Do you rely on your Garmin?

[Waspsareawful]

I’ve upgraded from a basic Fitbit and getting a little bit obsessed.
The sleep app seems quite reliable but the stress I’m not so sure. Sometimes it’s very high and others it just says ‘not enough time measured’, I certainly don’t feel stressed.
Also by body battery is rarely above 50, even when I haven’t been doing much.
If I have Location on all the time, which it seems to need for jogging, the battery reduces dramatically.

Any tips for getting the best out of it? It’s a vivosmart 5

My sleep measure is not very accurate so I don't bother with that. My body battery gets to 100% overnight so the fact that yours doesn't ever get over 50% is a bit odd

With the GPS you should only have that on when you want to measure distance so on a run/bike/walk etc.

I have a entry level Garmin forerunner and it's great. I charge it about twice a week and use the GPS on 4 runs a week, which are an hour plus sometimes. The more expensive watches should last longer before needing to be charged.

Thanks @shamoola I’ve just checked and my body battery has never been above 75. I’m fit and healthy so it does seem odd.
Do you just switch locations on when you’re exercising?

@Waspsareawful when I am going to start a run I choose that activity on the watch and it then locks into the GPS satellite then let's you know when to start.
I don't have location/GPS on at any other time. I'm not clear why you would want that as I think GPS is only really for measuring distance travelled. So for example there would be no need for tracking via GPS if you were on a treadmill.

The number of steps you do isn't measured by distance so that doesn't need GPS so you wouldn't need it on for that either.

Thanks @shamoola Ive switched it off.

Do the Garmin Connect challenges via the app. You earn a badge which gives you points. Connect with friends and family and compete against them. It’s very addictive!!

yeah, GPS means fast battery drain from most devices, especially wrist ones.
Not sure what to advise, because it depends what you want from device.

I use my fitbit as a watch & I find the calorie count & heart rate info interesting. I think those are reliable. I was actually in a sleep experiment where I wore an actigraph, so I know for a fact not to trust the fitbit sleep data.

I think an actigraph costs about £600, btw.

I use a Garmin Edge (forerunner) to track cycle rides, so that takes the little GPS data I'd want (saves my phone battery, too; I need that for navigation !!). DS has a Garmin watch he uses on 5km runs & Strava as the central database. But doesn't wear the Garmin otherwise.

DH (on a 200km audax today) cycles with several battery packs to deal with GPS battery drain worries.

I recently moved from fitbit to garmin and I really like the garmin. I don't really use the everyday features that much (sleep / steps / body battery etc.) but I like the app and the detail it gives you from activities you track.

I only use GPS on a run or when we're going for a hike where I would like to track the route (e.g. one we haven't done before). I know that the VO2 max score should be taken with a heavy pinch of salt as it's not really accurate. But if you just think of it as a general idea of your fitness level I think it's fine. And in general terms although I have the cheapest garmin model I actually quite like the look and build quality of the watch. I also like the display as its clear and I think the time is more accurate than the fitbit (although I can't prove that!)