New Balance HRM Review

"At this moment I wanted to do a Hulk-like shirt ripping and tearing the HRM chest strap off of my body, slamming it on the floor and destroying it Office Space-style."

(excerpt from my 05/11/10 Training Log)

My first HRM was a basic Polar. However, over time, I've abused it, the battery eventually died, and I was lured by the promises of a brand new shiny New Balance "N3 Mini Heart Rate Monitor" for a bargain clearance price of $40. It was basic but included HR-based calorie calculation, and that's all I needed.

First thing I did was lose the manual, which I realized as soon as I tried to use the watch. It is an non-intuitive as organic chemistry (actually... well.. but I am a nerd, and a chemical engineer). Not only could I not figure out how to input my data (weight, age, etc), but I couldn't even understand how to get the watch to show the amount of calories burned.

The second adventure was finding the manual online. N3 is only branded by New Balance, but is manufactured by someone else (at this point I forgot who). Therefore New Balance offers no support for this product whatsoever. Eventually I was able to discover this gem in the depth of the intranets (if you need it - let me know).

Inputting my data was a blast! <<sarcasm alert>> Weight starts at 160 lbs and ramps up to something like 850lbs, there is no "reverse" button of course. So I had to go alllllllllll the way through the cycle... and when you finger is numb from holding the button for the past 10 minutes... oops.. I accidentally passed my mark. Here we go again! YAY!

And then, it was finally ready for me and I was ready for it. 60-minutes of hardcore Kickbox-Jam cardio.. oh? I burned only 280 calories? are you serious?? The calorie calculation on the N3 is way off. At first I was skeptical - well, I am comparing to my old polar where I would burn at least 500 kcal during an hour-long cardio class. But checking with the simple calculators (weight x time x effort ..), or actually just with the prediction on the gym treadmill based on my weight - I new the New Balance was wrong.

The reason may have been the terrible chest strap quality. HRM straps slip and slide once in a while, but I rarely had problems with the Polar, as long as it as tucked under my sports bra it would detect an accurate reading about 95% of the time. New Balance was great at keeping my mind off of the strenuous exercises by focusing all of my attention on just trying to get a reading off of the damn thing. It doesn't detect HR until I work up a sweat (water doesn't work) and before I work up a lot of sweat.... so during about a 10-minute window after warm-up.

"Today I wanted to do a max-heart rate test. I got a lot of rest, I had my HRM, I had my mp3 player, and I was feeling great after the first warm-up mile..... and then I realized that my treadmill was reading my neighbor's heart rate, not mine. In fact, my HRM was flashing zero."

Hopefully I can revive my old Polar, but N3 is definitely going in the trash. 

RunningAHEAD Training Log Review

If you've just read Runner's World Training Log Review - no need to read the complete review below.

The following summary will do: RunningAHEAD has every feature that Runner's World Log lacks and is a complete easy-to-use package for logging your training. Scroll to the bottom of the post to see a quick summary comparison of the two.

RunningAHEAD is free online-based software and they would love your donation if you love them back. You can see my criteria for evaluation here.

Blogger Integration
"Tools" -> "Display Training Stats" provides options to integrate basic and concise data into another website by pasting the automatically generated scripts:



Customization is limited to selecting # of workouts to be displayed (optional parameter); and formatting of border, background color, and font. 
The workouts "Run: 9mi" are linked to RunningAHEAD log and open up the entry for the selected training session containing all workout details.

NOTE: In order to make your training log viewable for everyone go to "Settings" -> "My Log Preferences" and select "Allow everyone to see my running log". 

When in "Reports" you have the option of displaying a basic distance vs time graph or creating a completely custom one (see "Analytics" below). Every graph has a "Publish" button in the top right corner generating a script that allows to embed the graph into your website; Blogger manipulates it as an image (positioning and size options in editor); and the graph is updated as you add new workouts (!!!)
The  graph above has been embedded and initially had only two sample workouts.

