How to Use Ghost Target on Sports Tracker

Keep evolving your workouts with Sports Tracker Ghost Target feature

Whether you’re a biker or a runner, training with a partner is a great way to improve your speed.  But finding a compatible partner whose schedule matches yours is not always an option. Luckily, the problem solvers over at Sports Tracker have created Ghost Target as a solution. The way it works is that Sports Tracker enables you to compare your effort, in real time, against the effort you previously made on the same route.

Sounds good? Following is a step-by-step tutorial to get you up and running (sorry for the pun) in no time.

First things first: it’s important to note that Ghost Target works only with Android at this time.

How to start the Ghost Target from Sports Tracker

  1. This page shows you the map of the route you’ll be following along with the data from your previous workout.

    Click the three dots at top right to open the drop down menu.

  2. Open Sports Tracker and go to your Home screen.

    From here you want to locate the route you’d like to follow, which means you can either: 1) scroll down from the Home page through your feed, or 2) click Diary, in the menu at the bottom of the page, and scroll down through your latest workouts. I like to go to the Diary because it filters out my friends’ workouts making it easier to find the route I want.

  3. Scroll down until you find the Route you’d like to follow and click it

  4. Click ‘Start as ghost target’ to get to the New Workout screen.

How to start the Ghost Target from Sports Tracker

5. The options on this page allow you to select…

  1. Activity – ever wonder how fast you run compared to how fast you mountain bike?
  2. Audio feedback – click on Audio Feedback if you want Sports Tracker to keep you updated without having to look at the screen. Turn audio on by clicking the On/Off button at top right. Loads of options including…
  3. Lap intervals so that feedback is spoken at the end of every lap, 0.5km, 1km, 2km, 5km, 10km or when manually prompted.
  4. Auto pause – select this if you would like Sports Tracker to auto pause if it senses that you’ve stopped.
  5. Speak On Every Lap   Select this mode if you’re running laps around a track.
  6. Speak On Every… Select the statistics you want including how you’re doing against your Ghost target, Distance, Duration, Energy, Current speed or Current pace, Average speed or Average pace, Current heart rate (if you have a compatible heart rate monitor) and Average heart rate (with HR monitor).
  7. Auto Pause – when Auto Pause is on, Sports Tracker will automatically pause when speed falls below a threshold (choose between 2km/h and 5km/h). Sports Tracker automatically starts again when your speed is back above the threshold.
  8. Ghost Target – the route you’re using as your Ghost Route should show up here.
  9. Follow Route – if you don’t want to use Ghost Target and prefer to simply follow a route you’ve previously covered without comparing efforts then check out our Follow Route tutorial here.

6. When all of this looks good, click Continue at the bottom of the page.

Sports Tracker Ghost Target workout view

This page will show the route you will use for your Ghost Target along with the data you’ve selected to be recorded. The big green and red boxes will show you how far ahead/behind you are compared to your Ghost.

If you’re ahead of the ghost, the box will be a lovely, congratulatory green that tells you the time or distance by which you’re leading. If you’re behind, you’ll be staring at a reproachful, highly-motivational red box (not shown).

At any time during your workout, clicking on the map will enlarge the map to give you a visual representation of your progress compared to the ghost. (You’re the little blue dot, the Ghost is the larger, lighter blue dot). Time or distance ahead or behind is displayed in the red or green box at the bottom of the page.

Sports Tracker Ghost Target workout view

 

And if you happen to get off route (or try sneaking in a short cut), Sports Tracker will prominently display a big red Off-Route box.

Swiping left will reveal more data and additional swipes left will reveal splits, a graph comparing speed and altitude, and a heart rate monitor.

Workout Summary

After your workout tap Stop, then End and you’ll be able to review your performance against the ghost. Simply swipe up to find the final data on your finished workout. Click the play button – or click and drag the tiny orange ball on the timeline – and a cursor will scroll across the table while data at the top shows kilometers, duration and how far ahead or behind you were.

Dig deep into your Ghost Target workout in workout summary of Sports Tracker

Previous

Continue to swipe up until you see the Previous screen which shows you how this workout compared to previous workouts on the same route. Swiping left will reveal additional graphs for Distance, Speed, Pace, Energy and Average heartrate.

Comparisons

Swipe up until you get to the Comparisons window to see how this workout ranks against other workouts on the same route as well as workouts on routes of a similar distance. Tap Rank on this route to go to a page that shows a bar graph of each workout on this route.

Ranking

This page shows your workout ranked with other workouts on this route. Your current workout has been automatically selected so just tap one of the other routes and you’ll go to a screen that shows a side-by-side comparison of data between the two routes.

Check out how you compared agains previous workouts from Sports Tracker

30-Day Summary

Swipe up again to get to the 30-Day Summary including tiny red and green numbers that tell you how the past 30 days compared to the 30 days before that. Tap on the chart to get an expanded view of data for duration, distance, speed, pace, energy and avg heartrate.

Laps

This screen shows speed, time and ascent and descent. At the top of the page choose between increments of either .5km. 1km, 2km or 5km.

Challenge yourself with Sports Tracker Ghost Target

Whew! So much information, right? Well as they say, knowledge is power and power is the basis of speed. Use Ghost Target correctly and if you have even the tiniest bit of competitiveness in you then using this feature will help you get faster. And you can of course pick up a friends workout and beat that one if you want.

And if you have any tips or tricks that I haven’t covered here then please help our community by adding them in the comments below!

9 comments

  1. wilson

    Hi i m really appreciate this post!!! The summary is really informative!!!

    Thanx A lot

  2. wilson

    Hi i m really appreciate this post!!! The summary is really informative!!! The best thing for me features for me was ghost tracker, now removed from new version of app for iPhone users..

    Thanx A lot

  3. Julián Casamonte

    For my hikes usually the only app i use is the music player … ahahha…. I just somedays take the long road to home , my agm x1 (a great rugged phone), some music and enjoy the afternoon :) i didnt like the battery enough nad now there is a gold edition with 5000 battery :D ! i hope can get one soon :) The ghost target sounds appeling tho. Thanks for the note !

  4. Phil

    One if best features for me was ghost tracker, now removed from new version of app for iPhone users ( mine an iPhone 6), so we upgrade and get a downgrade in functionality / not on

    1. Sports Tracker Team

      Hello Phil and thank you for the feedback! We’re trying to get the Ghost Target to iPhone also but unfortunately we don’t have a schedule yet.
      Best regards,
      Sports Tracker Team

  5. Torbjörn Lindström

    Hi!
    I wonder if Sports Tracker will be available as a standalone app for Android Wear wearables soon? so that I don’t have to carry my phone during my runs.

    1. Sports Tracker Team

      Hello Torbjörn and thanks for this nice idea! We’re investigating this possibility but unfortunately no schedule yet.
      Best regards,
      Sports Tracker Team

  6. Pedro Pinto

    When the full version, with ghost target, is available for iOS? I was/am a Premium subscriber for years and I feel very disappointed with rhe lack of functions and features in my iPhone. Please inform the expected date for a real functional version.
    Thanks.

    1. Sports Tracker Team

      Hello Pedro,
      Unfortunately we don’t have an expected date yet for this.
      Best regards,
      Sports Tracker Team

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