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This is the final installment of a three-part series diving into heart rate variability, and how the recovery-focused metric has busted the high-stakes world of pro cycling.
Could ignorance be bliss in the growing “data-fication” of elite-level training and racing?
The growing use of heart rate variability (HRV) trackers by pros and novices alike comes with both the upside of wisdom and the downside of potential performance paranoia.
Dr. Kevin Sprouse, Head of Medicine, EF Education-EasyPost, said, “Anytime you track something longitudinally and pay a lot of attention to it, there is a risk that the data gets overstated by subjective experience. “
“We’ve seen this with power meters – you can ask a rider how their training was, and they just give you power data, rather than telling them how they’re really feeling. Same danger of HRV Is.
Read also:
What wearables like WHOOP and Oura tell about a rider It is believed that Realized by tracking sleep and HRV, a data point offering a window into neurological health and an indicator of performance and recovery.
But recovery percentage and sleep statistics don’t always tell the true story when applied via pedals.
“You wake up feeling great, and you look down and the numbers don’t look as good as you felt. And that changes your perception, doesn’t it?” Sprouse said.
“There is a real risk that numbers regarding recovery or HRV may ‘block’ a rider, or affect their performance in some way – they ride how they feel.”
So how does Pro Peloton handle the latest layer of data spilling over into its daily life?
bad numbers, bad vibes
Racers in the WorldTour are already overloaded with an anxiety-inducing pile of statistics – from power and cadence to hydration and resting heart rate.
Is the addition of heart rate variability—a number that can be affected much more by one late night or one beer than it is by overtraining or illness—too much to bear?
“I know some people don’t really look at WHOOP’s numbers and just send their data to the team. I think they think it can become one more thing to worry about or stress over,” Nielsen Powles Said, who rides for the sponsored EF Education-EasyPost team.
“But then there are other people who are really into it, and they’re doing everything they can to improve their bedtime routines and recovery and whatnot.”
For every number in Peloton pouring out daily data, there’s an old-school devotee who sticks to “the body knows best.”
velo news Spoke to a few people who don’t believe in HRV data and don’t let a bad situation get them down.
“I think WHOOP can be a useful tool, maybe. But I think when you’re a pro and you’ve been running for a number of years, it’s more in tune with how you’re feeling every day.” I’d rather focus on that than the ‘score’,” said Ineos Grenadiers racer Ethan Hayter.
He adds, “You can write your own readiness score almost every day just by feeling.”
It is common for riders to lock down their power and heart rate numbers when running on the road for fear of imposing a self-limiting ceiling.
Waking up to a “recovery score” or HRV number can have the same down-regulating effect of giving a direct window into well-being.
“I find WHOOP really helpful for sleep patterns, and it definitely helps me focus on getting quality sleep and see what I can do to improve it I am,” said recent Tour Down Under champion Jay Vines, who used the wearable during his time with Alpicin. -Disinink.
“But I try not to get caught up in thinking about all the numbers,” Vine continued. “There’s already a lot to worry about. And if it’s race day, do you want to know if you haven’t recovered?”
‘It’s just an extra tool, but maybe not everyone will like it’
For advocates of tracking HRV, whether through WHOOP and Oura or Garmin and Wahoo functions, it’s all about knowing how — and when — to use the data.
EF Education-EasyPost and Alpecin-Deceuninck are both partners through WHOOP.
Medics from the two teams have monitored their squad’s daily numbers and learned to act when negative trends emerge over several days. Likewise, their riders know to consider both subjective experience and objective data.
EF team physician Sprouse told velo news WHOOP data can shoot up an important early warning of illness or fatigue that may prompt the team to go deeper. It has helped forecast COVID and helped prevent burnout.
“Where I sit as the team doctor, it’s really useful because it sparks conversations sooner than it used to,” he said.
But it seems, for now, not every Rider wants to know every possible tinge of Doom for themselves.
For every racer who monitors their power mid-race and closely monitors HRV, there will be someone who just prefers not to know. Many sponsored riders ignore the numbers and instead leave it to the staff to dig into the statistics.
“I think it’s just an added tool, but maybe not everyone likes it,” Powles said. “But I’m definitely the type of person who feels that if they can do something ‘more’, I want to do it. I’ve never been afraid to use something or use something doesn’t shy away from because I think it’s going to be too offensive or something.
The use of HRV monitors by both sponsored and independent riders grew exponentially last season.
Whether the trend continues upward may depend on how many of Peloton’s data fiends dive into pro cycling’s hippest metric yet.
