Heart Rate Variability Based Training by Jason Winegar
[Jason is currently pursuing his masters degree from Marshall University in kinesiology with an emphasis on exercise physiology. He is a high performance tennis coach with experience coaching nationally and internationally ranked players all over the world. Jason is a certified High Performance Tennis Coach with the USTA and hold certifications with the USPTA and the iTPT. He is taking part in the Athletic Lab Coaching Mentorship program.] Most athletes understand the concept of progressive overload. The body must be stressed with a workout followed by a period of recovery to improve fitness. Traditional periodized training follows a predetermined training schedule, whether linear, block, or any other variety. Training days and rest days are assigned in advance. These training progressions have been proven to be more effective than random training. However, they do not consider how an individual responds to the training. If someone is feeling run down or sick or is going through an exceptionally stressful time at work, their training will be compromised. For this reason, the traditional model may not be the most effective training approach for some people. There is an alternative to typical periodized training called heart rate variability (HRV) training. HRV training differs from standard periodized training in that training plans are flexible. An HRV measurement in the morning determines the volume/intensity of training. The most difficult workouts are assigned on days when HRV is high. Rest days occur when HRV is below average. HRV training can account for individual training and life stress responses, theoretically creating more optimal training. What is Heart Rate Variability? A resting heart rate of 60 beats per minute (bpm) means the heartbeats 60 times in one minute. As impressive as the heart is, [...]
