HRV: The Health Metric Women Should Be Tracking

Written By Lucia Harmeling

Let’s be honest — women already track a lot. Steps. Sleep. Periods. Water intake. Protein grams. But there’s one little number that might quietly hold the key to your hormones, energy, stress, and even your metabolism: HRV (Heart Rate Variability).

If you’ve never heard of HRV (or you’re kind of tracking it but don’t really know what it means), you’re in the right place.

What is HRV (Heart Rate Variability)?

HRV measures how much variation there is between each heartbeat.
✅ More variation = a calm, flexible nervous system.
🚩 Less variation = your body may be stressed, inflamed, or needing some TLC.

Think of it like your body’s stress resilience score.

And for women juggling work, kids, hormones, and life? This is gold.

Why HRV is a Game Changer for Women’s Health

Our bodies are constantly adapting — hormonally, emotionally, physically — so having real-time feedback like HRV can help you know when you can do more and when to rest.

1.How Your Cycle Impacts HRV

  • Follicular phase (after your period): HRV often rises — indicating you have capacity for more

  • Luteal phase (before your period): HRV often dips — indicating you need more rest

👉 Tracking HRV alongside your cycle gives you a better read on when your body needs more recovery, self-care, or stress support.

2. Stress Shows Up Here First

Mental load. Family life. Work deadlines. All of it adds up.
Your HRV will often drop before you even feel burned out. It’s an early red flag that your nervous system needs some love.

3. It helps you know when to take it easy

On high HRV days, your body is saying: “Let’s do this.”
On low HRV days: “Hey, maybe we should turn it down a notch”

4. Sleep Quality Impacts HRV

One rough night of sleep? You’ll likely see it in your HRV the next day.
HRV helps you measure if your sleep routines are actually helping you recover which is why I love looking at that data with clients.

5. Perimenopause & Menopause

As hormones shift, many women see HRV decline. Tracking can help you adjust your lifestyle and support your nervous system during this big transition.

What’s a Good HRV for Women?

Spoiler: everyone’s “normal” is different!
The real power is in tracking your personal trends.

But here’s a loose guide:

Age HRV

20s 60-90

30s 50–80

40s 40–70

50+ 30–60

Don’t panic if you’re outside this. Watching your own patterns is 100x more helpful than chasing a magic number!

What Affects HRV

HRV Boosters

  • Solid, consistent sleep

  • Balanced meals with protein + fiber

  • Blood sugar stability

  • Daily movement (walking, yoga, strength training)

  • Breathwork, vagus nerve support

  • Hydration + minerals

  • Less alcohol

HRV Drainers

  • Poor or disrupted sleep

  • Emotional overload

  • Overtraining

  • Skipping meals / blood sugar swings

  • Inflammation

  • Alcohol (yes, even 1-2 drinks can drop HRV for 24-48 hours)

How Can You Track HRV?

You don’t need fancy labs — just a wearable device or app.

Popular HRV Trackers for Women:

  • Oura Ring

  • Ultrahuman Ring

  • WHOOP Strap

  • Apple Watch

  • Garmin Watches

How to Improve HRV Naturally

✨ 1. Prioritize Sleep

  • Set a consistent bedtime

  • Limit blue light before bed

  • Magnesium glycinate = your new BFF. Find my favs on my fullscript account

✨ 2. Balance Your Blood Sugar

  • Protein at every meal

  • Avoid big sugar crashes

  • Eat regularly

✨ 3. Support Your Nervous System

  • Try box breathing or 4-7-8 breathing

  • Gentle yoga, stretching, or nature walks

  • Vagus nerve support (think: cold exposure, humming, breathwork)

✨ 4. Optimize Minerals

  • Hydrate with electrolytes

  • Ensure magnesium, potassium, sodium balance

Not sure minerals you need ? Do an HTMA test with us!

✨ 5. Limit Alcohol

  • Even small amounts can disrupt HRV and sleep

Why HRV Belongs in Every Woman’s Wellness Toolkit

Unlike labs or scales, HRV gives you real-time feedback on how your nervous system and body are coping with life.

Tracking HRV can help you:

  • Catch early signs of burnout

  • Adjust workouts based on recovery

  • Improve hormone balance

  • Support nervous system regulation

  • Personalize your daily wellness decisions

  • Give you feedback that something is off body-wise

The Bottom Line:

HRV empowers you to pause and listen to your body instead of guessing!
Looking to make nutrition and lifestyle shifts to improve your HRV?

Join our Nervous System Reset!

Lucia Harmeling https://www.savorli.co
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