Discovery Vitality in 2016

[asshat99]

To be fair, the old 'moderate' category was pretty generous IMHO. 60 % of max for a 40 yold - 108 bpm? JUST standing alert with your smoothie is 60 - 100 bpm for low-medium fitness adults. Some people are fooling themselves about the intensity of their cardio exercise. An easy run - meaning being able to repeat it every day for a week with no ill effects - gives me 155 bpms or so.

 

[jman]

Okay, looking to get a Withings Pulse O2. Any feedback? Good idea?

I'm sure this won't give you points for heart rate data, as it needs to be an active heart rate providing an average for your workout, as opposed to taking static heart rate measurements. Just make sure though

 

[jman]

Woop woop. Polar beats works with muvit/i-gotu. So at least wont have to get new HRM.

I was just about to post this, as I've just tested. What a relief. To anyone not looking to spend thousands on a device to measure HR, get yourself the muvit hrm strap from makro (online only)for R400. It will work with the polar beat app, so you'll be able to use it after these 2nd of April changes

 

[xcaliber]

To be fair, the old 'moderate' category was pretty generous IMHO. 60 % of max for a 40 yold - 108 bpm? JUST standing alert with your smoothie is 60 - 100 bpm for low-medium fitness adults. Some people are fooling themselves about the intensity of their cardio exercise. An easy run - meaning being able to repeat it every day for a week with no ill effects - gives me 155 bpms or so.

You must be very unfit.

 

[phoneJunky]

How is your peak that high? Its impossible. What HR device you using since it seems to give high results

My peak is 216 and that is with a Polar and a Apple Watch. So that is not impossible. That theoretical maximum HR is very crude. People are different, just standing up to get coffee gets my HR up to above 100 and I run races, so I am not really unfit.

 

[Tinuva]

Well lucky you guys, standing still my HR is at 55 *cries*.

It takes a considerable amount of work to get it to 60%. Keeping it at just above 70% for 60 minutes has me drowned completely wet in sweat. I will probably die if I try to keep a 80% average heart rate for 90 minutes for measly 600 points, where my currently weekly target is now at 900.

I dont think these changes are even remotely funny.

 

[asshat99]

You must be very unfit.

BS - I have run 70 km in this last week. You clearly know nothing about HR monitoring. Clueless. Essentially, a low RESTING HR indicates fitness. A high EXERCISING HR indicates intensity. If you are exercising and your HR is low, you are chilling and you need to go faster. It does not mean you are fit necessarily. As you get fitter, you will be faster with the same HR. A fit person's HR will rapidly rise and recover in response to exercise (but not as much). An unfit person's will be slower in response to changes in intensity (but more for the same INTENSITY).

So if you are unfit:
* HIGH exercise HR, but you won't make 30 minutes.
If you are slow and lazy:
* LOW exercise HR
If you are Fit:
* HIGH exercise HR for hours because you are exercising intensely = speed.

You are like those people who think Discovery is rewarding unfit people by giving more points for higher HRs. Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. That is why it is combined with a time. You must be very SLOW.

The 'vigorous' range is now definitely high. But for the moderate range - these people were just expecting to be rewarded for doing almost nothing for their health. Just chilling at the gym.

 

[brakpanpolisie]

Like to get some advice from people using the Apple Watch to gym / workout, when exercising my heart rate is really irregular compared to when I was wearing my Fitbit.
It will shoot up to about 170bpm then crash down to about 60bpm all in the space of about 1 minute, so this really screws up my average heart rate.
So question is what am I doing wrong?
I wear the watch quite tight with a sweat band, well just above comfortably tight, just above my wrist, anything else I should be doing?

 

[asshat99]

Like to get some advice...

Sounds like you are doing it right. Should be tight enough to never let light in and not on the bone.

The sensors do not work well with compound wrist movements. So running is fine but weight lifting might be problematic.

Some people who are desperate wear the watch in the inside of the wrist.

I wonder how well the sensors handle super hairy arms...

 

[Alacrity]

To be fair, the old 'moderate' category was pretty generous IMHO. 60 % of max for a 40 yold - 108 bpm? JUST standing alert with your smoothie is 60 - 100 bpm for low-medium fitness adults. Some people are fooling themselves about the intensity of their cardio exercise. An easy run - meaning being able to repeat it every day for a week with no ill effects - gives me 155 bpms or so.

On the new rules my 90 minute boot camp session won't get any points even though I was pushing hard. I can only get my heart rate higher than 70% with serious effort. Gym, bootcamp and things like that will get me now 0 points.

