Fitness HRV Now Includes Moxy SmO2 Values
My work with Dr. Bruce Rogers and Mr. Stuart Lynne is continuing to show steady progress. Last month, I revealed the Alpha version of Fitness Dashboard. Fitness HRV is software that we are building to identify training intensities below VT1 (Ventilatory Threshold), and above VT2 (Traditional Threshold). The goal is to create a scientific instrument that uses PUBLISHED SCIENCE to help improve cardio-vascular economy, first and foremost. Fitness HRV now includes Moxy SmO2 and ThB (Total Hemoglobin) data. The reason I requested this inclusion is two-fold. First, we want to assess SmO2 action over time when training above DFAA-1 values of 0.75. Second, we want to watch SmO2 slope when we increase intensity, and bring DFAA-1 down to 0.5 or 0.4, which is less strongly correlated, but still connected, to VT2. This will help me, as a coach, better train athletes for training in polarized zones of intensity.
I’ve been using the Moxy since it first arrived on the scene and bought almost ten of the units when I was running the studios at Cycling Center Dallas. In my work over those years, the instrument gave me a new window into the body. I studied SmO2 “Floors and Ceilings” over time, and I also studied ThB floors and ceilings, both acutely and empirically. The PhD’s that study Saturated Muscle Oxygen recently published important studies on SmO2 “Slope”. Basically, when SmO2 levels out at a certain intensity, Oxygen SUPPLY is meeting DEMAND. Cyclists and Triathletes can use this value to gauge intensity. In fact, one of my favorite coaches, Steve Neal of Steve Neal Performance, just published a new APP on Garmin Connect, that specifically highlights SmO2 slope and plateaus, in color.
Current Fitness HRV Features
Fitness HRV currently includes the following data streams…
- DFAA-1.
- SmO2 and ThB.
- DFAA-1 artifact counts.
- Cadence.
- Traditional Heart Rate.
- Wattage
- Trainer Slope (Work In Progress).
Over the next several weeks, we will be including all of the metrics from Vo2master Gas Exchange Analyzers, including:
- Respiratory Frequency ((important to DFAA-1 research).
- Tidal Volume
- Ventilation
- Absolute Vo2
- Relative Vo2
- Fraction of Expired Oxygen (important to DFAA-1 and SmO2 research).
- Ambient Pressure
- Humidity
- Ventilatory Equivalents for Oxygen
and more values, like RQ (Respiratory Quotient of O2 and Co2), as they are brought online.
Fitness ECG Updates
Fitness ECG is still running as a separate app. It uses the ECG data from the Polar H10 to create a visible ECG from the V2 and V3 position. As this product is still in Alpha, there’s not much more than a display, the ability to record the session in CSV format, and the ability to save images via PDF and JPEG. It WILL be merged into Fitness HRV at some point in the future. Now, we cannot make medical claims from this one window into the heart, BUT…. we can identify artifacts and anomalies, and have those images automatically highlighted and saved for reference with medical professionals. I believe we can also glean Respiratory Frequency from this Polar device, but again, we’re going to go with PUBLISHED SCIENCE first and foremost.
What’s the Ultimate Goal?
Fitness HRV intends to be a research tool for individuals who want to train for AEROBIC fitness first and foremost. Once the correlation between DFAA-1, SmO2 in a Prime Mover muscle, and Gas Exchange RQ values is better understood, it then allows the user to TRAIN USING THIS TRIFECTA of PHYSIOLOGICAL INFORMATION.
In the 1970’s, Heart Rate Monitors were introduced to the general population for assessing fitness. In the late 1980’s, power meters were introduced. The Moxy became available in the early 2010’s. The Vo2master became available in the late 2010’s. There are more devices that measure physics and physiology, which are accurate, robust, and significant.
When we meld the PHYSICS of wattage, aerodynamics, rolling resistance, heat and humidity, with the PHYSIOLOGY of a human riding a bicycle or running, we can OPTIMIZE EVERY MINUTE OF ACTIVITY FOR THE DESIRED RESULTS. Years ago, this information was only available in labs and the equipment cost well into the six, and seven figures. Now, the chest straps are $80usd, power meters are accurate and consistent at $400usd and less, and muscle oxygen is available at similar cost. I intend to rent the Vo2master out for a month at a time, so that users can perform workouts indoors and out, to gain further insight into their values, as well as the general population, which will once again be published for peer review.
Feel free to ask any questions. We are doing this for free at the moment, but will charge a nominal fee at some point in the future. Until then, stay hydrated, exercise holistically, and ENJOY THE RIDE!
-Coach Wharton, Mr. Stuart Lynne, and Dr. Bruce Rogers.