Garmin | Heart attack waiting to happen

On the face of it, cycling is a simple pursuit; man and machine in harmony. Technology has enhanced the experience, providing us with feedback every inch of the way, but in doing so it’s introduced complexity. Have we lost the connection by staying connected?

“Nothing compares to the simple pleasure of riding a bike.”
John F Kennedy

Cycling outside…

When I ride I use a Garmin Cycling Computer to capture some basic information; GPS tracks my journey, recording undulations and forward motion. It also records each turn of the wheel, and every turn of the pedals; a magnet on the rear wheel beats out a rhythm reflecting distance and speed, while a similar magnet on the pedal indicates cadence. A monitor on the frame “listens” for movement, broadcasting every action.

I also wear a Heart Rate Monitor to make sure I exercise within reasonable limits. This, too, broadcasts to the Garmin, allowing it to record my exertion.

Of course, when I’m on the road I take my smartphone with me, “just in case”, but it’s generally double-bagged to keep it dry and kept safely tucked away.

When I finish a ride I connect my Garmin to my laptop to upload details of the ride to Strava, where I record all my activity and share what I’ve been up to with the outside world.

You would think that riding in the garage, protected from the elements, without any physical movement would simplify things, but instead things have got a lot more complicated…

In the garage…

The Turbo Trainer introduces another set of gadgets. It is controlled by a display unit that sits neatly on the handlebars. It provides me with feedback on my ride, cadence, speed, heart rate, etc. but I only really use it to control resistance.

In order to give my rides some structure and make them a bit more interesting I have subscribed to Zwift. It provides a virtual cycling environment, as well as lots of fellow cyclists to “ride” with. As well as tracking my ride, it also provides me with feedback on my performance. An Ant+ dongle connects the Garmin to my laptop, transferring all the details, so I can view speed, cadence, heart rate and estimated power on the screen.

Zwift uses an App to turn my smartphone into a control unit so I can control elements of my ride, choose when to turn and interact with other riders (not that I generally do either as I find it a huge distraction when I’m trying to focus on riding).

When I finish my rides Zwift automatically syncs with Strava, safely recording my efforts.

My Cycling Connections

Just in case I don’t have enough feedback, I was given a FitBit for Christmas. This records all sorts of interesting information about me throughout the day; physical activity, sleep, heart rate, etc. Handy!

So, this simple pursuit is now supported by a spaghetti of cables, 5 display units, and an array of recording devices. A failed connection, or the briefest of power outages can result in chaos… and often does.

Perhaps it’s time to de-clutter and get back to basics?

I broke my personal best for 40km on the bike today. Actually it’s the third or fourth time I’ve done it over the past month. In reality I know it’s all relatively arbitrary as all my recent cycling has been done on the Turbo Trainer so, to a degree, I can control how easy or hard the miles are.

That said, I’m always eager to see how far I’ve managed to “get” when I finish each session… to see if my Garmin Bike Computer has any new records to report.

Competitiveness is a bit of a double edged sword for me. I will only get stronger and fitter if I push myself, but I have to make sure I stay within safe limits… my maximum Heart Rate is still only 118, and I don’t think will ever change. So, I find myself in a constant balancing act between my Heart, my Legs and my Head… which will be the weakest link on any given day is anyone’s guess!

For me, having a Heart Attack hasn’t dampened my competitive spirit. In fact the exercise I have been doing as a result has probably made me more competitive, if only by the fact that I am now fit enough to compete again!

What I really need to do now is to focus my competitiveness on going long rather than deep… I need to build stamina rather than power, for distance rather than speed. This is not what I’m naturally inclined towards but it’ll benefit my “engine” (Heart Healthiness) and lay the foundations for the challenges to come in 2014.

A funky seat will make all the difference!

For the time being, there’s plenty of scope for me to set many more personal bests… I’m still very much at the novice stage. In time my rests will get shorter and the need to give my derrière a break will (hopefully!) abate. As a result, I should improve without having to dig too deep.

So I will continue to watch the Garmin with interest, because despite the fact that we know it’s a little childish it’s always good to get a bit of positive feedback, even if it is from a Bike Computer!