30 days of free beta on every app · one-time code · no subscription
DIALFORGE

Running and cycling data fields

Effort Score

Real training load from your heart rate, not a guess.

Coming to Connect IQ Unlock €3.99

Effort Score icon

Beta: free for 30 days

The app works fully and for free for the first 30 days after you first open it. After that you can buy a one-time unlock code below. No subscription.

Effort Score turns your heart rate into a Banister TRIMP training load, using your resting HR, max HR and sex from your Garmin profile, with sensible fallbacks if any of that is missing. If your sex is not set in the profile (or set to unspecified), the male formula is used; only an explicit female setting switches to the female one. It adds up every second and works in any activity, including pool swims and indoor trainer rides, where GPS and pace do not help.

  • TRIMP score and effort per hour on screen
  • Works in any activity: run, ride, swim, indoor trainer
  • Saves an "Effort" field to your FIT file, visible in Garmin Connect
  • Adapts to full, half or smaller field size
  • No setup needed, reads your Garmin user profile automatically

How to use it

Add Effort Score as a data field in an activity, then set it up in its settings.

Add Effort Score as a data field on any activity screen and start your workout.

Manual

Effort Score: user manual

What it does

Effort Score is a data field that adds up your training load from heart rate as a Banister TRIMP. It needs only heart rate and time, so it works in the pool and on an indoor trainer too. The total is also saved with the activity.

Requirements and supported watches

Needs Connect IQ 3.3.0+ and the Connect IQ or Garmin Connect phone app. Supported watches:

  • Round AMOLED: epix 2 and epix Pro 2, fēnix 8, E, Forerunner 165, 265, 570, 965, 970, Instinct 3 AMOLED, Crossover AMOLED, Venu 2, 3, 4, vivoactive 5, 6.
  • Round MIP: enduro 3, fēnix 7 series, 8 Solar, Forerunner 245 (245 Music), 255.
  • Square and rectangular AMOLED: Venu Sq 2, Venu X1.

Installation

In the Connect IQ app on your phone (or Garmin Connect, then the Connect IQ Store) find "Effort Score" by Dialforge, tap Install and sync the watch. Add it in an activity's settings: Data Screens, a field, Connect IQ, Effort Score.

First launch

Add it to a data screen and start the activity. The big number is TRIMP so far. On larger fields the TRIMP label sits above it, and below it is the rate per hour, which shows "--" for the first minute. The 30-day free beta starts the first time you open it.

Controls

Watches with buttons (START, UP, DOWN, BACK)

  • A data field has no buttons of its own. The watch's buttons work as they do on any activity screen.

Touch watches (tap, hold, swipe)

  • No touch actions, the field only displays data.

Settings

Phone: Connect IQ app, Effort Score, Settings (the unlock code fields are there too).

License

  • Free beta: 30 days from the first launch, everything works.
  • Price: 3.99 EUR once at dialforge.dev, no subscription. The 8-character code is tied to your watch's UID.
  • Where to enter it: phone, Connect IQ app, Effort Score, Settings. Read the UID in "Watch UID (needed to buy a code)", buy the code, then type it into "Unlock code from dialforge.dev".
  • After the beta without a code: the field shows only the small text dialforge.dev instead of the numbers. It has no end-of-beta screen, the UID is in the phone settings. TRIMP keeps counting and saving in the background, and after you enter the code the field shows the total from the whole activity.

Privacy and permissions

Permissions:

  • User profile: resting heart rate, birth year, sex and heart rate zones for the TRIMP formula.
  • FIT contributor: saves the TRIMP total as an "Effort" field in the activity.

No internet use. Data stays on the watch.

Troubleshooting

The code does not work. Check that the UID you bought for matches "Watch UID (needed to buy a code)" and type all 8 characters (case is ignored, no 0, O, 1 or I). A code for another app does not fit. Sync, then reopen.

Where is the number in Garmin Connect? After you save the activity, the session has an "Effort" field in TRIMP. It is shown in the activity summary.

What does it take from my profile? Resting heart rate (30 to 120, else 60), max heart rate and sex. Max is the top of zone 5 for the current sport, else 208 minus 0.7 times your age, else 185. Unset or unspecified sex uses the male formula, only an explicit female setting switches it.

