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Steve Neal’s Moxy Field

Coach Steve Neal’s Moxy Field Is INCREDIBLY EFFECTIVE!

Steve Neal Garmin Connect IQ Field
Steve Neal is one of the most experienced cycling and endurance coaches out there. He’s also a Moxy User, and knows how to get the most out of your investment.

Steve Neal is one of the most successful and qualified coaches that I know. He and I have followed a similar path. We both owned Cycling Studios. He and I have worked together to employ features in PerfPro Studio. He is a pioneer in Diaphragm breathing protocols. But most recently, he built a Garmin Connect Field that highlights EXACTLY what we need to know in regards to Saturated Muscle Oxygen!

Saturated Muscle Oxygen (SmO2) is a metric that uses NIRS (Near Infra-Red Spectroscospy) to measure Saturated Muscle Oxygen levels and Total Hemoglobin Counts (ThB). The product that Steve Neal and I both use, the Moxy Monitor, is a lab-accurate device. Here’s how Steve and I use it in workouts.

Steve Neal Uses Moxy Monitors to measure SmO2.
The Moxy is a noninvasive, durable NIRS sensor that is tuned to transmit SmO2 and ThB data to Garmin Head Units and Watches.

 

 

 

 

When a muscle contracts, it uses oxygen in the process. Moxy Monitors basically measure “Supply” (Smo2) based on “Demand”, which is measured in watts. It’s a merge of Physiology and Physics.  Muscles and Lungs (Oxygen) are augmented with the measurement of heart rate, all of which I have been studying for decades.  However, at certain levels of intensity, and depending on the muscle group being measured, the Moxy can help identify what I call “Floors”, or “Ceilings”. A “Floor” is an SmO2 intensity that can be sustained under duress. If intensity rises, the SmO2 will decline and can predict exhaustion. If SmO2 rises, we know the cyclist is riding at different levels of aerobic (sustainable) intensity.

STEVE NEAL’S MOXY FIELD ON GARMIN CONNECT IQ

Steve’s Moxy Field helps Moxy owners optimize the Physiological Impact of EACH and EVERY INTERVAL and RECOVERY. The concept is simple. The cyclist places their Moxy Monitor on a muscle group (I prefer the Left Lateralis). They then head over to the Garmin Connect IQ Field on their mobile phone or via Garmin Express, and download this Custom Field. In the Settings Tab, the cyclist will enter the specific Moxy ANT+ or BLE code for that unit. They also enter the location where the Moxy will be placed. I’ll talk about different locations and what they can tell us in a bit. Finally, the cyclist places the Custom IQ Field on their Garmin Ride Profile.

My profile screen looks like this:

Steve Neal Moxy Lap Field Garmin Connect IQ Field 4
The Steve Neal Moxy Lap Field is on the bottom of this screen. It eliminates the ThB Field, and replaces it with Instant Smo2 %. The number on the Right is the ‘Lap’ Average SmO2. It will change colors as the average rises and falls in the context of the lap, and the available Oxygen in the blooodstream.

The Steve Neal Moxy Field is used in conjunction with the ‘Lap’ Button. It eliminates the view of Total Hemoglobin, or ThB. The Field gives a lot of information in a small package.

You get:

Steve neal Moxy Lap Field Description
As important as the Instant SmO2 value is, it’s the COLOR and VALUE of the number on the RIGHT that is so critical. This is where having a BIG, HUGE, HEAD UNIT, like the Garmin 1040, comes in so handy. If Garmin still made their Head-Up Display, I swear, I’d ask them to include custom fields like this one in their options for fields.
  • Instant SmO2
  • Lap Average SmO2
    • and based on the color of the Lap Average SmO2, you can determine whether your SmO2 is RISING, FALLING, or is STABLE.
    • Red is Falling, Black is Stable, and Blue is Rising.

