Can Garmin Connect Show Time in Heart Rate Zones

Heart rate monitoring has been a staple characteristic on Garmin'southward watches for some time now, merely it's just over the last few years that it'south taken the jump from getting that data from a paired centre rate chest strap to moving the tech straight into the wearables themselves.

Since Garmin launched the Precursor 225 running scout back in 2015, its first device to include a built-in optical heart rate monitor, there's been a steady stream of sports watches and fitness trackers that at present permit you runway heart rate activity from the wrist.

Read this : Best centre charge per unit monitors to buy

But what kind of data can you meet – and how can you brand the most of those insights? We've broken downward exactly how Garmin's middle rate applied science works, the kind of data information technology provides and where you can notice that information during and afterwards your workout.

How does Garmin heart rate tech work?

So before nosotros become into the information we need to talk near how that data is generated in the offset place. Like many of the heart charge per unit monitors found on watches like the Apple Watch or on Fitbit'southward wearables, Garmin takes a very similar approach across its devices.

Information technology uses its own proprietary optical-based Drag eye rate sensor technology. These sensors can be plant on the back of Garmin's wearables – that fashion when they're strapped on, they're well positioned on the top of the skin to accept a reading.

Dissimilar heart charge per unit monitor chest straps, which measure the heart'south electric activeness to produce HR data, optical heart rate monitors uses a series of lights that wink against the skin, illuminating capillaries in the body to notice changes in blood volume.

The sensor is then able to measure the rate at which blood is being pumped, giving y'all that center rate data in existent time.

Garmin watches with built-in heart rate monitors

Centre charge per unit is standard across the Garmin range now, and there's no device that hasn't got one of the visitor's Elevate sensors inside.

So when choosing a device, it'due south not about whether you get centre charge per unit – it's about how much information is gleaned from that sensor.

And that varies massively from device to device. You can check out our total rundown of the all-time Garmin watches here, but beneath is our at-a-glance guide to heart rate features.

Beginner'south guide to choosing a Garmin centre rate monitor:

Bones info:

All Garmin devices
Vivofit four
Precursor 35

Pulse oxygen:

Vivosmart 4 fettle tracker
Vivoactive four
Forerunner 945
Fenix devices

VO2 Max fettle level:

Forerunner 45 (not shown on watch)
Forerunner 245
Forerunner 645
Forerunner 945
Vivoactive 3/iv/4S
Venu
Marq
Quatix

Avant-garde heart charge per unit analytics

Fenix five/6
Forerunner 245
Forerunner 645
Forerunner 945
Tactix
Quatix

Garmin heart rate: What does it track?

So we've established how Garmin's centre rate sensor tech works and outlined the wearables y'all can find it packed into. Now it's time to turn our attention to the middle rate driven data y'all can dive into.

Centre rate during conditioning

Institute on pretty much all Garmin watches

But let's beginning with the one piece of information that everyone comes to expect, and that's real-fourth dimension heart rate information when y'all're working out.

Whether you are going for a run, cycle or just having a full general gym session, most heart charge per unit sensor-packing wearables from Garmin will let you see this information displayed in BPMs (beats per minute), an indication of your workout intensity.

And so why is this important? Well, knowing your heart rate can ensure you're working at the right intensity – making sure y'all're not slacking off, or more importantly, not called-for yourself out on a balance day.

Bank check out our guide to HR preparation for more.

Heart rate zone information

Most Forerunner and Fenix devices

To view this information once you've started to rails a workout, you tin can roll through the data screens on your watch and you'll detect a gauge similar the one you can see above.

This displays your electric current eye rate zone – the zones all accept dissimilar benefits depending on which one you spend the virtually time in. You can detect out more nearly how it all works in our guide to preparation with heart rate zones.

If you adopt to see that existent time heart rate information from i screen aslope another piece of existent-time information (like altitude or footstep, for example), you lot tin can customise data screens by heading into the settings of your device to change things upward.

Post-workout eye data

All Garmin devices

Once you've finished your workout, you can review your information from the session. This volition exist constitute in the Garmin Connect app and volition as well be transferred into third political party apps similar Strava.

And then what tin you run across? Well, you'll get a graph of your heart rate over the workout and an average and max HR figure. Checking your heart charge per unit average is a good way of checking your performance against the intensity goal for the session.

If you are training past heart rate, you can monitor the average HR for a session against your speed. As your fitness increases, your speed will meliorate within the same Hr zone.

Resting heart rate data 24/seven

All Garmin devices

Likewise every bit using real-fourth dimension heart rate data to keep a closer check on your workout intensity, many Garmins will now also let you monitor heart rate activity throughout the mean solar day and night.

You should look out for a screen that looks similar the i above to check in on this data. What yous'll encounter is a graph displaying resting heart charge per unit readings picking out when information technology was at its highest and at its lowest. Yous should exist able to view this over four hours and over seven days (prototype above).