Does the number grow while paused? No. It adds time from the activity timer, so a pause adds nothing. A moment without a heart rate reading adds nothing either.

Why does a small field show only the number? Below about 40% of the screen the field drops the label and the per-hour line to fit a bigger number.

Contact

kontakt@dialforge.dev or dialforge.dev. Please write before leaving a low rating.

Permissions and privacy

This product asks the watch for the permissions below. Connect IQ shows them when you install it.

  • Your profile: Reads your Garmin profile on the watch (for example age, weight, heart rate zones) to calculate values for you.
  • Own data fields in the activity: Adds this app's own numbers (for example points or sets) to the saved activity.

This product does not use the internet and sends no data to our servers.

Compatible watches

51mm, D2 Air X15, D2 Mach 1 Pro, Enduro 2, Enduro 3, epix (Gen 2), epix Pro (Gen 2) 42mm, epix Pro (Gen 2) 47mm, epix Pro (Gen 2) 51mm, Forerunner 165, Forerunner 165 Music, Forerunner 245 Music, Forerunner 255, Forerunner 255 Music, Forerunner 255s, Forerunner 255s Music, Forerunner 265, Forerunner 265s, Forerunner 570 42mm, Forerunner 570 47mm, Forerunner 965, Forerunner 970, fēnix 7, fēnix 7 Pro, fēnix 7 Pro - Solar Edition (no Wi-Fi), fēnix 7S, fēnix 7S Pro, fēnix 7X, fēnix 7X Pro, fēnix 7X Pro - Solar Edition (no Wi-Fi), fēnix 8 43mm, fēnix 8 47mm, fēnix 8 Pro 47mm, fēnix 8 Solar 47mm, fēnix 8 Solar 51mm, fēnix E, Instinct 3 AMOLED 45mm, Instinct 3 AMOLED 50mm, Instinct Crossover AMOLED, MicroLED, quatix 7, quatix 7 Pro, quatix 7 Sapphire, quatix 7X Solar, quatix 8 47mm, quatix 8 Pro 47mm, tactix 7, tactix 7 – AMOLED Edition, tactix 8 47mm, tactix 8 Solar 51mm, Venu 2, Venu 2 Plus, Venu 2S, Venu 3, Venu 3S, Venu 4 41mm, Venu 4 45mm, Venu Sq 2, Venu Sq 2 Music, Venu X1, vívoactive 5, vívoactive 6

Screenshots

Effort Score, fenix 8 47 mm, screen 1
fenix 8 47 mm, screen 1
Effort Score, fenix 8 47 mm, screen 2
fenix 8 47 mm, screen 2
Effort Score, Venu 3, screen 1
Venu 3, screen 1
Effort Score, Venu 3, screen 2
Venu 3, screen 2
Effort Score, Forerunner 255, screen 1
Forerunner 255, screen 1
Effort Score, Forerunner 255, screen 2
Forerunner 255, screen 2
Effort Score, Venu Sq 2, screen 1
Venu Sq 2, screen 1
Effort Score, Venu Sq 2, screen 2
Venu Sq 2, screen 2

FAQ

What happens after the 30-day beta?

The app shows a screen asking for a one-time unlock code from dialforge.dev instead of opening normally. Buy the code once below, no subscription.

Does the app send my data to Dialforge?

No. The app works fully offline, and the unlock code is checked on the watch itself, without contacting any server.

The app does not work as described on my watch. Can I get a refund?

Yes. Write through the feedback form below, or to the e-mail in the footer. If we cannot fix it, we refund you, as described in the terms.

Changing your watch?

Write to me and I will move your code for free.

Changelog

Unlock

€3.99

One-time payment. No subscription. The code works on the watch whose UID you enter.

  1. Install the app from the Connect IQ store. It works fully and for free for the first 30 days.
  2. Find your 10-digit UID: Connect IQ app on the phone > My Device > Apps or Data Fields > this app > Settings > Watch UID.
  3. Enter UID and e-mail, pay with PayPal (cards work without a PayPal account). The code appears here at once.
  4. Type the code into the same settings page, field "Unlock code". The watch checks it offline.

Tell us how to make it better

Missing a data field, a colour, a layout? Found a bug on your watch model? Write it here. We read every message and ship improvements in updates.