Evaluating The Validity Of Heart Rate Measured By The Suunto Spartan Sport Watch During Trail Running

Abstract

PURPOSE: In the last decade or so, a plethora of fitness tracking devices have come to market. With this, use of these devices has increased exponentially. Among these devices’ many functions is the ability to monitor heart rate (HR). The purpose of this investigation was to determine if HR measured by the Suunto Spartan Sport watch was statistically comparable to that of our criterion, the Polar H7 HR monitor. METHODS: Twenty-one participants (male n = 11, female n = 10, age = 31±2 yrs [mean±SE], ht = 173±2 cm, wt = 76±3 kg) completed a two-mile trail run which included elevation changes of 48 m (McCullough Hills Trail, Henderson, NV), 55m (Three Peaks Trail, Cedar City, UT) or 104m (Bristlecone Trail, Mt Charleston, NV). Heart rate was obtained from the Suunto Spartan Sport watch with accompanying heart strap and the Polar H7 chest-worn heart rate monitor as the criterion reference. Validity was determined using the Mean Absolute Percent Error (MAPE), Bland-Altman analysis with accompanying bias and Limits of Agreement (LoA), and single measures Intraclass Correlations (ICC). A Pearson Product Moment Correlation Coefficient was used to determine the relationship between the validity measures with significance accepted at p<0.05. RESULTS: During uphill running, the MAPE was 1.46%, and the lower and upper LoA were -11.53 and 12.34, respectively. The single measures ICC was 0.95 with a 95% CI of 0.953 to 0.956 (F(14834, 14834) = 43.15, p < 0.000). During downhill running, the MAPE was 2.18% with the lower and upper LoA at -15.76 and 14.15, respectively. The single measures ICC was .94 with a 95% CI of 0.946 to 0.951 (F(9075, 9075) = 38.45, p < 0.000). CONCLUSIONS: These results demonstrate a there was a very low percentage of error for the Suunto Spartan Sport watch in recording HR for both uphill and downhill running. This suggests that The Suunto Spartan Sport might be a valid and reliable option for consumers wishing to monitor HR during outdoor trail running activities.