Mathieu van der Poel has revealed some of the statistics around his heart rate that point to his supremely high fitness levels and ability to recover.
The multi-discipline cycling star appeared as a guest this week on the podcast of one of his sponsors, Whoop, a wearable technology company that monitors health data via a wristband.
Van der Poel was in conversation with Whoop’s CEO, who revealed that the three-time Paris-Roubaix winner’s heart rate variability (HRV) score was in excess of 200.
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“I’m really high in HRV,” Van der Poel confirmed. “I think it’s a bit genetical, but fitness is important also. For sure, it’s something that makes me stronger and better recovered.”
HRV is essentially a measure of the variation in the amount of time taken between heartbeats, measured in milliseconds over a long period of time, usually overnight. It offers an insight into the balance of the body’s autonomic nervous system and is used as a marker of stress – Whoop describes it as a “readiness indicator”.
Resting heart rate and sharing data
Van der Poel described HRV as one of “the two most important numbers I watch” when looking at his Whoop data. The other, which is a much more familiar metric to most people, is resting heart rate (HRH).
“The average is 38,” Van der Poel revealed. “The lowest I have on Whoop recorded is 34. So it’s really low.
“But it’s something a lot of endurance athletes have – the heart is really well trained. In general, cyclists are quite low on the heart rate.”
Not all athletes are willing to divulge their physiological data, for fear of handing competitors intelligence that could be used against them, but Van der Poel doesn’t seem to harbour such anxieties.
“I don’t mind it, to be honest,” he said. “Of course, other people and competitors can learn a bit from it, but it will not make the difference in my opinion. Some athletes are really strict about it, but I never had a big problem with it.”
A 200 HRV and a 38 RHR are beyond the wildest imaginations of mere mortals, but if you want some tips from an eight-time cyclocross world champion, Van der Poel suggests cutting out red meat and alcohol, which he has seen demonstrably impact his recovery scores.
Magnesium tablets have helped relax his muscles before sleep, as has, slightly more relatably, reading before he turns the light out.