Recovery Readiness Index — Open, Self-Relative Score
A transparent daily readiness score comparing today's HRV, resting HR, sleep and breathing to your own baseline — the open version of proprietary readiness scores.
- Recovery
- 2 cited sources
- Runs in your browser
Your Recovery Readiness Index
41 / 100
| Input | Score | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| HRV vs baselineT2 · moderate evidence | 42 | 30% |
| Resting HR vs baselineT2 · moderate evidence | 41 | 25% |
| Sleep vs needT2 · moderate evidence | 34 | 25% |
| Breathing rate vs baselineT2 · moderate evidence | 50 | 20% |
What this is
A transparent, self-relative daily readiness score comparing today's metrics to your own baseline, with every weight and mapping published. A data point to weigh alongside how you feel.
What this isn’t
A medical test, a diagnosis, or a cross-user comparison. A low score is not an instruction — it reflects your own recent averages, nothing more.
Transparent composite index v1.0.0. It is not a medical test and has not been validated against health outcomes. The full formula, weights and evidence tiers are shown above and in the methodology below.
Methodology
The Recovery Readiness Index is an open composite index (v1.0.0) — a transparent, self-relative version of the daily "readiness" scores built into wearables. Every input compares today's value against your own baseline; there is no cross-user comparison and no clinical meaning.
Each metric becomes a 0–100 sub-score based on how far today deviates from your usual figure, in the favourable or unfavourable direction, then combined by weight:
| Input | Weight | Direction |
|---|---|---|
| HRV vs baseline | 30% | higher is better |
| Resting HR vs baseline | 25% | lower is better |
| Sleep vs your need | 25% | meeting need is better |
| Breathing rate vs baseline | 20% | lower is better |
All four inputs are T2 (moderate/surrogate evidence). A note on the weights: the published methodology proposed HRV at 40%, but our house rule caps any single input at ~30%, so we adjusted the weighting (HRV 30, resting HR 25, sleep 25, breathing 20). That change is recorded in the public index methodology changelog.
The sub-scores use a documented deviation mapping rather than a strict z-score, because most people don't know their baseline's standard deviation — you enter today's value and your usual value, and the score reflects the proportional change.
Interpreting your result
This is a daily, self-relative number — it only means something relative to you. A score of 60 today versus 40 yesterday says your body's signals are more favourable than yesterday, nothing about anyone else. Read the breakdown to see which signal moved: suppressed HRV and an elevated resting heart rate often show up together after poor sleep, alcohol, illness or hard training.
Use it as one input alongside how you actually feel and what your week looks like — not as an instruction to train or rest. The signals it uses are genuinely informative for monitoring, but they're noisy day to day.
Limitations
- Self-relative only — no clinical meaning, no cross-user comparison, not a medical test.
- Single-day readings are noisy; trends over several days are more trustworthy than any one score.
- Baselines matter: garbage-in figures give a misleading score. Use stable 7–30 day averages from a consistent measurement method.
- HRV in particular depends heavily on how and when it's measured (overnight vs morning, device, position).
- It doesn't know why a signal changed — illness, stress, alcohol and travel all look similar to it.
Sources
Pull the receipts — 2 cited sources
Frequently asked questions
- What is the Recovery Readiness Index?
- It's an open, transparent version of the daily 'readiness' or 'recovery' scores built into wearables. It compares today's HRV, resting heart rate, sleep and breathing rate against your own recent baseline — and unlike the proprietary versions, it shows exactly how the number is calculated.
- Why does it compare to my own baseline?
- Because recovery is personal. A resting heart rate of 55 might be elevated for one person and low for another. The score is purely self-relative — there is no cross-user comparison and no clinical meaning.
- Where do I get baseline values?
- From your wearable's 7- or 30-day averages, or your own notes. Enter your usual (baseline) figure alongside today's reading for each metric.
- How are the inputs weighted?
- HRV 30%, resting heart rate 25%, sleep 25%, breathing rate 20%. The published methodology proposed HRV at 40%, but our house rule caps any single input at 30%, so we adjusted the weights — the change is recorded in the public changelog.
- Should I skip training if my score is low?
- It's a data point, not a prescription. A low score might reflect poor sleep, illness, alcohol or stress. Use it alongside how you actually feel — and remember it's a self-tracking tool, not a medical assessment.
Written and reviewed by Mathew Beale — MSc Biotechnology, University of Reading.
Last reviewed:
Related tools
- Heart Rate Zone Calculator — Tanaka & Karvonen
Free heart rate zone calculator using the Tanaka equation (208 − 0.7 × age) and the Karvonen heart-rate-reserve method, with a full five-zone training table.
- Sleep Calculator — When To Go To Bed
Free sleep cycle calculator: enter your wake-up time and get bedtime options for 4, 5 or 6 full 90-minute cycles, including 15 minutes to fall asleep.
- Caffeine Half-Life Calculator
Free caffeine half-life calculator: chart how a dose decays over 24 hours (C(t) = dose × 0.5^(t/t½)) and when it drops below your chosen sleep threshold.