination, my HRV and RHR (and nighttime respiratory rate) were amongst my worst data for the year. So I agree about HRV (but also RHR).

[Sthira]

Your work is fascinating, thank you! To decrease RHR and increase HRV (which appears optimal from your age charts) you lost eight or nine pounds. What were your BMI changes during this time?

[Mike Lustgarten]

3 hours ago, Sthira said:

Your work is fascinating, thank you! To decrease RHR and increase HRV (which appears optimal from your age charts) you lost eight or nine pounds. What were your BMI changes during this time?

 

Thanks Sthira. From 25.1 to 24.0