Your Body Has Been Trying to Tell You Something from CrossFit BC. The flat days, the bad sleep, the resting heart rate that won't come down. Your body has been sending the signals. Here is how to actually listen.
This article is part of the CrossFit BC journal, written by the coaching staff who run our classes in Olympic Village, Vancouver. We publish what we teach on the floor: training decisions, recovery, nutrition, and the honest tradeoffs behind them.
No. Plenty of high-level athletes train without wearables. Wearables are most useful for adults who tend to override their body's signals and need an external accountability nudge. If you already listen to your body well, a tracker adds modest value. If you ignore your body habitually, it can be life-changing.
Honestly, the trend in your resting heart rate over weeks. It is the cleanest, oldest, and most reliable recovery signal. HRV is more sensitive but noisier. Sleep totals matter, but architecture (deep + REM) matters more. Looked at together, they tell a coherent story.
Sleep responds within days. Resting heart rate trends respond in 2 to 4 weeks. HRV trends often take 4 to 8 weeks of consistent changes. The body is honest, but it is not instant. Trust the trend, not any single morning's number.