Design Integrity

(click image to zoom)
Input allows a multitude of data including:

Distance - mi or km
Total time only - average pace is calculated for you, however detailed entry for pace-per-mile is not available
Type of run - easy, fartlek, hill, interval, long, race, tempo
Route - type in a new name, choose from used names, or from mapped routes
Weather - temperature as well as options for weather conditions
Exertion level - allows to separately rank work out quality and effort on a 1-10 scale
Workout-specific details - great entry options for intervals, including ability to save preset interval workouts; as well as placement details for a race
Heart rate data - resting, average, and max
Notes - field for notes and a separate space for a link
Other - weight input; equipment input (ie - type of shoe); a great bonus is ability to select from various workout types including biking, swimming, strength training, etc. 
Another huge bonus is ability to export ALL of the above stats in simple Excel-compatible format (as a tab delimited *.txt file) and what you do with that data is only limited by your imagination :) This is done via "Tools" -> "Download training data to your computer".

Usability
Very user-friendly and was very quick for me to figure out. The menu is concise and needed items are easy to find. The only negative for navigation is - clicking on "Messages" or "Settings" takes you outside of the "Training Log" zone and you lose the left-hand-side menu.

Analytics

The "Summary" displays mileage stats as well as a graph of distance categorized by run type on a time scale. The information on this page is fully customizable allowing you to add and delete a multitude of information including Activity Calendar, Activity Graph, Current Weather, and stats by timeframe.

The "Reports" menu provides an amazing opportunity to create a very customizable graphs of any and all data that you have recorded for your workouts! This feature is absolutely great, the graphs have a sleek look. Graphs can be saved so you can surround yourself with stats like a baseball star; and they are embeddable and updatable for your website!
The plot above shows my pace progression since I've started running. As you can see, I got hyper-excited about running faster right around April 21st, after which, if you look back at my notes, the runs started getting harder, then i really started to feel terrible during the runs and my pace deteriorated.

Route Mapping 

Accessible through the "Courses" menu.
Map types include street map, satellite, hybrid, terrain, MapMaker, topo, USGS sattelite, VirtualEarth; however topo, USGS, and MapMaker never loaded for me.
Adding points has no delay like in WalkJogRun or MapMyRun, and thankfully there is an option to NOT auto-center the map at every point, which can get a little annoying.
Editing points is very quick and easy - all points are displayed along route. What a relief from having to wait until the software recognizes the mouse-over and displays the route points. Inserting points is easy by clicking directly on the route with "Insert Point" checked. What a thoughtful feature! - if you are plotting along the same route twice you don't have to worry about "inserting" or adding a new point - just uncheck the box!
Elevation data can be loaded on request.
GPS data upload - via Garmin Communicator as well as from a plethora of file options, including GPX (any GPS device), TCX (Garmin Training Center), HRM (Polar), FITLOG (SportTracks), CSV (MapMyRun, custom), ZIP (Polar ProTrainer, Runner's World, etc).

Other options include addition of "water break", "medical", and "general note" points; Panoramio integration to view photos along route, quick zoom to view entire route, route reversal, and the standard out-and-back, and undo.
Other data entry fields include manual default distance, surface type, and notes. You can select to keep the route private or make it public in the browsable route community.

Overall, a GREAT tool. It is almost not glitchy (I only had trouble with deleting notes), and MUCH less glitchy that my experience so far. In fact, this is the best mapping tool I've used so far. (See all of my mapper reviews here).


Runner's World vs RunningAHEAD comparison

According to gossip Runner's World bought the rights for RunningAHEAD software, but never bothered to update it; while RunningAHEAD continuously makes improvements to it's software adding content and working out all those annoying deficiencies.

