The relentless rule of my fitness tracker | Hacker News Reader

The relentless rule of my fitness tracker

timharford.com

20 pointsArnt8 comments

A few years ago (possibly around the same time as the author), I also took up running and was gifted a Garmin from a running friend of mine. He also recommended an app called TrainAsOne, a running scheduled that did/does an AI/ML and poops put a constantly adjusting scheduled for you.

The first three weeks were great, but boy howdy TAO was pushing me fairly hard. “That’s fine, I’m young (32), I can do it!” I could not. Fourth week I get hit with massive runners knee and I’m out for a few months.

The app couldn’t know this was going to happen, I’ve got pretty bad knees genetically, but my dedication to the EXACT specifications of each outing determined by the model was absolute, and to my detriment.

The same friend who gifted me the watch told me to go slow, short runs, build the endurance, but the app differed, so who did I trust more? I digress.

I’ve since cancelled the app, and I’m back running for a few years, all while managing the injury. Like the author, I’ll be tackling the Berlin Marathon in September. But my training is now done on my own terms. I’m guided by some external advice, but unwavering acceptance of an app to what I do with my body is not something I want to try again.

I still track all my runs, but all I do is start the watch, and go for a run. It doesn’t beep at me to go faster or slower, it just shuts its mouth while I move forward.

All that aside, I can’t help but do the maths on my monthly volume to ensure I’m hitting bigger and bigger milestones. Thank god the watch is counting it for me ;)

I always had pretty simple fitness watches that just show and log pace and pulse, and that worked fine. Last year I got me a new one which is "smarter", with an app that makes predictions and asseses my fitness level, tracks "sleep quality" and stuff like that, and I came to the same conclusion, luckily without me injuring myself. I'll keep using it for just tracking, but as kind of personal trainer these things completely lack a big part of the feedback cycle about all your other body signals except heart rate, and therefore can send you down a negative, self destructive cycle of injuries.

With regard to the Marathon: Good luck, take it easy with the preparation. Don't let the pressure of investment into the Berlin Marathon (expensive registration fee etc) force you into feeling obliged to stick to plans. There are lots of other marathons and half marathons that are not as big and expensive as the Berlin Marathon, so if things go badly, just cancel it, recover, and pick another one.

Thanks! These days my body tells me what to do, so if it’s too much, then I’ll save it for another time.

I don't think there's a substitute for listening to your body. I came to this conclusion after trying to run through a sore knee 45 years go. Somehow the memory faded, and about seven years ago I ran myself into a painful case of plantar fascitis. Runners tend to be that way.

A friend has a watch that seems curiously judgmental, and has rated runs of his as sub-par or the equivalent. I told him that I'd put such a watch on the driveway and run it over.

On the flip side, if a user expects too much from a fitness tracker it can lead to unreasonable health anxieties.

A user trying to determine an accurate heart rate or blood oxygen level during exercise (not at rest) will find that the guidelines are too broad and the tracker data is too slow and noisy to get the feedback they want. They can get a rough idea of how hard they exercised and for how long, but a fitness tracker isn't necessary just for that.

Good lord the reveal at the end seemed mistimed.

No. If you have a skill like Tim's, this is what you use it for.

>My watch takes walking, cycling and running seriously — especially outside rather than on a treadmill — but a hard session at the gym barely registers. It will count my steps for me, but I have to count my own pull-ups

The Strava of weight training (not _counting_ the pull-ups for you, but recording them, helping you build workouts, track progress, social sharing) is the well-named Hevy: https://www.hevyapp.com

Reply on news.ycombinator.com