Anybody iPhone savvy and using mapmyride?

bathedinshadow · May 2012

Hi everybody.

I wasn't sure where to post this and I know that I'm asking about a different site, but I prefer to use mapmyride for logging my workouts as it allows for a lot more details. Then I use myfitnesspal for logging meals. I have, what is maybe, a detailed question that requires the same kind of answer. Hopefully.

And definitely somebody who uses mapmyride as well as iPhone.

I'm a very detail oriented person and in order for me to stick to workouts and whatnot, keeping track of every detail is essential. If I don't have a way to track it, then it become unimportant to me.

What I'm been doing is wearing a Times Ironman HR monitor when I go on all rides. If I'm mountain biking, I just mentally keep track of every turn I make. Then I come home and I create a map turn for turn by hand on mapmyride. I use a trail map I have in hand, and mimic the route. Sometimes it's really difficult because I go on trails that are not on the paper trail map (or any). So I'm basically guessing. Then I also add in all the data from my watch. Including the details that mapmyride doesn't have spots for. I just list them in the "notes" section. If I go for a road ride, the mapping is a little easier but then I'm also imputing the information off my cycling computer. So basically a lot going on.

I'm wanting to consolidate and make the record keeping easier. I'm getting an iPhone this week. I've been doing some reading on different apps and what people like and don't like. So I want to stop using my watch to track my HR info and use my iPhone. This way I can just connect it to my computer and it will move over without me doing each detail. So I'm planning on getting this: http://www.wahoofitness.com/Products/Wahoo-Fitness-Wahoo-Blue-HR-Heart-Rate-Strap-for-iPhone-4S.asp I've heard it works well and it works with mapmyride as well. But I also want a GPS tracker. Not the type that I decide on my route before hand and then follow it, but the other way around. I want it to follow me. Then I want to be able to transfer that onto mapmyride. I also wouldn't mind using the iPhone as a cycling computer as well. I've seen cadence and speed censors from wahoo fitness as well, but I'm not sure if I can use them while I'm using my HR AND GPS AND music. Will I simply drain the battery in 10 minutes and be out of luck? Am I asking for too much out of one device?

The ideal situation is to have my iPhone:
- Monitor all the details of my HR with splits, averages, zones, etc...
- Track where I'm going/where I've been onto a map
- Monitor my speed/cadence
- And then easily transfer all of the above info into mapmyride (including the route).

I'd also like to be able to listen to music while I'm doing it and maybe snap a picture or two along the way.

Is it possible without killing the battery? If so, what apps should I use? What tracking app? Is the wahoo fitness monitor the way to go? Will all of this be compatible?

Sorry for the scattered info. I know I'm asking a lot out of one device, but for $850... I should also be able to use the phone as a bike if you ask me!

offthedeependay · May 2012

hi I use runtastic for my I-phone ,it tracks where you go by gps,figures out your calories burned,you can choose from many different activities,it is a free app but you can pay to get more out of it,you can also buy a heart monitor strap for it,not sure of the cost,it tells you how mant miles or km,you travel,I use it for my hikes and walks then put in my calories to mfp when I get home,check it out and see what you think,they also have a web page
you can also listen to your tunes while it is being used,you can also use the full function of the phone without interupting the app,I take pics while hiking,I have gone for 2-3 hour hikes and not killed the battery

thefreebiemom · May 2012

I don't know how mapmyride works but I'm pretty sure it is the same company that made mapmyrun and I do use that. The other day we went on a 30 min hike in the mountains and even though it lost signal for a few sec in a very tree covered mountain blocked spot as soon as it picked up signal again it recalculated adding the missing segment based on where we were at during that moment. I forgot to wear my HRM to see if the calories the app said were accurate (I'm overweight so apps, machines etc usually are under).

Basically once you get your iphone the mapmyride app should actually map your ride automatically and sync it with your profile immediately. On mapmyrun I can even share the "path" I took with the public or look up paths other people took. I have a 3gs and don't know how the 4s is on battery life but I did lose a few percent in battery life in that 30 minutes. Make sure your back lighting is down low and you have the automatic lock on the lowest setting. Mine is at 1min and it locks, saves battery power. Its annoying typing in my password to unlock it and look again but it saves battery. If the new one is the same as the 3gs as well you can press the home button quickly twice and it will show all of your active apps at the bottom and you can close the ones that you don't want eating up battery life. You should be able to run your playlist also and take pics, that doesn't really use much battery power. As far as the strap goes. If you already have an HRM I don't really see the point. What I would do is once you get the phone download the mapmyride app and wear your HRM and see if the calories comes out about equally. Definitely test out the app and the phone and battery life before spending 80 bucks on the strap. I looked at the website and noticed its not available for my iphone 3gs. If the nike+ works for bicycling I would look into getting the special shoes for that. My iphone came with the Nike+ app already on it and its one of the apps I can't delete no matter how hard I try. But its not useful without the shoes and the strap to go with them. Oh and on that hike I was using my All Trails app trying to find a map of the trail we were on and the mapmyrun still ran smoothly at the same time.

