Discovery Health - Vitality & Team Vitality plus everything else you need to know

[Veebee]

Here is my problem: 

I run and I cycle, and have always just used my iphone and the strava app, to get free coffee and collect points. I don't like running with my phone though, and don't mind carrying it when I ride. 

My weekly Rewards targets are always reached. Now Strava is not accepted anymore - but what should I do : get the free Iwatch (free in my case I think), but then have to carry both phone and watch? Or do I need to get a full fitness tracker to track routes like i did on Strava and still get points / rewards. It is all confusion.. 

maybe someone has the same issue. what do you do post 1 Aprli / sans Strava? 

thanks

 

Just get a multisport watch instead of the iwatch, and then you can link this the Strava. Something like the Garmin Vivoactive or similar would work fine.

[lerouc]

What is interesting is that looking on there website, things are different there compared to the email we received.  i.e run speed is now 8km's per hour (was 4km's) and ride speed must be 20km's per hour (was 8km's).  When I spoke to the lady at vitality she said these are the new speeds come the 2nd of April.  There was no mention of speed in THE email..

 

That said, 20km's on a road bike is easily achievable, but on a technical mtb trail its a bit of a push (for me at least).   But at least its something achievable if you don't have a heart rate monitor.

 

20km/h is alot for mtbing. If i push HARD i can get 17-18 on a flattish course.

[garrethk]

Just get a multisport watch instead of the iwatch, and then you can link this the Strava. Something like the Garmin Vivoactive or similar would work fine.

Looking at doing something along those lines myself. Looking at the Polar A300 or M400 and use 25% cash back at Dischem or Sportsmans warehouse

[garrethk]

20km/h is alot for mtbing. If i push HARD i can get 17-18 on a flattish course.

Don't know of any flattish courses in the Durban area

[DJLouw]

Heres a image of the HR 

https://www.discovery.co.za/discovery_coza/web/linked_content/images/vitality/newsletter/var_heart_rate_table.jpg

[Frosty]

So Team Vitality send an email promoting Active Recovery after hard workouts with the following link:

 

https://www.discovery.co.za/portal/individual/vitality-news-mar16-active-recovery

 

Now to get them to include recovery (at their lower than 70% of maxHR rate) in the Vitality Rewards program.

[shah]

Here is my problem: 

I run and I cycle, and have always just used my iphone and the strava app, to get free coffee and collect points. I don't like running with my phone though, and don't mind carrying it when I ride. 

My weekly Rewards targets are always reached. Now Strava is not accepted anymore - but what should I do : get the free Iwatch (free in my case I think), but then have to carry both phone and watch? Or do I need to get a full fitness tracker to track routes like i did on Strava and still get points / rewards. It is all confusion.. 

maybe someone has the same issue. what do you do post 1 Aprli / sans Strava? 

thanks

Ive got the iphone & iwatch and use the built-in watch fitness tracker which records HR and sycns directly to the discovery app, no prob with claiming rewards!

[Ratty]

Looking at doing something along those lines myself. Looking at the Polar A300 or M400 and use 25% cash back at Dischem or Sportsmans warehouse

 

Anyone wanting to get a VivoActive, rather wait a little bit for the Vivoactive HR which has the built in HR monitor.  Its being released soon.  Then you don't need to worry about a HR strap.

 

Otherwise Tom Tom does a nice GPS multisport watch with built in HR for a very good price, only catch is it needs to be linked by tomorrow otherwise you have to wait for Discovery to have a direct interface with Tom Tom (+- 6 months).  Unfortunately the Tom Tom has bad reviews for the swimming accuracy (everything else was fine) which makes it a no go for me.

 

only other watch I found with GPS and built in HR was an Adidas one.  But the VivoActive is better IMO.

[lerouc]

some more paid for advertising:
http://mybroadband.co.za/news/general/158827-discovery-vitality-reducing-activity-goals-after-backlash.html

[Rob22]

Ive got the iphone & iwatch and use the built-in watch fitness tracker which records HR and sycns directly to the discovery app, no prob with claiming rewards!

You wont need your phone when you run - the Apple watch HR monitor will track your run and you will get the points no problem.

Edited March 17, 2016 by Rob22

[Captain Fastbastard Mayhem]

You wont need your phone when you run - the Apple watch HR monitor will track your run and you will get the points no problem.

Yeah, BUT - the watch piggy-backs off the phone for GPS tracking functionality... 

[funjunkie]

I have a Garmin vivoft which seems to help with getting my targets.

10 000 steps(100 points)  X 7 days a week = 700 points. I hardly ever hit less than 10 000 steps a day.

 

The  vivofit records heart rate (with an ANT+ Heart rate strap) as well so you can get your heart rate related points for runs, watt bike sessions, spinning classes etc.

 

I do have an Edge 510 which i use for my cycling. 

 

2 workouts a week with one weekend ride and points for the steps and i could still make 1200 points a week.

 

Whats new is that 2 hour weekend ride will now only give 600 points and not 3000.

 

I have no problem for them moving the targets for smoothies.

The poor sods that took i watches thinking that they can achieve their goals with minimal effort will now have to get off their behinds and work for their points.

 

What also sucks, is that without some sort of "approved" heart rate monitor/device it will be very difficult to achieve points targets.  

Edited March 17, 2016 by funjunkie

[Eugene Brown]

After spending a moer of a lot of time on the phone with Discovery's Vitality "help agents" and visiting the lovely individuals on 3 occasions, my GC is now talking to the Vitality page, and my activities (with their points) from January until now have been manually uploaded   . This was after I had seriously considered stopping all attempts at "living the Vitality system" despite the really serious (and quite large) financial implications for my pay-backs against my life insurance!

 

I'm now sitting at 23700 points for activities on the bike for the year from only 19 rides, including 1 x Modders Night Race, USN #2 and Serengeti, as well as 1 very social ride with a mate and our wives on most Sundays (babbelas permitting).

 

Am I right in saying that the fitness activity points are capped at 30000 per year? If so, then the goals are definitely very achievable, as I haven't killed myself riding, but I have definitely made a committed effort to spend more quality, HR-based, training time on the bike.

 

I would've expected myself to achieve, and the "awards" programme to make the rules so that the points allocation is achievable (with reasonable commitment, etc). by September/October, and not in March. If I was running Vitality, I would've liked to have seen it structured that way, that's for sure. 

 

Much as I hate to say it, I think Discovery, with their Vitality program, are left with absolutely no choice but to change the points allocation, as it has definitely been very easy for me to almost max my points out already, and I'm sure for most of the other people who put some effort in too......

[eccc whippet]

took the advice posted here...setup a GC account...took my self loops file from my cadence class and dropped it into GC...went to vitality and added GC...hope i have done it right...will see from next month is i still get points via GC

[HappyMartin]

Lots of people here with the IWatch I assume. Up front I will say I have two mac pros. Two MacBook pros. And iPad and an iPhone.

 

However the watch looks like a rubbish fitness tracker to me. Not properly waterproof. No built in gps. Bad battery life. Perhaps as a smart watch it's great but I think there are several better fitness trackers such as Garmin, Fitbit, polar and so on.

 

Am I wrong. Anyone else have any opinion on this? I am keen to get a fitness tracker to all sorts of things with including the vitality stuff but don't think the apple device will suit me.

[Albatross]

I see you can get the apple watch 42mm "free" for limited time now