An observational study using smartwatches and smartphone surveys tracked 90 people for three weeks: 19 regular meditators, 32 recreational runners, and 39 controls with no regular exercise or meditation. Although meditators reported lower stress than controls on questionnaires, their overall heart rate variability (HRV) in daily life was not higher. However, during actual meditation sessions, HRV increased by about 4.7 milliseconds, and this effect lasted at least 30 minutes afterward. In contrast, runners showed both lower stress and higher daily HRV than controls. Across all groups, higher momentary stress was linked to a small concurrent drop in HRV. The findings suggest meditation may offer a way to temporarily boost HRV, which could contribute to stress reduction, but more controlled research is needed.
Meditation practice is associated with lower subjective stress, though its effects on heart rate variability (HRV), a physiological marker of stress, are more nuanced. In a 3-week observational study of 90 participants—19 meditation practitioners, 32 recreational runners, and 39 controls—stress levels were significantly lower in both the meditation and running groups compared with controls. However, only the running group showed elevated HRV in daily life. During meditation sessions, HRV acutely increased by 4.68 milliseconds, with effects lasting at least 30 minutes post-practice. Higher subjective stress was linked to a concurrent reduction in HRV across all groups. The findings suggest meditation may increase HRV at specific times, potentially contributing to stress reduction, but this requires further study.