The procedure
As mentioned, in order to have a precise picture I used the watch and the app consistently for more than a year. In this way I had the opportunity to check the progress of all the parameters for a very long period, thus being able to verify the reliability of each parameter.
Heart rate (HR)
Before going into the analysis of the different items, let's analyze the accuracy of the HR data, the basic value from which we started. With the heart rate monitor, the accuracy was very high, without it happened especially during the running outings, to see some peaks a little outside the canonical standards. Even on the bike in some cases I was able to verify this fact, which however was significantly reduced by tightening the strap a lot,
The sleep
Sleep well to train better. This simple rule is the basis of every training plan. Monitoring sleep is important to check our general condition. A workout that is too intense, or done late at night, as well as a flu or work worries, affect the quality of sleep and consequently our ability to perform.
The analysis of this data was interesting and overall precise, if the sleep scores were low the day was consequently a little more difficult and the training a little more tiring. But this data had an important value especially in perspective; in fact, it could happen to have a troubled night, still manage to do a good training, but then pay for this effort in the days to follow, thus giving me the possibility in some cases to reorganize the timing of the outings.
The only aspect that in some cases did not seem to be very precise was the calculation of the hours of sleep; in fact, a slightly later time than the actual time was often marked as the start time of sleep.
Body battery
It measures the amount of energy we have available, waking up with a value of 100 or similar is equivalent to saying, we are ready for anything. With lower values it will be good to evaluate well how to behave. Even in this case the values were very reliable. Unlike sleep levels, sometimes it happened to have slightly low values but not to pay too much in terms of fatigue, this because all the other parameters were aligned.
There has always been a strong relationship between physical and mental fatigue and values close to 5, the minimum number achievable. When the device indicated such low values, the body was invariably in a state of severe fatigue.
Comparing it with other people who recorded all their values and who I had the opportunity to follow for this long period, the body battery has a close correlation with the stress values that I will talk about below.
Stress
Here we are at the hidden evil of this generation. All of us at least once will have said: "I'm really stressed" being able to monitor this indicator is very important not only from a sports point of view, but above all to analyze what may be the external causes that trigger moments of high stress.
Values from 0 to 25 indicate that the parasympathetic nervous system is more active, values above 25 instead say that the sympathetic nervous system is more dynamic.
What are the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems?
Our nervous system is divided into two branches, the sympathetic and the parasympathetic.
The first is also referred to as the nervous system for fight or flight, it is the one that is activated in situations where greater attention and ability to react to potentially dangerous situations is needed. The parasympathetic one is instead responsible for rest and digestion. This value has been very useful, both on me and especially on athletes that I have followed.
This analysis, given by the relationship between HRV (which we will talk about later) and heart rate, is a number that indicates our state of stress, but it is not able to identify the triggering cause.
In this period in which I used it, however, it was very useful to identify the elements of greatest tension; in fact, it was sufficient to cross-reference the graph with the phases of the day to better understand the management of the different phases of the day. It was similarly valid to try to understand why a boy I followed always had low energy values, probably due to very high stress values during school hours. Similarly, especially on non-athletes it was useful to understand which activities helped to keep nervous tension levels under control.
HRV Status
For me it is the most interesting data, in fact I dedicated an exclusive article to it that you can read by clicking HERE.' Perhaps the most interesting data, the one that gives us a precise picture of our condition. Having a history of this value shows the trend of our condition, low values have always coincided with a perceived poor condition. This value turned out to be interesting because it allowed us to make a prediction for the following days. Often the values dropped before the onset of physical discomfort.
Reins training
how this value measures the body's ability to sustain training.
This is a piece of data that comes out of the analysis of those indicated above and as for the others it has a high reliability. If the app advises you not to train, it is better to listen to it!
By analyzing all the values I told you about before, it is able to give an objective and precise judgment of the physical conditions of the moment, advising whether to train or whether it is better to rest.
Training status
This is perhaps the data that convinced me the least. Despite the alternation of loads, the graph often had a different direction than the performance data indicated.
even in moments of load, with training sessions such as interval training with HR values around the threshold or lactic training sessions, we still remained within the maintenance range.
Probably more reliable values could have been obtained by introducing also the Watt data. Test that I intend to do in the next months
Conclusions
Lots of data to read could be confusing, but the Garmin app is very clear and simple. Prolonged use allows for accurate readings and a better ability to interpret values.
It is very useful, as long as it does not completely affect the way you go out on your bike, but it allows you to better understand your body.
