A Masterclass in Improving Your HRV - Dr Jay Wiles

Go see Chris live - https://chriswilliamson.live Dr Jay Wiles is https://ohm.health's Chief Health & Performance Officer and HRV researcher. HRV is the new health flex, but is it lying to you? Everyone’s comparing HRV scores, but what does HRV really mean for your health? How do you raise it, and should you actually care if yours is lower than your friends'? Expect to learn what HRV actually measures and what it doesn’t, why everyone suddenly cares about HRV, how fast the vagal system responds to changes in HRV and how it adapts, why resonance breathing is different than slow breathing, what to improve first when optimising HRV, the big picture takeaway you should look out for, for HRV and much more... - 0:00 Why Should We Be Looking at HRV? 14:54 Why Everyone’s HRV is So Different 19:56 Do Men and Women Have Different HRV? 28:44 Deconstructing State Changes and Trait Changes 38:14 How Fast Your Nervous System Really Reacts 44:16 Can You Train Your Nervous System to Adapt Over Time? 53:08 Does Resonance Breathing Actually Work? 01:10:24 How Ohm is Rethinking Breathwork 01:19:31 Does Feeling Calm Mean You’re Regulated? 01:24:41 How Can We Combat Physiological Stress? 01:41:06 How Do You Know Resonance Breathing is Working? 01:47:15 The Most Effective Ways to Improve Your HRV 01:51:27 How Breath Connects the Nervous System and the Mind 01:56:03 Why Sleep is the Most Important Factor 02:04:32 Are There Limits to How Much You Can Improve HRV? 02:08:12 Where to Find Jay - Get 15% off your first order of my favourite Non-Alcoholic Brew at https://athleticbrewing.com/modernwisdom Get a free sample or 30% off a one-month supply of Timeline at https://timeline.com/modernwisdom30 Sign up for a one-dollar-per-month trial period from Shopify at https://shopify.com/modernwisdom Get up to $350 off the Pod 5 at https://eightsleep.com/modernwisdom - Get access to every episode 10 hours before YouTube by subscribing for free on Spotify - https://spoti.fi/2LSimPn or Apple Podcasts - https://apple.co/2MNqIgw Get my free Reading List of 100 life-changing books here - https://chriswillx.com/books/ Try my productivity energy drink Neutonic here - https://neutonic.com/modernwisdom - Get in touch in the comments below or head to... Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chriswillx Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/chriswillx Email: https://chriswillx.com/contact/

Chris WilliamsonhostDr. Jay Wilesguest

Jan 21, 20262h 9mWatch on YouTube ↗

WHAT IT’S REALLY ABOUT

HRV explained: training your nervous system with resonance breathing and sleep.

Heart rate variability (HRV) is presented as the best non-invasive proxy for how adaptively your autonomic nervous system responds to internal and external demands—more about flexibility and resilience than “stress level.”
Wiles stresses that HRV should be interpreted relative to your own baseline and stability over time (not compared to others), and that single readings are largely meaningless without context and trends.
The most evidence-backed breathing intervention for both rapid state change and longer-term trait change is resonance breathing/HRV biofeedback—breathing near an individual’s resonance frequency to synchronize respiration, heart rate oscillations, and the baroreflex.
For improving HRV and regulation long-term, the biggest levers are sleep (the foundation), cardiorespiratory fitness, and consistent nervous-system training via 10–20 minute resonance sessions multiple days per week; wearables help, but can also fuel unhelpful “biometric hypervigilance.”

IDEAS WORTH REMEMBERING

5 ideas

HRV reflects adaptability, not virtue or willpower.

Wiles frames HRV as a window into autonomic flexibility and resilience. Chasing a “high HRV” as a status symbol backfires; what matters most is your own baseline and how you respond over time.

Single HRV readings are close to useless without context.

A one-off morning value can’t tell you “how stressed you are.” Trends, weekly patterns, and stability (plus subjective feel) are far more informative for decisions.

Stability can be healthier than constant upward movement.

Citing Dr. Marco Latini, Wiles argues “a good HRV is a normal HRV”—one that stays relatively stable. Large day-to-day swings may indicate stress, overreaching, or poor recovery.

Compare HRV to yourself, not athletes or influencers.

Age, genetics, sex, and even height meaningfully affect HRV; an Olympic sprinter can have low HRV and an NFL lineman high HRV. Absolute values aren’t reliable as longevity or “health ranking” metrics.

Resonance breathing is the most evidence-backed breath practice for trait change.

Unlike many popular breathwork styles (Wim Hof/holotropic/physiological sigh), resonance-frequency biofeedback has robust studies showing longer-term autonomic improvements when practiced consistently.

WORDS WORTH SAVING

5 quotes

HRV is the single greatest non-invasive proxy that we have for measuring the adaptations of the nervous system.

— Dr. Jay Wiles

A good HRV is actually a normal HRV.

— Dr. Jay Wiles (citing Dr. Marco Latini)

HRV is not a measure of direct stress… it’s showing me how well you adapt to stress.

— Dr. Jay Wiles

The nervous system doesn’t care about your intention… precision always beats effort and intention when it comes to breathing.

— Dr. Jay Wiles

Sleep is the canary in the coal mine… the base of that pyramid… is sleep.

— Dr. Jay Wiles

HRV as adaptation proxy (not a stress meter)Autonomic nervous system: sympathetic/parasympathetic cooperationNon-modifiable vs modifiable HRV driversStability over time; HRV coefficient of variation (CV)State change vs trait change frameworkResonance breathing & HRV biofeedback mechanismBaroreflex gain, low/high frequency power conceptsPrecision vs effort in breathing interventionsBottom-up regulation vs top-down therapy; trauma exampleSleep as the core repair process; fragmentation and coupling

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