 

[asshat99]

Yip, that kind of exercise is always going to be tricky. Running is far more continuous. I feel for users like you but it is difficult to reward 'campers while not also rewarding clueless people who think they are fit for clapping a 108 on the reclined bikes while pigging out on smoothies.

Getting to 70 percent is indeed meant to take serious effort - it is (was) called 'vigorous'. Other commentators seem to be adverse to the idea of sweating while doing 'vigorous' excerise.

Please do not read my comments as support of the change in the 'vigorous' limits - though I am lucky to be unaffected.

 

[brakpanpolisie]

Thanks I thought about wearing it on my inner wrist, that might sort out this dodgy heart rate of mine.
If not I'm just going to invest in a chest strap, seems to be the most reliable way to measure your heart rate.

 

[Maxx1974]

Yip, that kind of exercise is always going to be tricky. Running is far more continuous. I feel for users like you but it is difficult to reward 'campers while not also rewarding clueless people who think they are fit for clapping a 108 on the reclined bikes while pigging out on smoothies.

Getting to 70 percent is indeed meant to take serious effort - it is (was) called 'vigorous'. Other commentators seem to be adverse to the idea of sweating while doing 'vigorous' excerise.

Please do not read my comments as support of the change in the 'vigorous' limits - though I am lucky to be unaffected.

I agree! I think it is fair to expect hard work for reward but don't punish those of us who are working hard. 80%+ for extended periods of time is not healthy!! I do sweat when I exercise! People who are working hard but without HR fitness devices are also going to be punished...how can they get points past 700 if they can't get heart rate data It seems really wrong!!

 

[Tinuva]

ROFL @ http://hellopeter.com/discovery-vit...omplaints/discovery-has-lost-the-plot-1982672

We acknowledge that these points changes will impact our members on Vitality Active Rewards and we have therefore decided to recalculate every Vitality Active Rewards members' goal in order to account for these changes.

 

[asshat99]

If not I'm just going to invest in a chest strap, seems to be the most reliable way to measure your heart rate.

Unfortunately, the apple watch is not the best for HR monitoring. Funny how discovery doesn't think the fitbit is good enough but loves the apple watch.

http://www.dcrainmaker.com/2016/02/apple-watch-review.html

 

[air]

@abudabi and jman -> muvit hr strap and polar app(android phone) - would this be all I require to log points with the new vitality rules?

thanks a bunch for your input!

 

[abudabi]

Theoretically yes.

It depends how much of an arse discovery wants to be though. If they deem the muvit chest straps as generating "3rd party" data (due to it not being a polar chest strap) then we're all out of luck. If they accept it because the polar beat app is generating the data... then we're good.

If you want to go out and buy something, then I suggest you wait a month until one of us can verify that the HR data counts. The flip side to that is : Who knows if the muvit strap will still be available in a month's time.

Good luck!

 

[xcaliber]

BS - I have run 70 km in this last week. You clearly know nothing about HR monitoring. Clueless. Essentially, a low RESTING HR indicates fitness. A high EXERCISING HR indicates intensity. If you are exercising and your HR is low, you are chilling and you need to go faster. It does not mean you are fit necessarily. As you get fitter, you will be faster with the same HR. A fit person's HR will rapidly rise and recover in response to exercise (but not as much). An unfit person's will be slower in response to changes in intensity (but more for the same INTENSITY).

So if you are unfit:
* HIGH exercise HR, but you won't make 30 minutes.
If you are slow and lazy:
* LOW exercise HR
If you are Fit:
* HIGH exercise HR for hours because you are exercising intensely = speed.

You are like those people who think Discovery is rewarding unfit people by giving more points for higher HRs. Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. That is why it is combined with a time. You must be very SLOW.

The 'vigorous' range is now definitely high. But for the moderate range - these people were just expecting to be rewarded for doing almost nothing for their health. Just chilling at the gym.

Well done and good for you

 

[cerebus]

I'm going to the U.S. In April so I'll just get a device when I'm there. Need to research to see what's best then.

 

[AntennaMan]

Theoretically yes.

It depends how much of an arse discovery wants to be though. If they deem the muvit chest straps as generating "3rd party" data (due to it not being a polar chest strap) then we're all out of luck. If they accept it because the polar beat app is generating the data... then we're good.

If you want to go out and buy something, then I suggest you wait a month until one of us can verify that the HR data counts. The flip side to that is : Who knows if the muvit strap will still be available in a month's time.

Good luck!

Discovery told me yesterday that none of my workouts are valid since I used the muvit heart rate monitor. I think this is just a cop-out. They really are looking for any excuse not to give points.