01/27/2026
Research shows the best breathing rate for improving HRV is around 5–6 breaths per minute (about 5.5 bpm), which corresponds to ~5–6 seconds inhale and ~5–6 seconds exhale.
Practicing this resonance breathing for 5–10 minutes produces the strongest HRV gains by synchronizing heart rate, blood pressure, and the vagus nerve—this is consistently supported in clinical and biofeedback studies.
HRV stands for Heart Rate Variability.
It means the variation in time between heartbeats, not how fast your heart beats. Higher HRV generally reflects a more resilient, well-regulated nervous system, while lower HRV can indicate stress, fatigue, or poor recovery.