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https://github.com/tmcw/running-for-nerds

like running, but for nerds
https://github.com/tmcw/running-for-nerds

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like running, but for nerds

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running-for-nerds

=================



_contribute! if you have facts to share, please submit a pull request or leave an issue_



Types of running websites:



* "Fitness Portals" offered by hardware companies, like Garmin and Polar

* "Fitness Portals" offered by web companies, like Strava and RunKeeper

* Connectors, like [Tapiriik](https://tapiriik.com/) and [IFFT](https://ifttt.com/)



## tapiriik



[tapiriik](https://tapiriik.com/) is truly one of the best things for running nerds: it allows

you to automatically distribute your running data: upload just to Strava or to any of the supported

websites, and it can push runs to all of the others, as well as a linked Dropbox bucket.

It's really quite good.



## Websites



* [Endomondo](https://www.endomondo.com/)

  * **tapiriik support**

* [RunKeeper](http://runkeeper.com/)

  * [API](http://developer.runkeeper.com/healthgraph/overview)

  * **tapiriik support**

* [Strava](http://www.strava.com/)

  * Actively developed.

  * **tapiriik support**

  * [API Reference](http://strava.github.io/api/)

  * Custom JSON encoding for activities

  * Strava's API is one of the most modern of the bunch, being that it's from a _real tech company_ and has some elite developers working on it. That said, it's frustratingly one-way: you can upload a GPX, FIT, or TCX file, but the only thing you can get back is Strava's custom, non-standard JSON encoding.

* [Garmin Connect](http://connect.garmin.com/)

  * Sporadic developer activity: Garmin is an old company that has had a really hard time modernizing at all, and as a result the interface has become a sort of trainwreck.

  * **tapiriik support**

  * [API Reference](http://developer.garmin.com/)

* [Polar Flow](https://flow.polar.com/)

  * **WALLED GARDEN**: AVOID

  * _unsupported in tapiriik_

  * [API Reference](http://www.polar.com/en/connect_with_polar/polar_accesslink)

  * Polar is probably the worst watch brand for nerds: it's clear that the company wants to lock down the data _you_ create with the watches _you_ buy

* [Nike+](http://nikeplus.nike.com/)

  * [API](https://developer.nike.com/)

  * _unsupported in tapiriik_

  * [IFTTT Support](https://ifttt.com/nikeplus)

* [Motivato](http://motivato.pl/#/): Polish Only

  * **tapiriik support**

* [Movescount](http://movescount.com/)

  * Can be synced directly to Strava and other third party apps, but no public API available.

* [Fitbit](http://www.fitbit.com/home)

  * [TCX output for some devices](https://dev.fitbit.com/docs/activity/#get-activity-tcx)

  * [Charges for data export](http://www.fitbit.com/premium/export)



## Apps



* [Ghostracer](http://getghostracer.com/)

  * Excellent choice for use on Android Wear devices

  * Uploads to Strava and Runkeeper



## Watches



Recommended:



* TomTom: connects to many services, can save files locally

* Garmin: supports a browser plugin that works on many websites - RunKeeper, Strava, Garmin Connect, etc.

* Suunto: locked to Movescountvia Moveslink, but has exports to Strava and can also download as Garmin FIT files.

* Fitbit Surge: uploads to Fitbit & RunKeeper

* [Sony Smartwatch 3](http://www.sonymobile.com/global-en/products/smartwear/smartwatch-3-swr50/): Runs on Android Wear and has built-in GPS, so you can use it as a stand-alone device.

* Polar M600: Android WearOS so can use any app available for WearOS (doesn't need to use the Polar Flow)



Not recommended:



* Polar: locked down to FlowSync (except M600, as above)



## GPS



The basics of GPS:



GPS is one system, but there are others, and some devices use more than one. For instance, a new iPhone

connects to GPS, GLONASS (Russia's system), as well as local wifi access points to derive an accurate location.



GPS's accuracy has two user-facing problems



* Time to first lock

* Jitter



The first problem is often ameliorated by 'quickfix' tables - these store recent estimates of satellite

positions so that your receiver can make better guesses initially for where exactly you are.



The second is based on a few different problems - in cities, [multipath propagation](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multipath_propagation) will distort a signal that bounces off of a big

building, making the track end up offset from its original location.



## Formats



Running data is fun because it's potentially 5-dimensional: within a single GPX or TCX file, you can have



* longitude & latitude & elevation `[x, y, z]`

* heart rate

* time



But traditional GIS formats like Shapefiles can't store all of this data in a non-hacky way,

since they only support attributes at the line level, not at the line-segment level.

[toGeoJSON](https://github.com/mapbox/togeojson) converts GPX to GeoJSON with these properties

put into arrays that work parallel to coordinates.



* [GPX](http://www.topografix.com/gpx.asp)

  * [GPSBabel](http://www.gpsbabel.org/) is an essential swiss-army knife

* [TCX](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Training_Center_XML)

* [Strava activity format](https://strava.github.io/api/v3/activities/)



## Sensors



A few basic sensor types:



* Heart rate

* Cadence (for cycling)



Most heart rate sensors work via [EKG](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electrocardiography), which means

that a big part of their effectiveness comes from skin contact and they often work better with sweat moisture.



Not all do, however - for instance [Fitbit PurePulse](http://help.fitbit.com/articles/en_US/Help_article/Heart-rate-FAQs) uses an optical sensor to estimate blood flow and supposedly derives heart rate from this measurement. This system has [had mixed reviews based on its accuracy, which seems to be less than straps](http://recode.net/2015/02/02/three-new-fitbits-see-how-they-run/)



### Protocols



* [Bluetooth Low Energy](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bluetooth_low_energy)

* [Polar Wearlink](https://groups.google.com/forum/#!topic/btstack-dev/TusCxtbq7ug) - proprietary



#### ANT+



[ANT+](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ANT%2B) is a licensed protocol for accessories to communicate with other devices.



* https://github.com/braiden/python-ant-downloader

* https://github.com/Tigge/openant

* https://github.com/Tigge/antfs-cli

* https://github.com/mvillalba/python-ant