Bad HRV Score? What to consider before you panic: https://www.patreon.com/TheInnerScript/posts/170920337
What does a low HRV actually mean, and should a bad readiness score change what you do that day? In this episode of The Inner Script, Stephanie Baubie, NP sits down with performance scientist and HRV expert Don Moxley to unpack what heart rate variability can tell us about stress, recovery, sleep, exercise, and the nervous system. Don explains why HRV should be treated like a thermometer rather than a scorecard, what can drive it up or down, and why your wearable should never become the driver of how you feel. They also explore overtraining, waking up at 3 AM, women’s hormonal cycles, relationships and environmental stress, and when taking your wearable off may actually be the healthier choice.
This Episode Is For You If:
- You check your Oura Ring, WHOOP, Apple Watch, or another wearable every morning.
- A low HRV, sleep score, or readiness score can affect how you feel about your day.
- You want to understand what HRV actually measures and how to use the data without obsessing over it.
Connect with Stephanie Baubie, NP:
Timestamps
(00:00) What HRV actually measures
(05:44) High vs. low HRV
(09:00) Sleep, breath and recovery
(11:59) Waking up at 3 AM
(15:21) Relationships and stress
(19:28) When your wearable says otherwise
(24:28) Exercise, hormones and HRV
(28:19) Are you overtraining?
(35:37) When to stop tracking
(38:32) Fear, love and resilience
About Don Moxley
Don Moxley is a performance scientist, author, and innovator with more than 30 years of experience pioneering biomarker-driven approaches to human performance. He began his career at Polar Electro and later became The Ohio State University’s first paid Sport Scientist, helping bring heart rate variability out of the lab and into everyday training and readiness decisions. Don is Chief Science Officer and part of the ownership group at Mode+Method, author of The HRV Book and The Complete Athlete, host of the 90% Healthy podcast, and creator of Train Recover Win.
Connect with Don:
Disclaimer: Everything shared here is for educational purposes and personal reflection only. Not medical advice. Always work with your own healthcare provider for individual care.
Podcast production by Jamie Brooke.