USE STEVE NEAL’S MOXY FIELD DURING A WORKOUT

Now, the results can be individualized, but the general trend for a workout might go like this:

First, have a look at this blog post and video that explains how I use the Moxy to determine proper warmup and preparation for a ride.
Moxy Monitor Warmup Protocol – Online Bike Coach

Then, look at the Steve Neal Moxy Field, and when an interval of, say, 3 minutes begins, hit the ‘lap’ button. As intensity increases, Smo2 will decrease, and the Lap Average SmO2 will also decrease. However, 3 minutes can be an eternity of effort. Intensity has to be modulated in order to complete the task. Using the Steve Neal Field, I can identify an Oxygen Demand which is SUSTAINABLE, and then I can watch the AVERAGE, trend down towards that value. If I’m near the end of the interval, and I feel like I have a little more to give, I can INCREASE INTENSITY, and DECREASE available Smo2, switch to an anaerobic energy system, and basically ‘Leave With Nothing Left’. Hit the lap button at the end of the interval, and you can watch the SmO2 value RISE to Maximum Resaturation, which is also a great time to replenish any carbs or rehydrate. Over the course of several intervals, it becomes easier to identify a ‘Floor’ of Smo2, below which you’re on seriously borrowed time. Steve Neal has several Diaphragm Breathing Protocols that affect Smo2 levels and can improve both Stamina and Strength for endurance and intensity days on the bike.

Looking at Moxy Results On Garmin Connect After A Ride

I recently performed a set of intervals on my Virtual Studio at app.vqvelocity.com, with a client who also had a Moxy Monitor. I am in California; he is in Massachusetts. We were both using Steve Neal’s Moxy field, and we both had the Moxy Monitor on our Left Lateralis. The interval set was 14 minutes long, with intensities at 120% of FTP for 22 seconds, and 8 seconds of recovery at 50% of FTP. But the WATTAGE GOALS FOR THE WORKOUT CHANGE WITH THE VALUES that show up on Steve Neal’s Moxy Field. This interval effort is what I call a ‘Push’. Let me explain.

VQ Velocity 22-8 intervals 2 sets
I created this interval set because the metabolic response to a stimulus is about 25 seconds. It also takes about 8 seconds to reset the ATP in your legs when recovering. The 22-8’s have some intensity and recovery overlap, but they yield a VERY high overall normalized and actual average when properly employed. They’re actually a “Threshold” workout…

The overwhelming research on cycling reveals that the sport is overwhelmingly aerobic in its’ demands. Sure, we love to talk about intensities and intervals for brief moments here and there, but when the ride is over and uploaded, it’s our AEROBIC economy that makes such a difference. The goal of training, therefore, is four-fold; we want to improve STAMINA, STRENGTH, SPEED, and SKILL. Aerobic Power and economy is akin to Stamina, and that’s what we were focused on in this effort. But you can ‘see’ whether you’re aerobic or not, via the Steve Neal Moxy Field. A cyclist can also see when they’ve tripped over that line of Threshold, and they’re dipping into their own, personal, time-limited, “Well of Despair”! The second-by-second watts are less important here. What IS important is getting the cyclist to their own, personal, average SmO2, that is both painful, but yet also sustainable. This workout was a Threshold Workout, and the Moxy data shows just that. Aerobics is the ‘Push’ of Economy and Stamina. Anaerobic Intensities and Vo2Max efforts, are the ‘Pull’.

Garmin Connect Moxy Quad Watts Heart Rate
This is a screen report from the Garmin Connect File. Steve’s Moxy Field showed me a cumulative average and an idea of intensity that I just can’t get from traditional heart rate. If you look at the grey data points, which is SmO2, you’ll see that around minute 40, SmO2 began to rise. Why? Look at the RECOVERY WATTS in purple. I began to take those 8 second recoveries more seriously, and my Saturated Muscle Oxygen rose in accordance. ‘ON’ Power stayed high, and this allowed me to do MORE of the ‘Work’, which is beneficial.

On my first interval, I hit the ‘Lap’ button on my Garmin 1040 Solar, and rode at the varying intensities that the workout prescribed, until I hit a value of Saturation below 20%. The stochastic nature of the intervals within the set show perpetual swings of wattage, but the SmO2 drifted between 14 and 18%. For the First Interval Set, I averaged 17% for SmO2. Average power? 292 watts. This is WELL ABOVE the predicted Thresholds that have been set for me by numerous other Threshold Calculators. The second Interval? 20% SmO2 with power at a more modest 261 Watts, still above my ‘Calculated” Threshold. Traditional Heart Rates? They were 172 bpm and 168 bpm, both arguably UNDER my claimed Threshold of 173 bpm.

