Online Bike Coach

Where Cyclists and Triathletes get Faster/Stronger/Leaner/Sooner

Archives for June 2022

DFAA-1 On a BIG SCREEN!

DFAA-1 with ECG is Now Available On a BIG SCREEN!

Fitness ECG
When you use a Polar H10 Heart Rate Strap, you can get Lab-Accurate ECG that can aid fitness interpretation.

I’ve been working with two professionals now for several months on a project, and we are ready to start releasing it in ALPHA. DFAA-1 (Detrended Fluctuation Analysis – Short Term Variable #1) is a way to look at Heart Rate Variability and Cardio-Vascular Health. Dr. Bruce Rogers has been publishing studies on this method, and how it correlates with Ventilatory Threshold #1 and #2. DFAA-1 at a ratio of 0.75 shows a strong correlation with VT1 (further studies continue to provide strong evidence behind this claim), and there is also a correlation between DFAA-1 at 0.5 to 0.4 and Ventilatory Threshold #2. Working with long-time friend and coder Stuart Lynne, we are now proud to present www.FitnessHRV.com!

FitnessHRV.com is currently TWO Windows Apps.

DFAA-1
You can now get Big-Screen, easy-to-read DFAA-1, along with lots of other metrics. ***This is an ALPHA, but we are really excited to share it with you. 

The first app, Fitness Dashboard, requires an ANT+ Dongle on a Windows Machine, similar to what you’d use for an Indoor Training Program (Zwift or PerfPro Studio). It looks at heart rate variability, runs it through an algorithm, and displays that algorithm, along with a several charts. The charts reveal the following:

  • DFAA-1,
  • Heart Rate,
  • Cumulative time spent above DFAA-1 0.75,
  • Cumulative time spent BETWEEN DFAA-1 0.75 and 0.50
  • Cumulative time spent BELOW DFAA-1 0.5
  • Cumulative Anomalies in Heart Rate (RX Failure)
  • Power Data from the Trainer or an on-bike power meter
  • % Slope for the trainer
  • Cadence
  • and Anomaly Data Rate for the Trainer or the Power Meter itself.

Fitness ECG

The Second App, Fitness ECG, was something we created after an event I had with a client and longtime friend in Dallas, TX in October of 2021. We were unable to get his DFAA-1 information to provide meaningful data. We then downloaded an ECG app on his phone, and looked at it together. I had not studied ECG data since 1995, so it was recorded and forwarded to Dr. Rogers. Dr. Rogers IMMEDIATELY recommended scheduling an appointment with a Cardiologist, and after months of studies and consultations, my friend underwent major heart surgery in Mid-May of 2022.

My workouts could have killed him. DFAA-1 and a Polar H10 showing ECG was the first step towards saving his life and returning him to his athletic self. For those interested, google “Ross Procedure”. I’ll write more about this client misadventure later.

Fitness ECG will be able to identify heart signal anomalies, flag them, and save the information for presentation to doctors and professionals.

Future Steps

I can’t deny that over the past three years, I’ve watched as the major cycling fitness platforms have continued to claim a reduced need for the human touch with regards to data interpretation and programming. It’s all Watts, KiloJoules, and mathematical constructs of zones, poorly manipulated for individuals under a “Best Fit” analysis. Honestly, there has never been a stronger need for a Coach who can consult and help cyclists on their journey towards fitness and health, not just performance. I believe that with Fitness HRV, we are just getting started on a return to cardio-fitness, cardio-health, and cardio-analysis, using cost-effective methods now available to the world’s population. I’ll be blogging as we add new features, every step of the way.

Let’s see where this takes us! Enjoy the ride!

Did you enjoy this post?