ExerciseHRCodePackage

ExerciseHRCode provides an easy way to analyze exercise heart rate data (saved as a CSV file) from Polar for the purpose of:

1. Increasing scientific rigor, reproducibility, and transparency when reporting exercise-based research
2. Promoting reaching target exercise intensities in research and clinical practice

With ExerciseHRCode, the user selects whether they want mean, maximum, and minimum heart rate response reported in 15, 30, 45, or 60 second bins. This information will be provided in an excel output file which also show total time spent in the target intensity zone.

The user is asked to select: 1) Whether the exercise intensity is light, moderate, or vigorous, and 2) How maximal heart rate should be determined. Maximal heart rate can be determined by either 1) Entering a predetermined maximal heart rate, or 2) Selecting a predetermined equation to predict maximal heart rate. If an equation is selected, the user will be asked to enter any relevant information such as age and resting heart rate.

After completing the selection process in the console, the user will be provided with the maximum heart rate and heart rate intensity range. Two files will be exported to the output_folder filepath. One file will be a summarized_data CSV file with heart rate analyzed for each bin and total time spent in the intensity zone provided. The other file will be a JPG graph of the heart rate response during exercise with the target intensity zone highlighted. The JPG graph can be a black and white publication-ready graph or a color graph depending on what is prespecified in the code, i.e., publication_graph = TRUE or publication_graph = FALSE.

Downloading CSV from Polar

1. Click on your exercise session.

2. Select “Export session.”

3. Select “Session (CSV).”

Installing ExerciseHRCode

If you need to install R Studio and R, the downloads can be found at the following link: https://posit.co/download/rstudio-desktop/

You can install the development version of ExerciseHRCodePackage from GitHub with:

install.packages("devtools")
library(devtools)
devtools::install_github("briabartsch/ExerciseHRCode")

Example of Running the Code and Output

The following image shows how to set-up your R Studio environment and run the ExerciseHRCode.

1. “devtools” must be installed and loaded. Note: To install “devtools” you may either highlight the line “install.packages(”devtools”)” and click “Run” or you may place your cursor at the end of the line and click “Run.” Do the same thing to load “devtools” with the “library(devtools)” line.

2. “ExerciseHRCode” must be installed from GitHub. Note: You will do this in R Studio. You do not need to visit GitHub.

3. Run the code. Note: You will need to specify where you want the output files to be saved (output_folder = “XX”) and if you want a publication-style graph to be produced. If you want a publication-style graph, set “publication_graph” to TRUE. If you do not want a publication-style graph, set “publication_graph” to FALSE.

Below, is an example of the entire code, including the “devtools” and “ExerciseHRCode” installations. Note: You can also specify the filepath for the output folder using the following approach (example): output_folder = file.path(“C:”,“Users”,“briabartsch”,“Desktop”,“HR_Data”)

When you run the code, a file window will automatically open, as shown below. Navigate to the location where you have your CSV file saved, select the file, and press open. The code will continue to run.

You will now be brought through a series of interactive steps in the console, as shown below.

1. You will be asked to select your desired bin size. Type 1, 2, 3, or 4 into the console, and press enter.

2. You will be asked to select the exercise intensity. Type 1, 2, or 3 into the console, and press enter.

3. You will be asked to determine maximal heart rate. If you have a predetermined heart rate that you would like to enter, type 1 into the console, and press enter. You will then be asked to enter your predetermined maximal heart rate. If you do not have a predetermined heart rate, press 2, and enter.

4. If you did not enter a predetermined maximal heart rate, you will be asked to select the equation you wish to use for determining maximal heart rate. Type 1, 2, or 3 into the console, and press enter. For all selections, you will be asked to enter age. For HRR, you will also be asked to enter resting heart rate.

5. You will be provided with the maximal heart rate and heart rate range in the console. You will also be told the path to where the graph and summarized date file were saved.

Below is an example of the export if you select “publication_graph = TRUE”

Below is an example of the export if you select “publication_graph = FALSE”

Below is an example of what the summarize data CSV will look like: