Gardening and increased heart rate variability

Question: Male, 52 years old, 176 cm tall, 73 kg. How should I interpret a sudden increase in heart rate variability? I had an average of about 40, with the status “balanced”. Almost overnight I went up to an average of 68 and have been there for the last 3 weeks.

I don’t exercise regularly, but I do walk a lot and often I work in the garden. I can easily work there for 2-4 hours every day after work.

I have found the job to be stressful for the past six months, with many meetings and little time to deliver my own work tasks. I lost my father in April, and I may have too many projects in the garden that I would like to have finished before my wife’s 50th birthday in June.

Answer: Hello! The fact that the heart rate variability has increased is a sign of an improvement in health. There may be something you have done that has improved it. At this time of year, for example, you may have been out in the sun more. Your gardening work has probably contributed to the positive development. When you do gardening there are many potential beneficial effects. It may be about grounding. I do not have in-depth knowledge of this specifically, but it would seem that the direct contact with the ground leads to an exchange of electrons that is beneficial to us. You can read more about it here: https://www.webmd.com/balance/grounding-benefits. Alternatively, you can search for earthing/grounding and heart rate variability and find more information.

It may also be the effect of phytochemicals, which the plants secrete, which are beneficial to health. I am currently reading the book The Nature Fix by Florence Williams, which I can recommend. Here you can see some of the effect on how nature affects HRV: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6540467/
The conclusion: The field experiments referenced here provide limited but strong and consistent evidence that exposure to forest bathing/forest therapy results in an increase in InHF associated with activation of the parasympathetic nervous system and also reduced anxiety. Additional therapeutic benefits include positive mood states and improved mental coordination, with a reduction in stress levels and lower blood pressure.
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Of course, I will also assume that you enjoy gardening and that it therefore creates well-being for you. In other words, I would like to think that the gardening may have contributed to your improved heart rate variability in several ways. There may also have been other reasons that contributed.

Regards, Dr. Torkil