RunningAHEAD vs Runner's World DOES have the following features:

- Saving custom graphs

- Publishing graphs to your website via embedding the automatically generated script

- Uploading GPS data via Garmin Communicator as well as from a plethora of file options, including GPX (any GPS device), TCX (Garmin Training Center), HRM (Polar), FITLOG (SportTracks), CSV (MapMyRun, custom), ZIP (Polar ProTrainer, Runner's World, etc)

- Manual entry for route name without requirement to map it

- Mapper is fantastic - option to "follow roads", ability to insert points, less glitches (the only one I found is not being able to delete a note), and a huge map space while still keeping point plotting and map loading lightning fast.

Runner's World Training Log Review
Active Trainer Log Review

Runner's World Training Log Review

If you've just read RunningAHEAD Training Log Review - no need to read the complete review below.

The following summary will do: RunningAHEAD has every feature that Runner's World Log lacks and is a complete easy-to-use package for logging your training. Scroll to the bottom of the post to see a quick summary comparison of the two.

Runner's World Log is free online-based software and is easily accessible through the RW home page top menu. You can see my criteria for evaluation here.

Blogger Integration
"TOOLS" -> "Display Training Stats" provides options to integrate basic and concise data into another website by pasting the automatically generated scripts:



Customization is limited to selecting # of workouts to be displayed (optional parameter); and formatting of border, background color, and font. 
The workouts "Run: 9mi" are linked to RW log and open up the entry for the selected training session containing all workout details.

NOTE: In order to make your training log viewable for everyone go to "OPTIONS" in the top right corner of the log, click "Training Log Profile" and check the two privacy boxes.

This integration feels a little limited, but overall I am happy with the concise and to-the-point format that summarizes what you are up to and providing links to see all pertinent information.
A big minus is that the graphs are not embeddable (see "Analytics" below). At best, it may be possible to embed the summary time vs distance graph via iframe.

Design Integrity
(click image to zoom)
Input allows a multitude of data including:
Distance - mi or km
Total time only - average pace is calculated for you, however detailed entry for pace-per-mile is not available
Type of run - easy, fartlek, hill, interval, long, race, tempo
Route - requires to select from a list of maps forcing you to use the integrated mapping tool
Weather - temperature as well as options for weather conditions
Exertion level - allows to separately rank work out quality and effort on a 1-10 scale
Workout-specific details -  great entry options for intervals, including ability to save preset interval workouts; as well as placement details for a race
Heart rate data - resting, average, and max
Notes - field for notes and a separate space for a link
Other - weight input; shoe input; a great bonus is ability to select from various workout types including biking, swimming, strength training, etc. 
Another huge bonus is ability to export ALL of the above stats in simple Excel-compatible format (as a tab delimited *.txt file) and what you do with that data is only limited by your imagination :) This is done via "TOOLS" -> "Export".

Usability
Very user-friendly and was very quick for me to figure out. The menu is concise and needed items are easy to find. The log work area is segregated from the outside RW content, which does not get in the way.

Analytics

The "SUMMARY" displays mileage stats as well as a graph of distance categorized by run type on a time scale.

The "GRAPHS" provides an amazing opportunity to create a very customizable graphs of any and all data that you have recorded for your workouts! This feature is absolutely great, the graphs look good, HOWEVER they are not embeddable and not savable and therefore not auto-updatable. This is terrible and a real buzz-killer. The only savior is the ability to export all of this data and work with it outside of RW using Excel.

Route Mapping 

Accessible through the "ROUTES" menu.
Map types include street map, satellite, hybrid, topo, and USGS sattelite; however topo and USGS never loaded for me. There is no Terrain map.
Adding points has no delay like in WalkJogRun or MapMyRun, and thankfully there is an option to NOT auto-center the map at every point, which can get a little annoying.
Editing points is very quick and easy because there is a separate editing mode which displays all points! What a relief from having to wait until the software recognizes the mouse-over and displays the route points. The downside is that you can't add a point between two others.
Elevation data can be loaded on request. 
GPS data upload - no capability

Other options include addition of "water break", "medical", and "general note" points; the standard last-point-undo and out-and-back tools are available.
Other data entry fields include manual distance, surface type, and notes. You can select to keep the route private or make it public in the browsable route community.

