Connect IQ

Third-Party App Ideas Recovery timer

Recovery timer

Former Member over 10 years ago

Although there is a recovery timer it would be nice to have one which is adjustable eg 2min, 5min, 10min etc and then have a record of the results after an Activity in Garmin Connect reports so you can track progress.

Former Member over 9 years ago

Sorry - yes, I overlooked that.

Thanks for the link.

It would appear that you have to wait for the Recovery Timer to display before saving the exercise file, otherwise the information is not displayed.

Nikeow over 9 years ago

Sorry - yes, I overlooked that.

Thanks for the link.

It would appear that you have to wait for the Recovery Timer to display before saving the exercise file, otherwise the information is not displayed.

hence, based on this newly discovered gem - guess you don't need the recovery timer anymore?

Former Member over 9 years ago

No - I'd still like to a timer to measure the time taken to drop to a pre-set level.

The on-board recovery timer runs too long in some instances and not long enough in others.

Former Member over 9 years ago

A further issue is whether the F3 records the HRR data. It is suggested in another post that the data is recorded in a .fit file.

However, exporting the data to a tcx or gpx file for review in Excel, I can't see that the data is recorded.

Edit to add:

Converting the .fit file to csv shows the field RECOVERY_HR MARKER. It appears that is only saved provided the exercise session is not saved until the HRR function is completed.

You can then compare the figure at RECOVERY_HR MARKER to the figure for heart_rate(bpm) at STOP_ALL.

An app/widget to extract that information (to save having to delve into the .fit file) would be useful!

Former Member over 9 years ago

After converting the fit file to csv (instead of exporting the data as a csv file) I have now found an entry in the file
listed as RECOVERY_HR MARKER which contains the HR data at the end of the HRR period.

By then comparing that to the HR at the end of the session, the drop can be calculated. Unfortunately this a little cumbersome - but could potentially be addressed by an app!

Nikeow over 9 years ago

After converting the fit file to csv (instead of exporting the data as a csv file) I have now found an entry in the file
listed as RECOVERY_HR MARKER which contains the HR data at the end of the HRR period.

By then comparing that to the HR at the end of the session, the drop can be calculated. Unfortunately this a little cumbersome - but could potentially be addressed by an app!

interesting.. DIdn't know that.. but it's not easy to decipher. not even sure if this is the actual data

record,  8,  timestamp(s),          altitude(m), speed(m/s), Unknown, Unknown, heart_rate(bpm)
   data,  8, 19/06/2015 07:05:12, 26.6,          1.847,         2633,       -470,       179
   data,  2, 19/06/2015 07:07:13, RECOVERY_HR,	MARKER			
    def, 76, 00/01/1900 00:00:00, 34,             8 ,            253,         4,        134

Former Member over 9 years ago

I was only sure of the data because I made a point of checking at the end of my session what the HR was and making a note of the HRR figures and then hunting back through the .fit file.

In each of my .fit files, the HRR figure is in the column immediately prior to the RECOVERY_HR MARKER

eg:

data 2 21/06/2015 9:47 79 RECOVERY_HR MARKER

The "end" figures from the session are a few lines above. The end HR figure in the sample below is 114.

eg:

data 8 21/06/2015 9:45 -4E+08 1.8E+09 8098.37 119.2 2.958 810 3600 2780 3095 1287 114 77 16 1 0
data 2 21/06/2015 9:45 0 TIMER STOP_ALL 0

Former Member over 9 years ago

I believe this is a worthy topic as well and appreciate the input about converting the .fit file to a .csv file for further analysis. As most of you have implied, it shouldn't be this hard to obtain and trend simple heart rate recovery data.

Fun Fact: The Fenix 3 user's manual doesn't even describe this heart rate recovery function in the "Recovery Advisor" section or any other part of the Manual.

Considering that the HRR data doesn't pop up until after two minutes, I have to wonder how many F3 owners out there haven't yet realized that this feature actually exists because they depress save or discard at the end of a workout (and by doing that it precludes the HRR data from automatically appearing after two minutes); there is absolutely no cue available to any user that they must not make a selection on the post workout screen for two minutes in order to review the HRR data.

