Author Archives: sweetwaterhrv

TrainingPeaks Compatibility Now On Android & iOS!

TrainingPeaks Compatibility

TrainingPeaks compatibility on iOS was such a hit that we have now included this functionality in our Android version of SweetBeat!

Step 1: Sign-in to your SweetWater Health account and scroll down to find the TrainingPeaks button. Select this and enter your TrainingPeaks account information. Your accounts are now synced!

Step 2: To upload your first HRV scores to TrainingPeaks, simply run a “HRV for Training” session with SweetBeat on either Android or iOS.

Note: You must turn on location services in order for the time to be correct on the session. If you cannot see your HRV in TrainingPeaks when you sign-in, you may need to select “metrics” to be shown in your calendar view.

If you have any questions, please email us at support@sweetwaterhrv.com.

Congratulations to Our First Heart Rate Monitor Giveaway Winner – Tommy!

Congratulations to Tommy, our first heart rate monitor giveaway winner! We have sent Tommy a free Vernier hand-held heart rate monitor. It’s not too late to sign-up for our next month’s heart rate monitor giveaway. We will be giving away a free monitor every month until the end of the year!

Tommy’s Story:

“I am a software engineer with a pretty sedentary job. I work from home and sit behind my laptop most of the day. Over the years, I have been getting more and more out of shape, so I finally decided to get fit. I dabble in film making and visual effects in my free time so I tend to follow a lot of people from that industry on Twitter. One person I follow started a podcast called Fitness in Post. In one of his episodes, he interviewed a lady named Ronda Collier from your company. She was very interesting to listen to and that lead me to purchasing a heart rate monitor and your SweetBeat HRV and DailyBeat HRV app. Three weeks ago, I started on my journey to get fit and eat healthy. I use your app every morning to check my heart rate when I first get out of bed. I also use another one of your apps, SweetBeat HRV right after my morning workout to check my recovery rate. I get up at least once every hour and walk for five to ten minutes and I average about 14,000 steps a day. So far I’ve lost about 8 pounds, sleep better and generally feel better. I still have about 65 pounds left to loose.”

We are so proud of Tommy for taking his health into his own hands. Our users inspire us everyday to continue making products that help people understand their health. We look forward to meeting more of you during these next month’s giveaways!

Enter now through your DailyBeat application! Email us at support@sweetwaterhrv.com if you have any questions or concerns.

 

DailyBeatHRV

July 2016 Updates – Including a Heart Rate Monitor Giveaway!

SweetWater Health July 2016 Newsletter and Update

  • Purchase or Update DailyBeat HRV and enter to win a new Heart Rate Monitor!
  • Download our free Food Effect app and discover hidden food sensitivities!
  • SweetBeatHRV has several new features! Check it out!
  • Check out our sponsored HRV enhancement products!

DailyBeat HRM Giveaway

DailyBeatHRV

DailyBeatHRV is our latest iOS HRV app designed for your busy lifestyle! The results show you where you are for your age and gender and the Willpower feature helps you create better habits for a healthier you.

Thanks to our newest compatible heart rate monitor, Vernier, taking daily measurements is easier than ever. With the hand held monitor you can do short sessions lying in bed, sitting at your desk or watching TV.

Purchase or update DailyBeatHRV for a chance to win a new Heart Rate Monitor! Each month until December we will give away a Heart Rate Monitor for DailyBeat HRV users. Simply launch the app and select “Enter” from the popup.  Winners will be announced the first day of each month from August to December 2016.

New Free Food Effect App

(Download iOS Now)

(Download Android Now)

Inflammation is an innate response to injury, stress, or illness, poor gut function or eating toxic foods (high-toxin, high-sugar, high-processed, high-gluten, etc.) and induces an inflammatory response. When this response becomes the norm for your body, it becomes a low-level feature in your physiology and problems arise.  It turns out that inflammation is the common link between cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes and obesity in developed nations and thus should be reduced by whatever means available.  FoodEffect provides a tool for detecting food sensitivities that may contribute to low level inflammation. If you are sensitive to certain foods, you may not experience symptoms, though your body reacts by elevating your heart rate after eating an offending food. The food sensitivity feature will detect this elevation in heart rate which can occur anytime up to 1 ½ hours after eating an offending food.

SweetBeat HRV Updates

We are very excited to announce these new features, some of which have been suggested by our users!