Overall, a good tool. It is somewhat glitchy when loading maps and adding notes, however less glitchy that my experience so far. I wouldn't mind using this route mapping tool if I were to switch to the RW log. (See all of my mapper reviews here).


Runner's World vs RunningAHEAD comparison

According to gossip Runner's World bought the rights for RunningAHEAD software, but never bothered to update it; while RunningAHEAD continuously makes improvements to it's software adding content and working out all those annoying deficiencies.

Runner's World vs RunningAHEAD DOES NOT have the following features:

- Saving custom graphs

- Publishing graphs to your website via embedding the automatically generated script

- Uploading GPS data via Garmin Communicator as well as from a plethora of file options, including GPX (any GPS device), TCX (Garmin Training Center), HRM (Polar), FITLOG (SportTracks), CSV (MapMyRun, custom), ZIP (Polar ProTrainer, Runner's World, etc)

- Manual entry for route name without requirement to map it

- Mapper - option to "follow roads", ability to insert points, less glitches (the only one I found is not being able to delete a note), and a huge map space while still keeping point plotting and map loading lightning fast.

RunningAHEAD Training Log Review
Active Trainer Log Review

Training Logs

I took a step back and looked at my 1+ month of logging / blogging so far. What a mess! It was OK when every day I simply logged my run data and notes; and created pages to summarize all general research and thoughts. However, in just 1 month my research has overflown all reasonable limits of page formatting, it has expanded, bloated, and exploded, forcing me to create a real blog of real content.
However, now my log entries are mixed in with blog entries making a giant unreadable mess.

"What if" - I thought "there was a way to keep my log in a real logger format, and embed it into the blog??"

And now follows the detailed review of training-logging software out there.

Review and Evaluation Criteria

1)   Only online-based systems will be reviewed - I need ability to access and edit my log from work/home/etc. (If I had an iPhone or such, mobile usability would be hugely important, but I don't.)

2)   Free - most online systems are; and you can pay a fee for actual training plans, but I'd rather buy Pfitzinger for that purpose.

3)   Blogger integration - it is very important for me to be able to make my training records accessible and presentable through Blogger. Therefore, availability of widgets and scripts will be my top evaluation criteria.

4)   Design integrity - is the log designed to capture all of the following pertinent information: mileage, pace per mile, type of run, location, weather, exertion level, workout-specific details (ie intervals), heart rate data, notes. Also, I must be able to input my training plan into the log.

5)   Usability - Can I access all the data I need in a concise format? Is there a lot of unnecessary bells and whistles? Or are there ads in my way??

6)   Analytics - what graphing tools are available to allow me to see my progress clearly?

7)   Mapping - many online logs have integrated route mappers that I will review based on the following requirements: usability, speed, mileage markers, points management.

Runner's World Training Log Review
RunningAHEAD Training Log Review
Active Trainer Log Review

Food and Nutrient Proportions

Proportions
Before exercise: 16oz an hour prior to exercise 


During exercise: 200-400 kcal/hr @ 8-15% protein / 85% complex carbs; 10-27 oz fluid /hr (3-9oz every 15-20 mins) with sufficient electrolyte content (electrolyte amount is VERY individual - see below).


After exercise: 50-75 grams of carbohydrates and 15-20 grams of protein within 30-60 minutes

http://www.livestrong.com/article/73948-muscle-recovery-runners/

Running Doctor

http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-242-301--13482-0,00.html?cm_mmc=nutrition-_-2010_05_06-_-nutrition-_-DIET%3a%20Digestive%20Issues

I will attempt to play "doctor" by collecting all of the factual (as factual as Google results are) data and opinions on problems during running such as "you need electrolytes to avoid cramping" and translate that into "cramping - possible electrolyte deficiency". Pretty easy, huh?
Muscle cramping, cessation of sweating, nausea - dehydration 

Muscle cramping and stomach discomfort - over-hydration and nutrient/electrolyte dilution in blood. The body can absorb 15-20 (27) oz of fluids per hour

Muscle cramping, weakness, nausea - especially in hot weather - lack of electrolytes (calcium, magnesium, potassium, sodium (in the form of sodium chloride), and manganese).

