UKC

Inspired by the running training thread and realising that I’ve plateaued and seen to be picking up niggly not quite injuries, I decided to experiment in zoned training.

Dust off an ancient heart rate monitor (bought in Tiso in May 2002 - receipt was still in box) purchased shortly before becoming pregnant with oldest child then dumped in a drawer and forgotten about.  Change battery in wrist display and lo and behold it still seems to work.

Displaying a resting heart-rate of 59 which seems fairly feasible for a fairly fit 55year old female.  I head out the door, switch on Strava and put my phone in my pocket - glance at watch, apparently heart rate is 201.  Keep an eye on it and it’s doing fairly weird things, sometimes jumping from maybe about 165 beats to over 200 then returning quickly to something more feasible.  

I’m wondering if it’s the proximity of my phone so I take it out of my pocket and run down the road with it held out to the side like a complete tube.  Doesn’t seem to help.  Wonder if it’s the wiring in my bra and draw the line at taking that off whilst going along the road.

Manage to get some feasible readings amongst the 220bpm nonsense but of course have not a clue if they are actually accurate or not.

Try again today.  Warm up in the house with phone in same pocket and monitor seems to be behaving perfectly.  Head outside and immediately 220bpm from a gentle jog the 1Om or so to end of driveway.  The only thing I can think which might be causing the difference in behaviour is the fact that I’ve switched Strava on, on my phone.

Would Strava cause interference on an old HR monitor?  

I have problems with a HRM strap in the first 10 minutes or so of a run. It gives very variable heart rates, and as you've been experiencing, very high (unfeasibly so) readings. It tends to settle down over time, but it does mean the first 10 minutes or so of data are useless. The same strap works fine when I'm on the turbo trainer.

I've tried assorted fixes, including the use of a conducting gel under the pads on the strap, but none seem to work. I shall watch this thread with interest.

I guess you can test your suspicion re Strava quite quickly - go for a few minutes jog without turning strava on (unless this is necessary to show the readings?).  You can also test the accuracy of the 'feasible readings' noted by physically taking your pulse.

Should also say (edit) that I am also inspired by the running thread and certainly paying more attention to running in the relevant zones for the training to be as productive as possible.  Did some higher intensity intervals today as an experiment.

I'm going with the strap picking up your cadence and not your HR. This can happen in cold dry conditions (as you don't sweat enough to maintain a good contact), strap not tight enough etc. Also, the static from technical clothing could be an issue especially if dry.

Try making sure the contact points are really moist and the strap is tight before setting off.

Edit: https://www.dcrainmaker.com/2010/04/troubleshooting-your-heart-rate.html

Try wetting the strap before you wear it, and take the pulse in your neck when it’s reading 220 to check it. 

Oh, that’s possible.  I’ll make sure it’s cinched more tightly next time, it’s currently cold and windy hereabouts so not much sweating going on and am wearing enough layers of nylon to cause a lot of static.

Surely I’d be aware if my heart was banging out 220bpm at very light effort?

https://www.medisave.co.uk/spectra-360-electrode-gel-250g-tube.html?gclid=C...

This stuff is worthwhile, stick a small bit on the contacts and you should have a good reading from the start. 

The HRM being almost 20 years old is probably not helping though, the battery could be going dead giving you wonky readings as well.. I would suggest getting a new HRM, the WAHOO TICKR is pretty good and cheaper than the Garmin equivalent. 

That's really useful thanks

Don’t check it then!

Just had a look at that dcrainmaker page.  The road I ran along has a power line running all the way along it.  So that’s another thing to check - my monitor is a Polar, so could be affected.

Having looked though, they’ve certainly come down in price since I bought mine, which was an entry level model 20 years ago.  If I can’t get it to behave by wetting the contacts/tightening the strap/turning it round/trying a different route/wearing a different clothing combo/switching off strava, I might splash out and buy a new one

Low batteries in the heart strap, does mine, I thought it was our wifi, because it always settled down after leaving the house, but changing  the batteries cured the issue.

There's a good chance it's the moisture or lack of it, maybe combined with tightness. I've had similar happen on cold, dry days (mostly when cycling) despite wetting the contacts with tap water before starting.

This morning I wet the contacts before putting on the strap and cinched it tighter.

Did a few chores around the house and warmed up (working perfectly).  Headed out - all over the place for first 10 mins or so.  I even attempted to take my pulse just in case I was actually about to cark it, but by the time I’d wrestled my phone out of my back pocket to use as a timer, got my gloves off so I could work it and found my pulse, the monitor was showing a normal level again.

Then it seemed to settle down and work the way it should.  Initially I thought it might be because I moved out of the range of power lines, but I was under the same lines on the way home and it was fine.  There were a couple of momentary blips where it shot up by about 50bpm then immediately went back down.  Both times near gates/ends of fields.  Maybe some electric fence equipment lying around?  Who knows.

See trying to stay in zone 2 in a strong wind - not easy.  Into the wind I was running like the elderly gent who comes to our parkrun and runs in 85-89 year old category (and is utterly awesome) and he’s definitely quicker than me in zone 2.  Then resisting the temptation just to go with it when there’s a downhill, wind behind you, section.  

Strava shouldn't mess with it - all it's doing is using the GPS signal and maybe some data, the same as the other apps on your phone. Incidentally, but Strava won't accept a direct feed from an HRM - it used to, but some people found it unstable and so they stopped it for everyone.

My wahoo tickr used to do this.  I solved the problem by throwing it away and buying a new one.  The new one's dependable.  Which is more than can be said for the speed indicator on the Wahoo Bolt to which it links.  It seems totally intolerant of trees.  Riding up Whitedown Lane hereabouts (one of the 100 best climbs in the UK) it has the temerity to say 'Ride paused'  on the steepest bit - there was some bad language, which seemed to wake it up...

Yes my cheap Decathlon bluetooth chest hrm was always a bit temperamental with Strava, but it works perfectly paired to my watch which I record activities to with it's native software then import to Strava. All data including HR is there then.

I had a Garmin strap do that, no amount of contact gel or anything else seemed to sort it and I gave up in the end.  I bought a replacement strap that turned out not to be compatible with the watch (which was rather old) and then ended up upgrading the lot when I got lucky and somebody popped up selling a second hand watch for a bargain price on here.

Yep, same here. Tried everything (hence my post further up with all the advice I'd gleaned from DC Rainmaker). I'm still talking to Garmin support about it but, to be fair, it's past the warranty and it's been used heavily in that time. Fortunately, my brother has a second hand one he's going to pop in the post for me 🙂. Replacement strap (the actual unit with the battery is detachable) for the Garmin is 40 quid!

Polar list these possibilities

https://support.polar.com/en/support/FAQs/Abnormal_Heart_Rate_Readings_Duri...

Good grief, I suspect most of those things are possible.  Except the hairy chest - I definitely don’t have one of them!

I don't know anything about these devices but when I had a bike computer I noticed that there is a place about a mile from home  by Crossrigg  Hall where there is a little box with a "rubber duck) helical antenna where my speed suddenly shot up to about 50mph!  Every time.