  • Save custom session tags for future use.
    • See your custom tags in the charts bar graph section.
  • Users now have the ability to choose between 3 or 5 minute HRV for Training sessions.
    • Open the application, go to the Monitor tab, select the settings wheel in the top right corner, and select 3 or 5 minute sessions.
  • New scatter gram charts, which show instantaneous HRV and LF/HF balance.
  • Increased graphing speeds
  • Emailing yourself a session now includes several types of session files:
    • A simple .txt format
    • A Kubios ready text file for the Kubios analysis program
    • An RR-Interval CSV file
  • Version checking will ensure you are using the newest version available.
  • Sessions in history are in chronological order.
  • New options under the General tab.
    • Rate the app
    • Contact Support
    • See our HRV Enhancers

HRV Enhancers

centrepointe researchResearch has shown that meditation alters the brain wave patterns significantly and aides in the repair and recovery of the nervous system. Holosync is an audio technology created by Bill Harris that enables profoundly deep meditation usually only experienced by advanced meditators (e.g. Zen Buddhist Monks).  Holosync meditation audio technology increases Heart Rate Variability via the nervous system repair mechanism. Click here to learn more!

 

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Save 5% on the Delta Sleeper! See details here.

The Delta 1 Sleeper has been endorsed by super humans like Ben Greenfield and our resident quantified selfer, Jo Beth Dow. As the nervous system repairs during a sound night of sleep, your HRV will reflect this recovery. Similarly a poor night of sleep will result in a less than optimal morning HRV and the resulting reduction in performance. Read more about how it helped Jo Beth on our blog.

Improve your HRV with the Delta Sleeper SR1

Many of you know SweetWater Health’s co-founder and CTO, Jo Beth Dow, as our resident biohacker. She has spoken at many quantified self events about her experiments. Most recently, she has been using the Delta Sleeper SR1 for better quality sleep and longer nights. Below you will find her testimonial:

“I am always searching for new techniques and technology that will help improve HRV.  Our partner and friend, Ben Greenfield of Ben Greenfield Fitness highly recommended the Delta Sleeper and he was posting his morning HRV after using the device.  I was intrigued after viewing Ben’s posts and I had to try it for myself.

I started using the Delta Sleeper SR1, a 1.5 ounce device, to determine what affect PEMF had on my heart rate variability.  Being an ultra lark I never had difficulty falling asleep but sometimes I had difficulty staying asleep.  I would wake up between 3:30 am and 4:30 am and start working.  Fortunately, I was getting 7 to 7 1/2 hours of sleep per night.  I never fully understood until now what affect my rather unique sleep schedule had on my husband.

The Delta Sleeper SR1 was easy to use and while I was sleeping I wasn’t even aware that I was wearing it.  The Delta Sleeper SR1 is a small device that you place on your brachial plexus using a thin adhesive strip. The first night I did not notice any difference.  The second night I was restless but woke up feeling unusually good.  The third night I had decided not to wear the SR1 and I had a very restless night.  I got up in the middle of the night and placed the SR1 on my forehead (this is not recommended application) but I was too groggy to apply the adhesive and place it on my brachial plexus.  I slept in until 7:25 am and felt wonderful!

I have continued to use the SR1 every night.  Even on the nights that I am not sleeping longer, I feel especially clear, relaxed and focused in the morning.  One night I told my husband I wasn’t going to wear the SR1.  I wanted to test the quality of my sleep without the product.  My husband responded, “You’re not?”  I replied, “What, you want me to wear it?”  His response was, “I want you to implant it.”

The SR1 has not only helped me sleep longer but as a secondary effect helped my husband sleep better.  Even the nights that I don’t sleep longer than my previous norm I feel like I am getting more quality sleep and sleeping deeper.  I have two months of HRV data since using the SR1.  My morning HRV has increased  9 points and is moving on an upward trend, reached an all time high HRV on several mornings and my afternoon HRV and LF/HF power levels have increased.  The numbers are impressive especially since the HRV value is logarithmic.

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To purchase the Delta Sleeper SR1, click here or on the image below.

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Exercise Helps You Balance Life

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How Exercise Helps with Stress Management

Exercise can help you get the killer body you’ve always wanted, but exercise also provides numerous benefits for overall health and well-being. In addition to weight loss, exercise offers tremendous stress-reduction benefits as you boost your energy levels, build resilience, and increase your strength – both physically and mentally.

