Suunto links to TrainingPeaks and more

This is a bit more than a ‘meh’ moment.

The crux of the matter is shown here as you can now link your Suunto app account to your TrainingPeaks account. There’s an interesting bit too. I promise I will cover that further below.

In all it’s glory here I link from movescount.com to TP (pre-existing functionality)

I then checked my Suunto app (Android) and connected that as it wasn’t connected automatically. I thought I’d also try the old Movescount app as I hadn’t used that for quite a while and now that tells me that I shouldn’t use the Movescount app if I have a Suunto 9, Spartan or 3 models. Which I do. So I stopped there. As I like to be told what to do. Sometimes.

The connection worked too on the Suunto app.

Let’s assume that a newly completed Move (workout) will get sync’d through to TrainingPeaks. It does, I checked ;-), see below. Actually I had a 10-minute running power PB today (yay!) but that’s not shown below as it was done on my Polar Vantage, so the 1 minute and 53 seconds of glory shown below might, just might, be me sitting down in front of a PC.

So that’s great.

Previously, the Suunto app only had data sync links to STRAVA and Endomondo – as shown in the earlier images. It makes sense for any serious sports data creator to link to Training Peaks…even the Sleep Monitor QS.EMFIT does that and has done for a while. So this is a good, but late, move by Suunto for their app. It would be EVEN BETTER if Suunto provided a DROPBOX app and then we could MORE EASILY use our own data wherever we wanted. Like loading it into Golden Cheetah, for example. Lots of serious athletes use Golden Cheetah and not Training Peaks. C’mon Suunto/Polar, you need to do the same as well…Wahoo did it.

So that’s the boring bit and my mini-rant over. Now comes the slightly more interesting stuff. I’ll cut to the chase:

• There’s the obligatory 30-day, Free Training Peaks PREMIUM Trial with the purchase of a new Suunto.
• Buying a new, high-end Suunto will also get you a Training plan created by Suunto from the TrainingPeaks Training Plan Store. As of 8Jan2019, I couldn’t find those plans but the frere plan has only just been announced so I’m sure they will be available soon.
  • I  assume that the TrainingPeaks plans for Suunto will replicate or replace the functionality that Suunto already has. At least for now. By that, I mean that a ‘plan’ will involve the calendar scheduling of simple move-type workouts. More specifically I do NOT see there being any structured workouts created in these new TrainingPeaks plans…yet.

Creating a simple planned Move:

Existing TRAINING PROGRAM catalog:.

Existing watch-based planned workout functionality

State of the SPARTAN – After Suunto’s Firmware v2.0.40 (May 2018)

If Suunto is clever here they will be following Wahoo’s lead which is essentially outsourcing all the hard stuff to someone else and then linking to it. In the case of Wahoo they link to TODAY’S PLAN and to TRAININGPEAKS for workout creation (FINAL SURGE this year too, hopefully).

If Suunto do that, then they can focus on enabling the execution of complex structured workouts on their Spartan/Suunto 9 devices. That is a glaring omission of key functionality at present.

But today’s press release also has, hidden away, some hints at a new direction for Suunto

• In Suunto’s press release today they also say that they want to open up their API to ” …give the opportunity for sport and outdoor companies to connect with Suunto’s engaged sports enthusiasts.” Hopefully, this would allow the likes of TODAY’SPLAN AND FINALSURGE to provide integrations for workout creation, scheduling and the subsequent advanced analysis.
• But the press release also says that Suunto wants to grow the number of compatible services by building “commercial programs with new potential partners by offering the Movesense sensor platform for open development of movement based solutions and service“. MovesSense is, sort of, the pod from the Suunto Smart Belt HRM except that it has other sensors in it which are able to be leveraged by CUSTOM 3rd party solutions. Some of the new stuff being shown now at CES 2019 is, I believe, from Suunto’s Movesense-enabled partners.

Movesense has promised a lot and has always seemed interesting and clever when I have sat through presentation about it. I’m just waiting to use some of the products that come from it (some do exist).

via: @JustinP: https://www.suunto.com/News/suunto-welcomes-companies-to-join-its-partner-program-a-digital-ecosystem-for-sports-and-active-life/

via@dcr: https://www.dcrainmaker.com/2019/01/suunto-expands-trainingpeaks-support-as-well-as-opens-integration-doors.html , I thought this had been around for a while but DCR rightly points out that the ability now exists for people to get data out of the Suunto platform.

edit: Changed to state that TP was previously available via MOVESCOUNT