Lowering resting heart rate is a sign of improving fitness – and for you lot hardcore athletes out there, y'all tin can acquire when to take a twenty-four hours off if your RHR is effectually 10bpm higher than usual. This shows your body is stressed.

A low resting centre charge per unit (40-60) is normally associated with athletes or anyone seriously into their training, just for most sixty-100 is expected for the average adult. For many sports watches, that RHR information can exist used in tandem with maximum centre rate to dictate eye rate based training zones.

Slumber tracking and center rate data

Sleep tracking on all Garmin devices
Pulse ox simply on Vivoactive iv/Vivosmart 4/Fenix v/Fenix vi/Precursor 945

Similar a lot of wearables, Garmin'south watches and fitness trackers are amend equipped to monitor what happens when yous're not working out. We're talking about sleep time.

Monitoring that sleep is done using the motility sensors inside of the device detecting when in that location is no movement to kickstart the slumber tracking. The addition of a heart rate monitor has improved that ability to meliorate analyse your sleep fourth dimension to and breaking down when you've had skillful quality snoozing.

Garmin is at present using heart rate variability measurements to improve the accurateness of determining the time you lot've spent awake and the time you lot've spent in specific sleep stages. Those sleep stages are: light sleep, deep sleep and REM (rapid middle movement) sleep.

VO2 Max estimates

Forerunner 45 (not shown on watch)
Forerunner 245
Precursor 645
Forerunner 945
Vivoactive three/iv/4S
Venu
Marq
Quatix

This piece of heart rate based piece of data is definitely 1 for fitness fans.

It relates to the rate the heart and lungs can transport oxygen to muscles to measure your aerobic fitness level.

The idea is that as you lot get fitter, your VO2 Max score should get higher. It's 1 of the all-time metrics for tracking your data.

In the case of Garmin'southward wearables like the Forerunner 945, your VO2 Max score is represented on a colour coded gauge and is designed for runners and cyclists. You will need to have run outdoors with GPS tracking or bike with a power meter for several minutes to produce the estimate.

The breakdown of the colours is as follows:

Red – Poor

Orange – Fair

Green – Practiced

Blueish – Excellent

Purple – Superior

Recovery time

Recovery tracking Garmin devices

Forerunner 245/645/945
Fenix

Garmin's top end wearables tin can besides provide an insight into whether y'all need to take a day off before y'all start preparation once again, using heart charge per unit data from your wrist or a paired heart rate monitor breast strap.

This insight relies on your VO2 Max scores we described above, so it may take a few tracked workouts before you outset seeing authentic, reliable data.

In that location'southward two ways to view your recovery time.

Firstly, information technology volition exist displayed afterwards you've logged and saved a tracked run. Or postal service session, you can hunt out the performance widget on your watch, which will display a recommended recovery time and intensity level for that next workout.

Recovery heart charge per unit

Precursor 245/645/945
Fenix

Another one reserved for Garmin's more capable sports watches, recovery heart rate is based on a reading of your middle rate during exercise and two minutes later the do has stopped. The difference betwixt those 2 readings gives you your recovery middle rate. The optimal way to get this reading is to finish moving completely subsequently that workout to better the reliability of the information.

Why is recovery center charge per unit important? According to Garmin, studies accept shown that recovery heart rate data can be linked to cardiac health. If you lot score a higher number, that'south a good indication that you have a healthy centre.

Grooming Effect/Load

Precursor 245/645/945
Fenix
Tactix
Quatix
Marq

If you're wondering whether doing 2 big runs two days in a row is a practiced thing (information technology'due south probably not a expert thing), Garmin's Training Effect feature is all nigh measuring the impact of aerobic and anaerobic preparation on your torso.

Some of Garmin'south wearables measure both forms of training, while others will just offer insights into 1. It uses heart rate data along with the duration and intensity of your activity to provide the preparation consequence data.

You'll then be presented with a colour lawmaking, grooming effect number and an aerobic and anaerobic benefit insight. These insights tell you whether that workout has been good for maintaining your fettle levels.

Then it could say the session highly improved your fettle, or that you didn't requite yourself enough recovery time before working out over again.

Lactate Threshold (with chest strap)

A hugely insightful mode, LT finds the pace and HR at which your body crosses into a land where lactic acid tin can no longer exist removed by the trunk. You'll know this as the difference between a gentle easy run and a hard workout.

This data can exist used to inform your HR zones and make for a much more than reliable workout. If y'all run with a breast strap this will be logged, and you can do a examination.

Be aware information technology volition ONLY work with a connected chest strap in an outdoor, GPS tracked workout. You must also have some VO2 Max data logged.

Forerunner 645/945/735XT
Fenix 3/five/6
Tactix
Quatix
Marq

Stress tracking

Precursor 645/945
Fenix five/vi
Tactix
Quatix

This a relatively new characteristic for Garmin's stable of wearables, which kicked off with the Vivosmart 4 before rolling out to watches like the Fenix 5 serial and top finish Forerunner watches.

