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01jeremy

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Feb 6, 2015
4
0
I remember seeing that video of apple employees doing yoga in the apple fitness research area where they developed the watch.

However, heart rate is apparently a bad way to measure yoga exertion. Similarly, heart rate is a bad way to measure weight lifting exertion. Your heart rate just doesn't get as high and stay high like running, and so it underestimates calories by a lot.

So if they used yoga to develop the activity algorithms, then how does it perform?

(An example: 1.5 hours of power/ashtanga yoga is supposed to be about 350 calories, but a heart rate monitor will only record a hundred or so, as if you're resting or taking a light walk. I don't know how many calories weights are supposed to give you, but I've read that HR monitors are terrible for it.)
 
With our current technology, this is the best we can do without having a person standing next to you while you yoga. Those calories numbers are just a general number and consumers are not suppose to rely 100% on them. If he or she really wants the exact calories count, he or she will need to work with a trainer at the gym, measuring his or her fat content, weight, height, etc
 
I was monitoring my heart right while weight training. I don't think it was working properly because it didn't change by more than 3bpm
 
I did pilates after a run today but didn't set the watch to an activity. I don't think I got any credit for it, I'm not really sure how it all works yet.
 
I set my watch to Other in the workout app when I do weights and it then counts calories etc as if it wer a brisk walk,which means about 250 calories for a heavy session of an hour or so. And frankly, that seems about right in tems of caloric expenditure for activities like that.
 
I used Other for weightlifting and got a lot of credit for it. So far I haven't used the workout app with yoga since I practice a slower more deliberate style. I haven't yet figured out if I'm getting any exercise credit for it; I'm going to try to remember to pay attention to my exercise minutes before and after tomorrow to see what it catches.
 
I am unlikely to have my AW for another couple of weeks but I will be very curious to see how it records the activity in various classes I go to, as most of the activities are very mixed within one class and no doubt will have to be lumped under "Other": one class combines weights with high-intensity cardio on a step, another starts with cardio/body weight intervals and finishes with dynamic stretching, another is like a cross between yoga and Pilates... All a bit confusing for the current software, I think!!!
 
I've tried all of the third party weight lifting tracking apps that all sync with the Apple Health app but none show heart rate (no third party access yet).

None are great. Slow response time and often closing or restarting.

Hopefully this all will get sorted out.
 
I used Other for weightlifting and got a lot of credit for it. So far I haven't used the workout app with yoga since I practice a slower more deliberate style. I haven't yet figured out if I'm getting any exercise credit for it; I'm going to try to remember to pay attention to my exercise minutes before and after tomorrow to see what it catches.

I've tried using fitstar yoga for a couple of sessions, whilst the health app registers it as a 'workout' it doesn't fill up my excercise ring which is kind of annoying.
 
More on HR recording when in "Other"....

I attached a copy of the message you get the first time you use the Other workout. I did a P90X2 Plyocide workout where you are elevating your HR into your target zone and then back down. My results seems to give me credit for more active calories for being in my HR target zone for part of the workout than just a brisk walk for the entire workout.

Need to look at this more closely for future workouts and I would like to see Apple document their HR calcs in more detail.
 

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I remember seeing that video of apple employees doing yoga in the apple fitness research area where they developed the watch.

However, heart rate is apparently a bad way to measure yoga exertion. Similarly, heart rate is a bad way to measure weight lifting exertion. Your heart rate just doesn't get as high and stay high like running, and so it underestimates calories by a lot.

So if they used yoga to develop the activity algorithms, then how does it perform?

(An example: 1.5 hours of power/ashtanga yoga is supposed to be about 350 calories, but a heart rate monitor will only record a hundred or so, as if you're resting or taking a light walk. I don't know how many calories weights are supposed to give you, but I've read that HR monitors are terrible for it.)

I used my Apple Watch in a bikram yoga class this evening. For those that aren't familiar with it, it's a 90-minute class in a room heated to 104 degrees. My workout stats came in at:

- 717 calories (574 active, 143 resting)
- elapsed time: 1:22:53
- average heart rate: 131 bpm

Before the class started my heart rate was about 65bpm. Looking at the raw data, my heart rate ramped up to about 100-110bpm and then hovered between 130-140ish bpm.

I am pretty sure that the heart rate data is accurate (I've measured similar readings using a chest monitor in the same class). Since the heart rate hovered in the 90-150bpm zone and the watch/iphone has my height, weight, gender (and the workout duration above) it seems like it can make a reasonable guess at caloric burn?

Regardless, it was really cool to have the information post class. I've been looking forward to this for awhile. Granted, there were other ways to get it but they just weren't as slick as the Apple Watch!

PS, one issue: I didn't order a sport band in time so had to wear the milanese loop band ... It held up fine and was pretty easy to clean. Still hoping my sport bands ship soon though!
 
I used my Apple Watch in a bikram yoga class this evening. For those that aren't familiar with it, it's a 90-minute class in a room heated to 104 degrees. My workout stats came in at:

- 717 calories (574 active, 143 resting)
- elapsed time: 1:22:53
- average heart rate: 131 bpm

Before the class started my heart rate was about 65bpm. Looking at the raw data, my heart rate ramped up to about 100-110bpm and then hovered between 130-140ish bpm.

I am pretty sure that the heart rate data is accurate (I've measured similar readings using a chest monitor in the same class). Since the heart rate hovered in the 90-150bpm zone and the watch/iphone has my height, weight, gender (and the workout duration above) it seems like it can make a reasonable guess at caloric burn?

Regardless, it was really cool to have the information post class. I've been looking forward to this for awhile. Granted, there were other ways to get it but they just weren't as slick as the Apple Watch!

PS, one issue: I didn't order a sport band in time so had to wear the milanese loop band ... It held up fine and was pretty easy to clean. Still hoping my sport bands ship soon though!

What work out type did you select when you started?
 
I remember seeing that video of apple employees doing yoga in the apple fitness research area where they developed the watch.

However, heart rate is apparently a bad way to measure yoga exertion. Similarly, heart rate is a bad way to measure weight lifting exertion. Your heart rate just doesn't get as high and stay high like running, and so it underestimates calories by a lot.

So if they used yoga to develop the activity algorithms, then how does it perform?

(An example: 1.5 hours of power/ashtanga yoga is supposed to be about 350 calories, but a heart rate monitor will only record a hundred or so, as if you're resting or taking a light walk. I don't know how many calories weights are supposed to give you, but I've read that HR monitors are terrible for it.)

I've been using the Gymaholic App to track weight lifting. You make your own workouts or use pre made ones. Hit send to watch then open the app on ur watch. It works awesome. There's also a app Reps and Sets I was using but they haven't come out with a watch versions yet. And finally although still,in beta is Vimo Laps Tracker which is supposed to (eventually will) track your workouts automatically based on movements from your Apple Watch. Hope this helps
 
I suspect he used other.

I'm interested in hearing if the watch powered down or he had issues afterwards. As I'm going to Bikram and was wondering if the watch could handle 40+C temperature

I just got home from Bikram, watch had no issues in a 1.5 hour session. Other apps suggest with my weight etc I should burn 616 calories. Using the "other" workout category on my watch shows 318 active calories 439 total. Average heart rate of 107 BPM.
 
I do intense hot yoga classes and also professional level dance classes. My watch does a decent job on the calorie estimate. It's about what various fitness charts say I should burn
 
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