Exercise Helps You Sleep Better

Sleep is one of the most important things your body needs; without it you will feel drained and have difficulty focusing on important tasks during the day. Eight hours is recommended for optimum health for most people, and exercise can help you get those eight hours of quality slumber easily.

If you have trouble getting to sleep or staying asleep through the night, exercise could well be the answer to your struggles. Not only does exercise tire you out so that getting to sleep becomes easier, it also releases feel-good endorphins that help to reduce stress, allowing you to put all those little things that worry you to rest for the night.

Don’t exercise too close to bedtime, however, as this could have the opposite effect due to the increased alertness most people feel right after getting their heart pumping and blood flowing with a vigorous workout.

Take Your Dog for a Walk for Exercise and Companionship in One

If you have a pet pooch, exercise can do wonders for strengthening your bond with each other. Dogs need plenty of exercise and as the parent to your beloved four-legged friend, that means you’ll be getting exercise too as you spend time walking or playing with your dog. Taking your dog for daily walks is good for your cardiovascular health and also works to improve muscle tone in your legs and buttocks.

Many people underestimate walking as an effective form of exercise because we naturally do it every day, but it’s actually one of the best and most popular ways to get the recommended levels of daily physical activity. Exercise with your dog is beneficial for both of you; your dog will be thrilled to be spending some quality time with you, and you’ll be giving your body a workout, often without even realizing it. What’s more, the health benefits of dog ownership extend far beyond getting more physical activity, including stress reduction, socialization, and more.

Exercise Takes Your Mind Off of Your Worries

Many people work out to keep themselves busy and to take their mind off of any problems that they might be having. Exercise requires extreme focus, and this is a great way to keep your mind occupied with more positive thoughts.

In addition to actually keeping you busy, the hormones released during exercise will boost your mood which can give you a more positive perspective on those daily worries. Putting in an exercise DVD to keep your mind busy is a much healthier choice than reaching for a pack of rich chocolate cookies (tempting as they are) and will have a much more positive effect on your waistline.

Hone Your Body’s Systems to Function Efficiently 

Exercise helps your body function at its best in many areas, which enables your body to better cope with stressful situations. Norepinephrine is a neurotransmitter in the brain that responds to stress in a positive way, and regular exercise causes your brain to release norepinephrine.

Overall, exercise helps to balance the levels of various neurotransmitters in the brain, making you happier and sharpening your mind. If you do get stressed easily, then starting a regular exercise routine can be highly effective for tackling your stress in a natural way that provides whole-body benefits.

Exercise Can Alleviate Symptoms of ADHD and Other Mental Health Conditions

ADHD is something that is affecting more and more people, but exercise (especially swimming) can have a calming effect on those who suffer from the disorder. Cognitive performance and the functions of the brain are proven to improve when exercise is put into the equation, which is why exercise can be perfect for those who have attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Exercise such as swimming will burn some of the extreme energy levels many people with ADHD experience and will also help to increase their attention span. In addition to ADHD, exercise can help people suffering from other mental health conditions including depression and anxiety by boosting those feel-good hormones.

Not sure your new regimen is working? SweetBeat HRV has a stress monitor that can help you track your progress. It can help you identify which activities are effectively lowering your stress as well as the times of day they might be most beneficial. For example if the monitor shows that  your stress tends to be highest after first waking and walks seem to help, a morning stroll with Fido could be the best way to start your day.

From managing your stress to helping you sleep better and keeping your mind focused on the positive, it’s pretty astounding what exercising can do for your overall well-being. The potential to reap so many benefits from even just 30 to 60 minutes each day should convince anyone that exercise should become an important part of their daily routine.

JenniferMcGregorJennifer McGregor has wanted to be a doctor since she was little. Now, as a pre-med student, she’s well on her way to achieving that dream. She helped create PublicHealthLibrary.org with a friend as part of a class project. With it, she hopes to provide access to trustworthy health and medical resources. When Jennifer isn’t working on the site, you can usually find her hitting the books in the campus library or spending some downtime with her dog at the local park.

 

Introducing DailyBeat HRV, SweetBeat HRV on Android & Vernier.

