Resting heart rate for coaches

Why it is easier to read than HRV

HRV is noisy. Individual readings swing for reasons that have nothing to do with training — measurement timing, a late meal, a glass of wine — which is why a single value tells a coach very little.

Resting heart rate moves far less. That stability is the point: when it does shift by several beats and stays shifted, the change is more likely to mean something. It is a lower-resolution signal with a better signal-to-noise ratio.

It is also intuitive in a way HRV is not. Coaches and athletes both already have a working mental model of a resting pulse, which makes the conversation easier than explaining what a millisecond of variability represents.

What a sustained rise can reflect

A multi-day elevation against that athlete's own normal. None of these are things a coach diagnoses — they are reasons to ask a question.

Accumulated training load

The most common explanation in a hard block, and usually the one that resolves with a lighter few days.

Poor or short sleep

Often shows up here as well as in sleep data itself, which is why the two should be read together.

Non-training stress

Work, travel, life. Physiology does not distinguish between sources of stress the way a training log does.

Something the athlete should see a professional about

Illness and other health matters can raise resting heart rate. A coach's job is to notice and ask, not to identify what it is. Persistent unexplained elevation is a reason to suggest they speak to a clinician.

How to use it

Compare to their own baseline

Resting heart rates vary enormously between individuals. A 62 means nothing without knowing whether this athlete normally sits at 48 or 60.

Look for several days, not one

A single elevated morning is usually explained by the night before. Three or four consecutive is more interesting.

Read it next to HRV

Rising resting heart rate alongside falling HRV is a more coherent signal than either alone, because the two moving together is harder to explain away as measurement noise.

Watch the direction over a block

A slow upward drift across several weeks of a build is one of the clearer indications that the accumulated load is outpacing recovery.

Frequently asked

How many beats of change is significant?

There is no universal number and any figure offered would be invented. What matters is the size of the move relative to how much that athlete normally varies, which is why the comparison has to be against their own history.

Is resting heart rate better than HRV?

Neither is better; they are different trade-offs. HRV is more sensitive and much noisier. Resting heart rate is less sensitive and far more stable. Used together each covers the other's weakness.

My athlete's resting heart rate has risen and they feel fine. Should I change anything?

Not automatically. Note it, ask about sleep, load and life, and watch whether it persists. If it stays elevated with no explanation, that is a reason to suggest a medical conversation rather than a reason to guess.