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Heart Rate Monitors
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Software and Equipment
Physical Workload Assessment
Stress Monitoring
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Energy Expenditure Assessment
Research Use
Firstbeat MOBILE COACH v1.1
Firstbeat BODYGUARD

Stress Monitoring
 

Stress is not necessarily a negative factor and it often enhances focused thinking as well as motivation. But problems might arise when the pressure gets too great. It might cause sickness and absence, lack of concentration and productivity and even increased risk of occupational accidents.

The autonomic nervous system (ANS) reacts quickly to changing conditions. Many changes in physiological functions and especially in the autonomic nervous system function are reflected in our heart. Due to these facts, heart beat measurement and analysis of heart rate reactions and heart rate variability (HRV) can provide much more information on body processes than only heart rate.

The stress and recovery analysis has been developed in collaboration with several research projects in the area of stress measurement and autonomic nervous system (ANS) function, applying also research in the fields of exercise physiology, behavioral sciences, and applied mathematics.

The knowledge on ANS stress quantification and physiological modeling of body functions was combined to develop a practical method that could be used in daily life stress monitoring. The method has been designed to distinguish between ANS stress reactions caused by immediate physical demands and by other factors, such as mental demands or stress. The developed method has proved to be a useful and robust tool for applied work, and validation studies indicate high correlations with hormonal and subjective measures.

Key benefits of Firstbeat HEALTH for stress and recovery monitoring

  • Objective evaluation of the stress level
  • Recognition of stress overload
  • Identification of periods of stress and recovery in daily activities
  • Recovery and resources follow-up
  • Easily understandable reports

Available Reports:

  • Stress Report
  • Resources and Recovery Report

Stress Report

The report illustrates the physiological reactions associated with stress and recovery during the measurement. Periods of stress and recovery occurring during a workday are analyzed and sports as a form of stress management is evaluated.

For whom

For everybody who is interested in getting individual measurement data on body’s stress reactions and relaxation periods during work and leisure time, and in monitoring lifestyle stress.

Stress Report contains e.g. the following features:

  • Stress and recovery chart
  • Analysis of periods with stress reactions (i.e. identify when the highest intensity of stress reactions occurred)
  • Stress and recovery proportioned to 8h working day
  • Stress and recovery follow-up

Reports can be used e.g. for the following applications:

  • Within day stress monitoring to identify time periods of high stress and recovery
  • Monitoring of day-to-day stress and recovery
  • Analysis of the stress load of diverse work tasks
  • Analysis of measurements executed in leisure time to get an overall picture of stress and recovery states
  • Identification of high stress and recovery and planning of necessary changes in lifestyle
  • Analysis of the influence of physical activity on stress
  • Illustration of the balance between stress and recovery states

Resources and Recovery Report

In the reports the changes in body’s resources and the balance of stress and recovery states during the measurement period are analyzed.

Recovery is a key to stress analysis, since insufficient daily recovery impairs work efficiency and overall well-being. By using this method, it is possible to verify that a person is able to recover during work-day and especially during night time.

For whom

For everybody who is interested in getting individual and detailed information about body’s resources and how they are affected by stress and recovery.

Resources and Recovery Report contains e.g. the following features:

  • Resources charts
  • Recovery analysis (i.e. identify when the highest level of recovery occurred)
  • Shares of stress and recovery in segments of equal length
  • Balance of recovery (i.e. between stress and recovery)
  • Resource follow-up

Reports can be used e.g. for the following applications:

  • Monitoring the changes in resources in the course of the day
  • Analysis of the influence of different work tasks on body’s resources
  • Monitoring long-term development of body’s resource balance for planning and controlling changes in lifestyle

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