Now your Garmin can tap into your heart to get a better indication of your stress levels throughout the day. It uses heart rate variability to provide this information.

HRV relates to the measurement of the fourth dimension interval between heartbeats. Unlike measuring eye rate, which is about the average number of center beats per minute, HRV focuses on the minor fluctuations of the eye. A number of things can impact on these readings including age, time of day and health.

For those Garmins that do support stress monitoring, you should look for the screen above, which shows an indication of your stress level in existent fourth dimension with a numbered score, which ranges from ane-100. ane means low stress and 100 means, well, you should probably do something to relax.

Y'all'll also exist able to see your stress scores across a four hour period to help place whether there was a detail event that may accept caused your stress levels to spike.

HRV stress test

Forerunner 645/945
Fenix
Quatix
Tactix
Marq

In that location is another way that Garmin taps into heart rate variability to offer insights into your stress, training, nutrition and everyday life stress. Different the stress tracking feature mentioned above, this feature requires pairing your wearable with a compatible centre charge per unit monitor chest strap.

Once you get hold of one of those, you'll demand to spare three minutes to mensurate HRV and be standing nevertheless to get a reliable reading.

Then you can brand a amend phone call over whether you lot should be planning an intense HIIT workout, or maybe only relax. If you're struggling to find the HRV Stress examination, it tin can be found in the same identify where you can first tracking an activity on your Garmin vesture.

How accurate is Garmin heart rate data?

While many people might recollect that having a heart rate monitor on their wrist means accuracy is a given, a lot of the information here is assumed from details you put in at the get-go.

Max HR is calculated past using 220 - age, and your zones estimated from there, for example.

Garmin does have the power to adjust these on existent-globe information.

Notwithstanding, you lot'll find that running with a breast strap will improve on this data-set. So fifty-fifty if you railroad train with the optical (which is pretty accurate at medium intensity), it's worth hooking upward a breast strap for the odd high-intensity session.

How to set your own heart rate zones

If you know your heart rate zones, for whatever reason, they can be manually entered into Garmin Connect:

Open Garmin Connect app
Open up the Card
Tap Garmin Devices
Choose device
Tap User Settings
Tap Configure Centre Rate Zones
Enter the lowest middle rate value for each zone

Add an external chest strap

Most Garmin Precursor devices enable you to add an external centre rate strap, which will offering better accuracy and lower lag fourth dimension than an optical sensor. What's more, some features such as HRV Stress are only accessible with a chest strap.

Garmin supports Pismire+ sensors – and you don't accept to use the company's own. Each device slightly differs on how to install them, only the vague premise is the same:

1. Put on the heart charge per unit monitor.

2. Bring the Garmin watch most the strap. You may need to jump around a little or walk merely to power up the sensor.

3. Go to the Garmin's menu > Settings > Sensors and Accessories. If information technology's the first fourth dimension, cull Add new sensor > External Heart Rate Monitor. In one case paired, your lookout man will retrieve the connectedness.

Review heart rate information on Garmin Connect

Garmin has made it pretty piece of cake to review center rate data on the wrist. It also does a very good job crunching the numbers and doing the assay, saving you lot the headache of working out what information technology all means.

Read side by side: In-depth guide to Garmin Connect

Sometimes though, it'due south nice to sit down down, catch your phone or laptop and soak up the data on a bigger screen. Fortunately you tin can do that from the Garmin Connect app and we're going to bear witness you where you lot need to go to find that information.

The adept news is that Garmin's revamped Connect app now puts daily middle charge per unit data and stress data front end and centre. Caput to the My Day tab and you lot should see resting and high charge per unit upwards top.

Tap on either the eye rate or stress tabs and you can drill in to that information further. What you'll see is a graph of your mean solar day, logging key events during the day (image below) and plotting heart rate data throughout the day. This way you tin can start to place whether certain events take created a spike in your heart rate.

The agenda tab volition allow you bound from different days to see daily information, with a red bar indicating a full twenty-four hour period's worth of heart rate data has been recorded.

Look for the dropdown menu in the Connect app (meridian left corner), where you'll discover a section dedicated to Health Stats. This is where you can view All-Day Heart Rate over 7 days, a calendar month and a yr, giving y'all resting and high HR averages. Y'all can also detect performance stats including VO2 Max, Preparation Effect and HRV Stress data.

Another important surface area to pay attending to is finding the place where you tin configure your heart charge per unit zones for center rate based grooming. Tap on the icon displaying your Garmin wearable and head to User Settings to arrange zones.

And that is our comprehensive overview of getting to grips with heart rate monitoring on a Garmin. Got any questions about annihilation above? Let u.s. know in the comments department beneath.

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Source: https://www.wareable.com/garmin/garmin-heart-rate-monitor-guide-230