Steve Neal Moxy Field With SmO2 Wattage and DFAA-1
Here’s the second set. I wanted to show the SmO2 values with DFAA-1 values from AlphaHRV, which is another great Field found in Connect IQ. I use both fields, but I find that Moxy ‘Floors’ are more acute than the ‘rolling 2-minute’ value that we commonly use to calculate DFAA-1. 

Moxy Values are more accurate and precise than traditional Heart Rate and Wattage Claims for Threshold Values. They also highlight FATIGUE and arguably, DEHYDRATION or a BONK. That’s another discussion for another day, but the gist of it is this; We’ve had this tool for about 10 years now, but it required mental calculation to determine Aerobic and Anaerobic Thresholds. Now, with the Steve Neal Moxy Field, we get Instant values, Average Values, and a Trend, which is worth its’ weight in gold.

CONCLUSION

Everyone knows how much I love power meters. More recently, I’ve fallen in love with the study of Heart Rate Variability. I love how that works with our bodies in a more holistic way. With the release of Steve’s Moxy Field, we now have the tool to observe thresholds acutely, and then determine ways to dive through them, stay at or just above them, and recover from efforts more effectively.

I’ll save the next blog post for another aspect of Steve Neal’s Moxy Field, where we will look at the same workout, but from the aspect of the LEFT DELTOID. The numbers are going to be more nuanced, but they continue to reveal some INCREDIBLE, REPEATABLE, NONINVASIVE information.

Until then, ENJOY THE RIDE!

 

Fitness HRV software Release 0.17

Fitness HRV Now Includes Moxy SmO2 Values

My work with Dr. Bruce Rogers and Mr. Stuart Lynne is continuing to show steady progress. Last month, I revealed the Alpha version of Fitness Dashboard. Fitness HRV is software that we are building to identify training intensities below VT1 (Ventilatory Threshold), and above VT2 (Traditional Threshold). The goal is to create a scientific instrument that uses PUBLISHED SCIENCE to help improve cardio-vascular economy, first and foremost. Fitness HRV now includes Moxy SmO2 and ThB (Total Hemoglobin) data. The reason I requested this inclusion is two-fold. First, we want to assess SmO2 action over time when training above DFAA-1 values of 0.75. Second, we want to watch SmO2 slope when we increase intensity, and bring DFAA-1 down to 0.5 or 0.4, which is less strongly correlated, but still connected, to VT2. This will help me, as a coach, better train athletes for training in polarized zones of intensity.

I’ve been using the Moxy since it first arrived on the scene and bought almost ten of the units when I was running the studios at Cycling Center Dallas. In my work over those years, the instrument gave me a new window into the body. I studied SmO2 “Floors and Ceilings” over time, and I also studied ThB floors and ceilings, both acutely and empirically. The PhD’s that study Saturated Muscle Oxygen recently published important studies on SmO2 “Slope”. Basically, when SmO2 levels out at a certain intensity, Oxygen SUPPLY is meeting DEMAND. Cyclists and Triathletes can use this value to gauge intensity. In fact, one of my favorite coaches, Steve Neal of Steve Neal Performance, just published a new APP on Garmin Connect, that specifically highlights SmO2 slope and plateaus, in color.

 

Current Fitness HRV Features

Fitness HRV currently includes the following data streams…

  • DFAA-1.
  • SmO2 and ThB.
  • DFAA-1 artifact counts.
  • Cadence.
  • Traditional Heart Rate.
  • Wattage
  • Trainer Slope (Work In Progress).

Over the next several weeks, we will be including all of the metrics from Vo2master Gas Exchange Analyzers, including:

  • Respiratory Frequency ((important to DFAA-1 research).
  • Tidal Volume
  • Ventilation
  • Absolute Vo2
  • Relative Vo2
  • Fraction of Expired Oxygen (important to DFAA-1 and SmO2 research).
  • Ambient Pressure
  • Humidity
  • Ventilatory Equivalents for Oxygen

and more values, like RQ (Respiratory Quotient of O2 and Co2), as they are brought online.