We are very excited to introduce you to the newest apps in our suite of heart rate variability applications: DailyBeat HRV and SweetBeat HRV on Android. DailyBeat HRV provides you with an accurate assessment and feedback based on your overall health and resilience. The original SweetBeat HRV on Android goes back to our roots and provides HRV for Training recommendations and stress management sessions. Our clinical grade algorithms measure Heart Rate Variability (HRV) and provide you with intuitive and easy to understand health statuses. In addition, the Vernier hand held heart rate monitor has been invaluable as an alternative to the chest strap. The Vernier heart rate monitor is perfect for your morning readings or a 5-minute spot check.

What’s New in DailyBeat HRV?

Willpower: Your Willpower chart is based on YOU compared to YOU (not the general population of your age and gender). The purple line shows your Willpower for the day and the yellow line is your personalized reference line. If your Willpower is above the reference line, you likely have the power to meet all of your goals. If it is below the reference line for 1 day, your Willpower is drained. If it stays below the line for 2 or more days, your Willpower is critically low. The associated recommendations will guide you on how best to stay on track, depending on your Willpower reserve.

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Power Balance: Your Power Balance chart shows you where you are relative to your age and gender. Consider a stereo that is 50 watts verses one that is 250 watts. The 250 watt stereo will play music louder without distortion than the 50 watt version. Also while listening you want the balance of the speakers equal so that you hear both channels equally. The Power Balance chart is an indication of how many “Watts” you have for the day and the balance of “Fight or Flight” and “Rest and Digest”.

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Resilience:  Your Resilience is an indication of your ability to Respond and Recover from daily stressors. We often React rather than Respond and then we stay in that reactive state for hour, days or even weeks. By knowing your Resilience you are able to plan ahead to avoid undesired reactions.

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Summary Charts: The DailyBeat Summary Charts provide insight into your overall health and balance. Let’s face it we all have low energy or grumpy days. The Charts let you see how often you have positive, powerful balanced days and how often you are on the low side. This vital information will help you adjust your wellness regime that creates measureable results.

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See our website for complete details and screenshots of our newest iOS application, DailyBeat HRV.

SweetBeat HRV is officially in the Google Play store! 

SweetBeat HRV on Android includes our clinical grade heart rate variability algorithm matched with our personalized HRV for Training recommendations and stress management sessions.

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Requirements:

Features:

  • Run a Stress Session for your stress score – We recommend at least a five minute session but you can record up to several hours
  • Stress is measured between 1 (lowest) and 5 (highest)
  • HRV for Training – 3-minute sessions with personalized feedback. We recommend doing these sessions at the same time each day. Whether it is first thing in the morning or last thing before you go to bed, keep it consistant
  • Our newest compatible heart rate monitor, the Vernier hand grips are the best way to conveniently measure your morning HRV
  • Graphs include ability to pinch and zoom
  • See your Raw RRs in graph form or select “session” to see your session data graphed
  • You will also have the ability to graph locally saved sessions and sessions only available on the server straight from the application

Read more about SweetBeat HRV on Android in the Google Play Store. Click on the red birdie below to see screenshots.

SweetBeat Android on Google Play

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SweetBeat HRV on iOS

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DailyBeat HRV on iOSDailyBeat Icon

TrainingPeaks Compatibility & HRV Reports

TrainingPeaks Compatibility

We have exciting news for our users! You can now upload your SweetBeat HRV scores to your TrainingPeaks dashboard. It is quick and easy!

Step 1: Sign-in to your SweetWater Health account and scroll down to find the TrainingPeaks button. Select this and enter your TrainingPeaks account information. Your accounts are now synced!

Step 2: To upload your first HRV scores to TrainingPeaks, simply run a “HRV for Training” session with SweetBeat HRV (will also work with Bulletproof Stress Detective, NatureBeat & PrimalBeat).

Note: You must turn on location services in order for the time to be correct on the session.

HRV Reports Now Available!

We are excited to announce that our first HRV report is now available in your SweetWater Health store! This report is based on sessions labeled, “Meditating” & “Relaxing”. You must have at least 10 sessions with each of these tags to receive valuable feedback from the report. These SweetBeat HRV sessions should be 5-minute sessions done at least once a week while meditating and after meditation while relaxing.

  • To access the store and your report, sign-in to your SweetWater Health account.
  • The “Store” button will become available next to the “My account” button at the top of the page.
  • Here you can purchase a sample of the report for free!
  • You can also purchase your “HRV Meditation Report” for $9.99.

We Want to Hear From You!

What kind of reports would you like to see in the store? Please send us an email at support@sweetwaterhrv.com or leave a comment below to let us know!