force10

I recently got a Garmin dual hrm. I managed to sync it with my Garmin 530 computer w/o difficulty however the data does not appear in great detail on the unit. I get time in the various HR zones and some "training effect" info but it isnt super easy to see or to evaluate.

I had hoped the info would upload to Strava with the rest of the ride data where it would be more intuitive and perhaps overlay with the route etc.

After upload, I got an email from strava that I had to unlock a permission to see the data, which I did. Now it seems that perhaps that the ability to see HR data is only for paid subscribers. Is this right? Am I missing something?

Iride01 

You don't have to use Strava. If you are on the cheap, then why not stick with Garmin Connect's website? I use RideWithGPS and HR info was part of the basic free. Whether it still is, I don't know, I've been a paying user for three or four years. But most all will give you a comparison of free and paid member features.

I may be wrong, but I don't think zones that your device displays are necessarily the zones a website shows you. You have to ensure that the Zone settings on your device and the Zone settings of what ever website like Strava, RideWithGPS and even Garmin Connect itself match. I do think I remember that Garmin Connect, or maybe it was even further back with Garmin Training Center, would alert you if there was a mismatch of the two. But I've never had that mismatch alert with Strava, MapMyRide or RWGPS.

What great detail are you wanting of your HR zones? Also realize there are a lot of ways to set up HR zones depending on the training method of whom you are going by. Zones can be based off different things, not just max HR.

force10

Hmm. I pay for RideWithGPS too and would be happy to use that interface. Nothing I do seems to allow me to sync between those two, though.

As far as detail, it would be helpful to have all the detail in one spot for one. Also to see an overlay of heart rate along a route - to see where the high was and how long on a flat it slows back down after a hard climb. That sort of thing.

I also assumed that either strava could show change over time along a given route, like it does with timed segments.

billridesbikes

I think you should be able to change the display fields on the 530 to show your HR real time. You can use Garmin connect to look at your HR over the route.

To get the most out of your HR Zones you should try to determine you maximum heart rate and resting heart rate. Find a steep hill and climb it with an all-out effort, the highest number is your max heart rate. Find your resting heart rate right before bed before you go to sleep.

Also useful is to determine your anaerobic threshold. Find a nice short loop in a park without any traffic, start at 10mph and each lap increase the speed by +1mph until you can’t sustain the increase anymore. Plot the mph against your heart rate, it will increase linearly with speed and then go up sharply. The knee of this curve is where you transition from an aerobic effort to an anaerobic one. Improving this allows you to ride faster farther.

billridesbikes

Note, you can manually load your .FIT files to ridewithGPS with the 530 connected to the PC if the auto upload from Connect doesn’t work for whatever reason. Upload>select files.

Iride01 

Are you using these sites on your phone? I've no idea what you can or can't see on your phone.

With RWGPS and from a computer, I can run my mouse pointer over the route profile and there is a fly out box that gives me HR and other info a that point on the ride. And it shows me the location on the map above. If I click and hold down the mouse button I can drag out a segment which also shows on the map, and then the averages are presented in the metrics data at the side and a summary box on the map.

Not sure what you mean about syncing. Syncing your ride data from your device? I'm old school on this. I upload my data manually to the site I want to see it on. I don't want all my data going to every site I use every time. That's just me though. My son uses Garmin Connect, Strava and RWGPS. His rides are uploaded to each of those sites soon after he finishes a ride. I think it's through Garmin Express that happens. If you are having issues, then what does the sites support FAQ's say about syncing data?

One of your issues might be if you are just sending HR data. If you don't have any matched GPS data to the HR data then you've really got nothing to look at. Something has to give that HR data a timestamp to use it with any other data. As for apps on smartphones, I don't know. Strava just recently caused an uproar with removing features from it's phone app. I think they put them back in just a few weeks ago. But don't know. RWGPS phone app has some limitations too.

I connect my HR strap and all my sensors to a Garmin Edge. Then everything from my Garmin Edge gets sent to where I want to view it. If you don't want to shell out for an Edge, you might find a Wahoo or Lezyne or something else fits your need. And they will connect to your strap too. At least most will, I think.

edit.. nevermind. I see now that you have an Edge 530. So the last paragraphs above are babble. Probably all are! <grin>

force10

Okay. Ive managed to get the HR data linked from the 530 to the rwgps account. It still would be helpful to see the hr data overlaid with the route like you do with speed/grade/elevation - am I correct that this is not available even with a a paid basic subscription? would it be with the premium paid subscription?

Also, can anyone confirm that hr data will not appear on Strava w/o a paid subscription?

GAtkins

HR is free on Strava. HR zones are paid.

Glenn

blacknbluebikes 

I've used HR features over a variety of platforms, including Strava, Polar, Apple, et al. Right now I'm gettting 'the most milage' out of Garmin Connect for Web and mobile, in addition to the live data on my Garmin 130 Plus. Garmin Connect allows you to see HR as a color overlay on the map after an activity (new feature). It informs you about time spent in HR zones for a given ride. HR can be graphed and combined with overlay of another data series, such as speed, elevation or cadence. What else are you looking for?

force10

No, not all babble. Thanks, Its the flyout box you mention that I am looking for. I have one but it doesnt show hr (or cadence now that I think about it).

To clarify, the 530 collects all the data from all sensors. I rely on automatic wireless uploads not b/c I am partuclarly savvy (obvious by now I suppose) but b/c I cant find time to do it manually.

Also, I try to do as much as I can from the phone but viewing information about a ride overlaid along the route I do on the computer.

force10

Thank you. Problem must be with something I am doing.

force10

Sorry everyone, it appears that I needed to select some display functions along the bottom to see this information on RWGPS. Simple answer. figures...

Maybe its the same with Strava.

force10

Thanks. I'll take a look at garmin connect.

force10

Next question: after a ride I see the heart rate info display on the 530. Included is max, average, training effect for both aerobic and anaerobic...then there is a display something like “hours of recovery”.

What does hours of recovery mean? What is it based on? The first ride I did with the hrm had 38 hours of recovery. Today was just a short 16 mile ride I squeezed in before dinner and it said 20 hours. That can’t be right, right?

*Edited to note that this recovery hours business is only displayed right after the ride and I haven’t been able to find it again later.

pdlamb

IMHO hours of recovery is something Garmin put in to make up for the lack of stand-up comedians during Covid.

Iride01 

Hours of recovery is a guesstimate of how long it will take to fully recover from the energy you expended, muscles and other adverse physiological stuff you had happen to you prior to that moment in time.

It is not at all saying you should wait that long before doing another activity, IMO. It might be telling you that if you have a ride that you need to do your absolute very best performance on, then you should allow that amount of time to pass before doing that ride.

There are plenty of times I'll ride several days in a row and things like my average speed will improve, but climbs and places where I go all out won't show well. Laying off riding for three or four days, I frequently will best my personal times for those climbs and segments where I go hard, but my averages for the overall ride are less.

But if I went by the many times ridiculous recovery times Garmin gives, then over all I feel I would detrain and my ride stats will be more like when I was a beginner.

force10

Ok. Thanks guys. I figured it was something a bit silly.

But there was nothing I could find to explain it and I couldn’t think of a reason for superfluous information to flash up right at the end of a ride and was confused by it.

Iride01 

Several years ago, I think it was on the TdF, I'd sometimes see and hear some of the riders look at their Garmin's after some of the stages and laugh when it suggested they needed 72 hours or more for recovery <grin>

My Edge 500 didn't give that info, but my son just gave me an Edge 530 a couple days ago. So it'll be interesting to see what it tells me. <grin>