Fitness ECG Updates

Fitness ECG shows V2 and V3 data from a Polar H10 heart rate strap
The Fitness ECG App provides lab-accurate ECG sine waves from the V2/V3 position on the front of the chest.

Fitness ECG is still running as a separate app. It uses the ECG data from the Polar H10 to create a visible ECG from the V2 and V3 position. As this product is still in Alpha, there’s not much more than a display, the ability to record the session in CSV format, and the ability to save images via PDF and JPEG. It WILL be merged into Fitness HRV at some point in the future. Now, we cannot make medical claims from this one window into the heart, BUT…. we can identify artifacts and anomalies, and have those images automatically highlighted and saved for reference with medical professionals. I believe we can also glean Respiratory Frequency from this Polar device, but again, we’re going to go with PUBLISHED SCIENCE first and foremost.

What’s the Ultimate Goal?

Fitness HRV intends to be a research tool for individuals who want to train for AEROBIC fitness first and foremost. Once the correlation between DFAA-1, SmO2 in a Prime Mover muscle, and Gas Exchange RQ values is better understood, it then allows the user to TRAIN USING THIS TRIFECTA of PHYSIOLOGICAL INFORMATION.

In the 1970’s, Heart Rate Monitors were introduced to the general population for assessing fitness. In the late 1980’s, power meters were introduced. The Moxy became available in the early 2010’s. The Vo2master became available in the late 2010’s. There are more devices that measure physics and physiology, which are accurate, robust, and significant.

When we meld the PHYSICS of wattage, aerodynamics, rolling resistance, heat and humidity, with the PHYSIOLOGY of a human riding a bicycle or running, we can OPTIMIZE EVERY MINUTE OF ACTIVITY FOR THE DESIRED RESULTS. Years ago, this information was only available in labs and the equipment cost well into the six, and seven figures. Now, the chest straps are $80usd, power meters are accurate and consistent at $400usd and less, and muscle oxygen is available at similar cost. I intend to rent the Vo2master out for a month at a time, so that users can perform workouts indoors and out, to gain further insight into their values, as well as the general population, which will once again be published for peer review.

Feel free to ask any questions. We are doing this for free at the moment, but will charge a nominal fee at some point in the future. Until then, stay hydrated, exercise holistically, and ENJOY THE RIDE!

-Coach Wharton, Mr. Stuart Lynne, and Dr. Bruce Rogers.

 

More Fun With DFAA-1

"Using an old copy of RaceDay Apollo, a program invented by Dr. Philip Skiba, the software showed a .9799 (97.99%) probability factor that I would be able to hold 230 watts over 30 minutes. This product is no longer on the market, but copies of it are prized. With that number in mind and knowing that I did not have much intensity under my belt, I attempted to match or possibly break this value...."
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Billat 30-30’s – Part Two

"Billat 30-30's are intervals that require a hard effort for 30 seconds, followed by an easy recovery for 30 seconds. Over time, the body ends up playing 'catch-up', through heart rate, breath frequency, demand for oxygen at the muscular level, and a buildup of lactate in the system.  We can see this buildup through lactate testing, which is invasive and cumbersome, but we can also see it through SmO2 values, as muscles de-saturate and re-saturate. Lactate is getting processed back into energy, but sometimes the demand for oxygen is greater than the body's ability to provide it. "
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SmO2 (Saturated Muscle Oxygen) From Two Locations During Billat 30-30 Intervals

This is a chart from PerfPro Analyzer 2021 (Beta). PerfPro Analyzer continues to be my favorite workout and programming tool. It has the best display, the most customizable options, and Dr. Skiba's Metrics are PUBLISHED and PEER REVIEWED. This cannot be said about other "Cycling Fitness" Platforms or their AstroTurf PhD's. Remember, "In God We Trust, All Others Bring Objective, Peer-Reviewed, Published Data With Valid Hypotheses!" Specifically, look at the two lines on this graph. The Upper Line is my SmO2 value from a Moxy Monitor placed on my Left Lateral Deltoid. The Lower Line is an SmO2 Moxy Monitor placed on my Right Vastus Lateralis. This image is from my warmup.
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