I think what I’ve found with almost a year of Whoop (I was bored at the start of COVID :P) is that while it doesn’t correlate very well to how I “feel” (that is usually dictated by number of sleep disturbances) it does correlate highly to how deep I can go.
Case in point that I’ve noticed with Sufferfest - if I have a recovery score > 70% then typically I notice my heart rate doesn’t get up to LTHR as fast, and that it is way more ‘reactive’ in terms of dropping down faster to Z1 during a recovery period. So I do find some truth in the “I can go harder when I’m well recovered” on a green score, even if I wake up feeling like poop because I slept well.
In terms of recovery during the tour - I always stretch down right after rides (mix of static stretches and sun salutations) and then have been rolling out legs with a lacrosse ball in the evening before bed. Both of those have left me with semi-functioning legs!
@Rearviewmirror thanks, for the input. Very interesting observation, beeing able to go harder with less strain on green days, no matter how you feel.
About the Bicepsband: You wear it for “comfort”? Or did you also have problems recording HR absolutly accurate in sessions with variing intensities while wearing whoop on the wrist? Maybe i should try this
Two main reasons I switched to bicep band for all workouts - 1) I was getting wrist tingling/numbness when cycling with it on, 2) accuracy seemed all over the map with wristband
Hi @Radu, what a great post and topic. Really interesting looking at the stats and figures from the Whoop band. I have looked at these myself, but never signed up.
I’m looking forward to see your full review/ report for the whole of the tour - I think it’s been said in this thread, by the end of the week we are all going to be depleted.
Thanks for sharing your whoop data. I have heard indeed that wearing a biceps strap is better for cyclists. And I also experienced discomfort while biking at high intensitites with the wrist band.
It’s curious to see your strain from stage 1 is so much higher than the rest of the days. What kind of cyclist are you based on the 4DP? Did you start the sessions on Saturday and doing them every day in front?
I subscribe with the fact that metrics don’t correlate a lot with the feel but very much so with the heart rate and as you said the zones in which you ride for the same power.
Interesting read. Having read DCRainmakers review I was put off. Currently using an Apple Watch for HRV/Sleep and Chrome add on (Elevate) linked to Strava for Form/Freshness.
The real underlying problem is that there is no scientific definition of what recovery is.
There are no known biological markers. We can talk about fatigue or even overtraining, but all the definitions are subjective. We do not even know why some athletes can recover from overtraining and others cannot.
We have metrics, but it is not clear what we are actually measuring.
I’ve been an Attacker and a Sprinter in my 4DP. So long sustained efforts is where I typically struggle. Worth saying it was also a very stressful work week last week so that may impact it somewhat. I started Saturday and have ridden every day since (minus today).
I have always had the “tunnel vision” approach in events and competition. You know what you see when you are about to pass out, your vision closes in from the sides? Well go really hard so that starts to happen and then when it’s about to be “lights out” back off a little so you stay in the tunnel…
(Useless advice I know but for me as a weekend warrior about as technical as I like to get )
I did Stage 4a and 4b back to back this morning. I’m doing the Just Get me Through it Option but I feel like on GOAT it is still set at the targets at 100%. Half Easy is like 93%? At any rate, I’ve noticed that those low RPM efforts for short time intervals do not get my HR up into the prescribed zone. Should I be concerned?
You should never aim proactively to bring your heart rate to the ‘guideline’. That is just to see that your power zone would correlate with your heart rate zones. Sometimes I have a higher heart rate than the zone or sometimes less.
It’s normal when you do drills with grinding low RPMs that your strain goes mostly on your leg muscles and less on your cardiovascular system so it’s normal to see low heart rates even if you suffer.
I enjoyed Norway a lot and felt that I still had legs for more. But the tiredness hit me later during the day. I updated the original post with todays metrics.
I have done drills where my heart rate never leaves Zone 2.
When I did GOAT yesterday (it was yesterday, right? – correction I checked it was 2 days ago ) I was only in Zone 1 and 2.
@Chas1014 My HR also stayed relatively low during the efforts on GOAT, but interestingly when we hit then recovery segments and the cadence increased, my HR increased every time by about 5-8, then dropped again with the slow cadence sections.
And today my HRV and recovery scores are the best they have been all week
)
) I was only in Zone 1 and 2.