Fatigue - too much protein, causing an overabundance of amino-acids in the blood, which are converted to dioxide, water, and ammonia; while excess ammonia is toxic to the body; not enough protein (for 90min+ exercises), causing the body to use muscle as a protein source and increasing ammonia production. During endurance workouts 8-15% of consumed calories should come from protein, the rest from complex carbohydrates.

Burst of energy followed by fatigue, mood swings - too much simple sugar in diet causing an insulin spike followed by a crash.

Bloating, nausea - too much solid food during exercise stresses the body requiring additional energy for digestion.

Slow muscle recovery, weak immune system - not enough calories consumed to make up for energy required for training. During an endurance race the body's requirement is ~200-400 kcal per hour.

Irritability, restless sleep, elevated resting heart rate, inability to reach peak heart rate during training, fatigue several days in a row - over-training.

Links  
http://www.time-to-run.com/training/articles/10mistakes.htm

Pace

Runners World has a great pace calculator that uses a simple formula:
http://runnersworld.com/cda/trainingcalculator
I was surprised to find out that with my current pace (05/01/10), which - if extrapolated 1:1 - should allow be a marathon time under 4 hours, is really not going to hold up all that well over 26.2 miles. It may be discouraging for some, but for me this this is a prevention tool for over-training. At this point, when I have suffered through a week of terrible runs, it's like a sign saying - don't worry about the time. Remember - just finishing will be HUGE.

Here's what I got. I haven't ran any races yet, however, for example sake, let's say that I can run 6 miles at 9m/mi (54 minutes):
     Marathon time = 4:17
     Long run = 10:54 - 12:15 m/mi - this is WAY slower than what I run now.
     Tempo run = 9:07 m/mi


Now when I input my target marathon time of 4 hours I get suggested training paces:
     Tempo run = 8:34
     Long run = 10:15 - 11:33

I am not completely comprehending the concept of a slow long run at this point. I understand that a shorter run can be faster than a long run. However, if I am training for a marathon, shouldn't I train to run the "long run" - ie - main prep for marathon - at my target marathon pace??

PS - how freaking cool is that PaceTat???
****************************************************

An AMAZING article by competitiverunner.com almost resolves my dilemma... almost. Well, at least it convinces me (and that's a feat!) that I should in fact be running my long runs slower "to avoid overtraining" while "still reaping all of the benefits of a long run"; the article makes sure to point out that "race pace runs are important". "The trick for any athlete is to find the balance between long easy runs and faster marathon paced runs."
And.. Pete Pfitzinger has the answer!

Long runs at marathon race pace prepare you most directly for the demands of the marathon. The principle of specificity of training states that the most effective way to prepare for an event is to simulate that event as closely as possible in training. The closest way to simulate a marathon, of course, is to run 26.2 miles at marathon pace. Unfortunately, long runs at marathon pace are very hard on the body. If you run too far at marathon pace, the required recovery time will negate the benefits of the effort. Similarly, if you do long runs at marathon pace too often, you will greatly increase your likelihood of self-destructing through injury or overtraining.

Links
http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-238-520--13101-0,00.html# 
http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-238-244-255-11932-0,00.html#
http://pfitzinger.com/labreport.shtml
http://runningtimes.com/Article.aspx?ArticleID=4432&PageNum=5 
http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-238-244--6946-3-3X5X7-4,00.html#
http://www.mcmillanrunning.com/training2.htm 
http://www.runningmania.com/resources/programs/index.php
http://homepage.mac.com/psminkey/running/page6/page6.html