He Quit Drinking and Watched His Resting Heart Rate Drop 16% in Five Months
3 min read · RealCase summary
Brody Hay, 28, from Louisiana and working as a quality control chemist with a rotating night/day shift schedule, typically drank one to two drinks a day and 6-10-plus on social occasions before quitting alcohol in mid-January.
Tracking his sleep with the Apple Watch sleep app, he began noticing improvements within two weeks. By five months sober — around the time he was profiled in June 2023 — his average sleeping heart rate had dropped from 65 bpm to 56 bpm, a 16% decrease, while his heart rate variability rose from 55ms to 67ms, a 22% increase.
He also lost about 15 pounds of fat and water weight, improved his cardiovascular endurance, and said he reached his best physical condition in four and a half years. "My mental clarity is sharper than ever," he said. "It's almost as if I've emerged from this perpetual mental fog."
Key takeaways
- ›Quit drinking entirely after a pattern of 1-2 daily drinks plus 6-10+ drink binges on nights out
- ›Tracked sleeping heart rate and heart rate variability (HRV) nightly on his Apple Watch
- ›Sleeping heart rate fell from 65 to 56 bpm and HRV rose from 55ms to 67ms over 5 months
Original source
Read the original (Newsweek)
Next story →
Her Sleep Debt Was 26.5 Hours — Scheduling Her Day Around Her Energy Cut It Nearly in Half
More Sleep & Habits stories
He Took an Ice Bath Every Day for 28 Days — and Went From 2 Minutes to 10 at 9°C
Ryan Ong logged a daily cold plunge from February 20 to March 19, 2023, lowering the water from about 16°C toward 9°C and building from 2-minute dips to 10 minutes, with total weekly cold time rising from 34.5 to 54 minutes.
He Tracked His Sleep With a Galaxy Watch, Then Kicked His Phone Out of Bed — Deep Sleep Rose 43 Minutes a Night
After noticing he fell asleep with his phone on his chest most nights, one writer ran a 30-day experiment removing his phone from the bedroom, tracking the change with a Samsung Galaxy Watch.
A Sleep-Tech Reviewer's Score Was Stuck at 59 — Four Months on a Smart Mattress Cover Took It to 91
Tom's Guide sleep tech writer Eve Davies had an average sleep score of 59 in early November. After sleeping on the temperature-regulating Eight Sleep Pod 4 for four months, her average score reached 91 by February.