Skipping Technology for Awhile? by David Prekeges 01/11/10 (that's right - a binary date palindrome)
Ever since my knee surgery a little over four years ago, I have been bicycling for my aerobic exercise. During this last four years, I've been using technology to monitor everything during my rides, including my distance ridden, heart rate, speed, cadence, etc. Really, it's amazing stuff. I mean, I can tell you that if I'm near my aerobic range, and I increase my biking speed by an average of 1mph, then my heart rate will increase by 10 beats-per-minute. It's not so much that 1-mph makes that big a difference in my heart rate, it's more that I am even spending the time monitoring and analyzing all this data! To top it off, I used Microsoft Excel's excellent graphing capabilities to capture a lot of data in a single graph. I've included it at the end of this article with some explanation.
Now normally I'm not big on New Year's Resolutions, and I'll probably still stick with that, in general. However, I really think technology may be getting in the way with me enjoying biking. Sure it's nice to monitor all this data, with the goal of trying to optimize my workouts. But am I missing the joy of riding? If I'm always looking at the bike computer striving to keep my heart rate at a certain level, or ensuring my average speed is high enough, could it be that some of the enjoyment of simply riding is passing me by? I think it's worth a try. For the next 4-6 months (see, not a whole year!), I am going to ride without my bike computer. I won't know how far I've gone. I won't know how fast I'm going. I will see if this adds to the fun of riding, or, better yet, makes riding fun again.
The graph (click on it for a larger version). 4-years of information on one graph. The x-axis is the month. The left y-axis is my monthly miles. The right y-axis is my annual miles. The green line across the entire middle of the graph is my average monthly miles, 281. The black short bars for each month are the average miles for that particular month (October was my month with the most miles). The colored bar graphs (per month) are my monthly miles for each month (the color signifies which year). The colored line graphs show the annual mileage for each year, from 2500 to 3700 miles. Now that's a lot of information in a single graph!
Hey, you are finally getting it!! From the network admin without a PDA, last to get a cell phone, basic basic cable TV, no TIVO, etc. as you know.
ReplyDeleteTechnology can improve our lives if used properly. It complicates things if not used with discretion. Sometimes less is more.
Pete, I so agree. As a professional phone screener, I miss dearly the days of homephones. Cellphones and even emails and text messages just add to our daily stress. Same apparently goes for a bike monitor. I am glad you are getting rid of that unnecessary toy, David. You are right, activities should be about being the moment, not about making the moment 'unreal' by adding gadgets. I can't wait for an update on this!
ReplyDeleteWow, I am going to show this to my husband who has amazing graphs of his biking and other forms of exercise. He rode to work YESTERDAY. Today, he started and then decided to come back when the rain turned to icy rain... I applaud his dedication, but the time he spends looking at his graphs makes me crazy. I do believe that he is now way overboard on this and that the graphs are now acting as an impetuts and not just a way to track it. It has become his obsession.
ReplyDeleteand in response to the "professional phone screener"... I hate it when whoever gets to a phone looks to see who is calling and takes it over to the person likely to receive the call...INSTEAD OF ANSWERING IT. The receiver is likely to find a dead line instead of a call!! Really, just answer the darned phone!