So basically,

Mapmyride itself should act as the GPS map writing function you want. It even tells you calories and probably pedals/min or something like that however it measures biking.
HRM will record your true accurate heart rate and calories etc.
Using all functions at once on phone shouldn't be too bad on battery as long as its not hours long of it tracking with the GPS function.
Sorry, I don't know anything about that strap its the first I have heard of it, and don't know how accurate it is.

JellybeanIcecream · May 2012

I use mapmyride for GPS tracking of my rides and have also been looking into the Wahoo HRM and bike set. I can't answer your questions but I find the GPS tracker very efficient and so much easier than manual input.

bathedinshadow · May 2012

Thanks for the responses.

I did get the phone and I've been playing with it a lot. I'm new to iPhone, so lots to learn for me. Like I didn't know that when you double clicked on the home button... that the icons that showed were the active ones. I've been wondering how you can tell if apps are actually closed or not. So mine listed every app I have because I had opened them all at some point. Is double clicking on home and then deleting from that lower bar the only way to actually close an app? A little off track, but figured I'd ask since it came up.

So I tripe the mapmyride app and it just didn't want to work. I'm thinking I might have to use a different program altogether. Maybe I'll try the runstasic one? I've downloaded (and deleted) quite a few trying to find one that has what I want, but they all seem to be missing something. My concern with mapmyride (and other sites for that matter) determining my calorie burn, is that they don't utilize a lot of information to determine the calorie burn. For example... with my watch, it's factoring in my weight, the time, and my average HR. With mapmyride, it's only factoring in the time and using some random average for how many calories somebody burns biking for 2 hours. But that leaves out two key factors in calorie burn - weight and HR.

As for getting the HR strap for the iPhone.... I see your point, thefreebiemom. But I hate wearing a watch and I like the idea of being able to sync the phone to a website and have the info just automatically transfer. My current HR monitor doesn't do that. But yes, $80 is a lot of money for that. But the less I have to carry or attach to my body, the happier I am.

So I'm still looking for the ideal app that:
- Monitor all the details of my HR with splits, averages, zones, etc...
- Track where I'm going/where I've been onto a map (with preloaded maps)
- Monitor my speed/cadence
- And then easily transfer all of the above info into mapmyride (including the route) or some other similar website. I'm not sure if you can import stuff to mapmyride if you don't use the mapmyride app.

I downloaded MotionX Gps and it seems to be a pretty nice app. But it lacks a lot of the features I want. But the GPS aspect seems to work well and there is a ton of support/info on it to guide you through it. Just in case anybody is interested. I tried the actual wahoo one yesterday and it wasn't working, but i think that was due to me and not the app. So I'm going to give that another try as it has all the things I want I think.

I'll keep looking and if I find something that works, I'll post it here in case somebody else is looking for it.
But I'll still take any suggestions...

bathedinshadow · May 2012

I just used the Wahoo Fitness app and I'm pretty happy with it. It does ALMOST everything I wanted. I like the interface as it's really simple and you can choose which stats you want to show. I have found that a lot of apps are overly complicated for what they are (I've looked at them all, but only used 3). But this one is simple and clean looking. At first I thought the mapping wasn't working because I looked at it and it wasn't showing the map. It was as though I would need to have my data on for it to load - just a grey screen with route lines that seemed wrong. I didn't pre-download, but I'm guessing there must be some cacheing with it? I did briefly scroll over the area I'd be riding on the map before I left, so this seems likely.

It also very easily sends the info to several different sites. So you aren't limited to exporting to one site. I was gone for just over 2 hours, with the app running (with gps) and playing music the whole time. I had the screen off other that when I split laps and it used 18% of my battery. I don't really have anything to compare it to, but I thought I'd include that info for those that know what kind of battery drain you get from other apps.

The only con I can see as far as my list goes is that it doesn't show how long I'm in different zones for clearly. I'm thinking I'm missing where the info is though because in the setup, you input your zones. Must be used for something.

I guess some people would also find the map a con in that it wasn't showing me where I was as I was riding. But once I got home it was all there. And for me, that's all I care about.

So I'm pretty happy with this app. I am curious about what sort of formula they use to determine calories burned though. I know it's overshooting quite a bit. But they all seem to. Maybe somebody can shine a light on this?

Ride Time: 2hrs 8 min
HR Avg: 158
HR Max: 184
Weight: 117
Calories Burned: 1410

Seems like too many calories to me.

rolyh · May 2012

I use sportypal on Android, I understand it works on Iphone as well. Free and Ihave used it for 3 or so years. Most of these apps can interchange a GPX file, which is a file of time, position and altitude readings. That lets them leverage google maps, and derive calories from the body data you supply, I think you can load them into mapmyrun.
eg my last run
http://sportypal.com/Workouts/Details/2193351

Anybody iPhone savvy and using mapmyride?

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