It would seem appropriate for Garmin to incorporate HRR data within the "Recovery Advisor" application or one that is stand-alone where the HRR data is accesible both on the watch and via Garmin Connect with the ability to customise it as well. I actually submitted this to the Garmin Innovation Team to review as a possible future improvement. For a high-end watch like the F3, this should be an expected feature that is customizable and available to save and trend over time (especially if other fitness watch manufacturers like Polar and Timex have afforded users this function for years).

Below was my submission to the Garmin Innovation Team:

I would like to convey the following issue about the Fenix 3’s built-in heart rate recovery data feature that I believe the Garmin Innovation Team should investigate for possible improvement.

The Garmin Fenix 3 owner’s manual describes a “Recovery Advisor” program that has two functions: 1) a “Recovery Check” that shows the state of recovery during the first several minutes of an activity, and 2) “Recovery Time” that counts down until the next optimal time another workout can be performed. What this section fails to mention is that another function is built into the watch that will also display recovery heart rate data immediately following a workout (bpm drop in a two minute period). For any workout where heart rate is sensed (even swimming), the recovery heart rate data will generate on the watch screen exactly two minutes from the point the start/stop button is depressed to end a workout. The F3 owner’s manual fails to describe this separate function within the “Recovery Advisor” section or any other section of the manual. This function has been available ever since at least the version 2.6 update which was the latest software version available when I purchased my F3.

There is also a limitation with this heart rate recovery screen which is that it will not populate any data if the current workout is saved, discarded, resumed, resumed later, or tracked back. If a user finishes a workout, presses stop, and saves the workout before the two minute period is up, no recovery heart rate data will be displayed. It would obviously make sense not to display the heart rate recovery data if another workout is started or the current workout is resumed within the next two minutes, but if the prior workout was only saved with no other workouts following then the recovery heart rate data should still be programmed to automatically appear after the two minute period has elapsed. So if the user wants to view the heart rate recovery data they must not make a choice on the selection screen (after pressing stop). However, the user can depress the back button to review the application data screens for that workout and also navigate back to the main clock screen or any other screen because the heart rate recovery data will still pop up after two minutes. Again, this is as long as no option was chosen on the post workout selection screen.

This seems like a technical inability worthy of further investigation by Garmin. It doesn't seem appropriate that the workout heart rate recovery data for that specific workout will not automatically display if the user wants to save the workout data first. Basically, the user is mandated to delay their intention to make a selection on the post-workout screen if they want to review their recovery heart rate data.

Ideas for Improvement:

If Garmin incorporated a heart rate recovery check function into the watch programming, it was a deemed a worthy feature by someone making the decisions. It just needs to be tweaked a bit to make it more of a user-friendly function. The following are some suggestions.

1) Is heart rate recovery check data stored to a .fit file? The data is not currently available for post analysis on the watch or on Garmin Connect (only the “Recover Time” function of the Recovery Advisor program can be displayed on the watch), so the heart rate recovery data is lost once the user navigates away from that screen. I believe this is a feature worth saving to a .fit file for post workout review since many consider it an important variable for determining overall cardiovascular fitness and for use as a training tool. Users should have the optional ability to save the heart rate recovery data (if desired) so that it not only saves but attaches to the activity just completed.

2) This recovery heart rate feature should be a user-defined function like it has been for years on other fitness devices like Polar or the Timex Ironman series of watches. It would be nice to choose the actual heart rate recovery time (one minute, two minutes, three minutes, etc.).

3) The end of the recovery period (however long it may be) should also be associated with a customizable notification (tone, vibration, tone and vibration, or silent).

3) The heart rate recovery check screen could also be improved. It displays the heart rate at the two minute point and the drop in bpm over the two minute recovery period, but it does not display the starting heart rate. Even though the drop in bpm and ending heart rate can be summed to determine the starting heart rate, it would be practical to just show the starting heart rate as well. It just makes sense, and there is plenty of room on the screen.

4) The heart rate recovery notification screen should also display the time (in minutes) of recovery time so the user knows not only the drop in heart rate, but the time period for the recovery check as well.

Thanks for any feedback.