I plan to develop an iPhone APP!!

New "iPhone"(from Verizon Wireless Web site)

New Project!

Unfortunately, I have been busy for events for kids and there is not many things I can post here.  I have not updated this site for a while....  I probably want to start something new.

One of news recently is Apple announced a new "iPhone" a couple weeks ago.  I just think I might want to develop "iPhone APP".   The goal is probably to develop an APP for pace management in hiking based on heart rate.  The reason is I got many feedback from readers that it is probably too complicate to try the concept.  One of idea is to develop an app for Garmin devices.   The problem is that a very few people own a Garmin devices.   I have been wondering if there might be a better way to introduce the idea.  I guess "iPhone APP" is one of possibility to introduce it.

No experience .....

However a big problem for me is that I do not have any experience to develop any iPhone APP.   Therefore, I might need to start with a simple APP to understand the process of the development.  So that I will try to show how I develop an APP from scratch!!   I will share the progress in this blog!

Garmin Vivosmart 4 with pulse oximeter!

Garmin Vivosmart 4

I posted about Garmin fenix 5X Plus a few weeks ago.  I also found out that Vivosmart 4 was announced as well which has pulse oximeter function.  It seems that it will take a several weeks to get it based on information on Garmin web site.

The reason I am interested in this device is pulse oximeter function.  It seems that it is possible to measure SPO2 value during sleeping and  the price is USD $129.99 which is much lower than fenix 5 plus.  I saw some early reviews are posted on the internet.  However it is not very clear how often the device samples SPO2 value during sleeping.   I will try to get it and test it.

Garmin fenix 5X Plus ~ After some internet search ...

I mentioned I was interested in a new product from Garmin, which is fenix 5X Plus.  I did some search on the internet to look into review by some other people.

Here is the summary:
The pulse oximeter feature is supported in only "5X" model.  The other models are not supported.  I also found out Japanese edition does not support it at all. I am not sure why.....

The other things I found out is to look at SPO2 data on Garmin connect is not supported, either.  This product was announced some time the end of June this year.  It's been some time and it may supported now.  However, reports / reviews I checked mentioned it says the feature is not available.  I know Lactate threshold feature is not supported on the mobile application.  So I guess some special features which are supported a few specific model might not be supported.  This is probably in such category.  (Lactate threshold can be seen on the regular web site for Garmin Connect).

It also consumes a large power.  If people measure SPO2 value so often, then the total time to use the device with one charge would be shorter.  If people using this feature and GPS during hiking, the duration would be impact, especially this device also support embedded music player feature which also eats more power..... 
Based on a data I took from hiking on Mt. Whitney Trail a few weeks ago, the range SPO2 without  acclimatization is big.  Thus, it might be hard to find out a reasonable measured value if the sample size is small.  I think we probably need to sample more data to get average to evaluate the data in higher elevation without acclimatization.

Usage for Sleep apnea, it is also better to sample often to detect event of stopping breathing during sleeping.  For such purpose, it might be better to use a traditional pulse oximeter to collect data.

I concluded I would wait ./ watch how this feature would be supported.   For now, I have everything I need and I will continue to look into reviews by other people......

Garmin fenix 5 Plus (5XPlus) ~ This is really cool!

Garmin fenix 5X Plus (from Garmin.com)

I just wrapped reports for hiking to Mt. Whitney this year.   I was looking into some new product on the internet.  I found another new product from Garmin, "fenix 5 Plus" series.  This is really cool.  What I own is fenix 3 HR.  When fenix 5 was introduced, I did not really want to get it since not much new features were added and it was not really attractive for me.  However, this one "fenix 5 Plus" is really attractive for me.

The big one is they added Pulse oximeter function.  This means the device can capture all data I really want during hiking.  I do not have to carry a pulse oximeter to hiking anymore.  Also, it is easy to collect SPO2 value when I walk.  It is really helpful to collect more useful data for "smart hiking" I am writing in this blog.  This is really good one for hiking in higher elevation.

The price is a bit expensive, the low end model which is "fenix 5S" the price is starting from about $800 however, the pulse oximeter function is not supported.  It seems that the function is available for the high-end model 5X, which is starting from USD $850.  The model also includes map function, although the display might be too small to use the map function.  But it might be better than nothing.

So I am considering to get it some time in the future.  It might be hard to get it any time soon, but I really want to get it!  In a mean while, I will collect more information and review in the internet.
I think it is really good one for serious hikers who is looking for a GPS tracking device.

Mt. Whitney Hiking 2018 (8) ~ Weight reduction!

East side From Mt. Whitney Trail

This post is 8th port of Mt. Whitney report this year.  This post will be the last one for the hiking this year.  Today's topic is weight reduction.

As I reported in the previous posts, the total duration of each section is probably close to the bast in the past records.  One of big factors is probably a method of pace management based on the heart rate.   I think I have a very good idea how I can manage the pace based on the heart rate.  However, I believe there is another factor to contribute the improvement, which is "weight".

Weight reduction is in progress!

I am fifty one years old and will be fifty two this month.  Due to the age, I think my fitness level is slowly getting worse.  On the other hand, the overall time was getting improved close to seven years ago.  It is not only the total duration, but also I did not feel I was really tired.   I thought it was not just the pace management but something else.  After some consideration, I concluded this is probably due to the weight reduction.

In April, a doctor suspect that I had sleep apnea and I did sleep study.  The doctor concluded I was sleep apnea.   I have been using CPAP machine during sleeping and the symptom has been improved.  I also told that over weight is probably one of factor of sleep apnea in my case.  Therefore, I started doing weight reduction since then.  My weight last a several years was somewhere around 165~175 lb and I had 172 lb in April / May this year.  Now the weight is 154 lib.  I lost about 18 lib in 4~5 months and it is the lowest last several years.

18lb reduction？

Physically, it is equivalent to reduce weight 18 lb stuff I carry and theoretically, I do not have to consume extra energy for hiking.   18 lb is a lot.  It is clear if the weight of the backpack is 18 lb less. It is actually a part of my body and it might be hard to recognize the extra weight.  But the difference could be huge.  That is my conclusion.
 
My fitness level is getting worse for sure, however, the weight reduction and the pace management can help or compensate.  That is the result of this hiking.  I feel a similar thing from my running as well.  The overall time / speed is improved with a similar heart rate.

Hiking especially this type of hiking to attempt a summit, it is move from a lower location to higher point.  The effort is basically carrying some "weight" to higher location.   I am not sure how much the weight reduction contributes the improvement in this hiking, but it is probably true to contribute some big portion of this improvement.

I want to continue to enjoy hiking for long time in the future.  However it is probably hard to improve my fitness, therefore, I need to find other way to cover this part.  Optimize weight / pace would be one of better thing I can do.

I will probably want to be there next year and will post some related article next year as well.
This would be the last post regarding Mt. Whitney hiking this year.


（Mt. Whitney 2018 ~ END）