Is anyone having an issue with the step challenge? I joined over the weekend, Christmas noob, and it's still showing my steps as 0. Only the top two people have their steps showing. Everyone else is showing 0. I've opted out and joined again but it hasn't worked.
Wharpy. I'm sorry to hear about your problems. Challenges can be fun in themselves. Also, of course, if someone wants to reach a high level of Garmin Points, such as Level 5 (the highest currently), the only way to do this is to participate in multiple challenges per day, and to win a few of these challenges. Each win gets you 2 Garmin Points.
Now for your problem with Garmin Challenges.
The only steps that count are those that you see with Garmin Connect. Steps you earn on your watch or your cell phone are nice, but you need to get these steps uploaded to Garmin Connect.
I personally never accumulate random steps. I always begin a walk or run by starting an activity. At the end of the activity, I hit stop and save. Then I sync my watch to force these steps into the cloud. I use my computer to verify that the upload had been recognized by Garmin. If my new steps (or miles, weight, HR, whatever) is not in Garmin, then I hit the circle thing in Windows that forces a refresh. Then I check again.
Also, never go to bed at night without verifying your totals. If you need 10,000 steps and Garmin shows 10,000 steps, you are secure. If your watch has 10,000 steps but these have not been uploaded, you run the risk of losing these steps overnight. Sync before bed.
Let's say you have done an activity, you have saved it, you have uploaded it, you have opened Garmin Connect, and your steps are not recognized for a challenge. I would start a second challenge. Click the Challenge button on the upper right of the Challenge page, pick an event (Walk), time (Day), and invite friends. When you view this Friends Challenge, do you see your steps? If not, you have a problem that only Garmin can fix. If you can see your Friends Challenge but not your generic Garmin Challenge, then the problem is probably with Garmin. Just wait a few days for Garmin to fix the problem.
Exiting and entering a Garmin Challenge may do nothing. If you exit and immediately join, you will likely be returned to the same challenge. If you exit and wait an hour or so for your old challenge to fill, you will be put in a new challenge. If you are put in a new challenge, it may be a challenge for this week (good) or for next week (bad). You won't get any step credit for a next-week challenge until the beginning of next week.
Could the problem be due to you? Of course! I personally do three things to minimize my own personal errors. One, I keep my Garmin charger in a USB port of my computer. Whenever I sit at my computer (like now), my Garmin is charging. This insures my watch has all the power it needs. Two, I manage my storage. Our watches are no more than hard drives. The folder you want is Garmin/Activity. Use Window's File Manager to find the Activity folder of all your Fit files, one for each activity. Don't let this folder get too full. Yes, I know Garmin is supposed to manage these files, but Garmin sometimes fails to do so. I just deleted all of my September activities (all previously uploaded to Garmin Connect). You need to delete old files to allow your watch all the RAM it requires to operate properly. You won't be able to scroll through your deleted activities again, but if you are like me, you never scroll through 3-month-old activities anyway. Three, you may be covert. Do you have your settings open to the public (as I do) or closed? If your settings are too secure, this may keep your data from being visible in public challenges.
That's it. Keep your Fit files for no more than 3 months, less if you run long and hard with GPS and HR data. Keep your watch fully charged. Check your security settings for excessive secrecy. Never get many steps that aren't recorded as an "activity." Save and upload that activity (a Fit file) to Garmin Connect. Refresh if necessary. Verify that Garmin has your data. Don't fret too much about Garmin Challenges as they earn 0 Garmin Points. Make your own challenges with your friends. You can easily do 18 challenges per week (Run and Walk (2 activities); Daily, Full Week, and Weekend (9 time periods)) for up to 36 Garmin Points per week if you out-step and out-mile your friends. ;-)
Drifter121: I don't have your watch so my experience may not fit you. If you want to do challenges, then you do best by making every run an "activity." By that, I mean always press Start at the beginning, Stop at the end, then Save, and be sure that the upload happens automatically, or if not, you press the upload button yourself. Never go past midnight without an upload. Assuming you go to bed before midnight, then do a 10-second activity (Start, Stop, Save, Upload) before going to bed. This upload clears your watch for the day. You absolutely can't cross the midnight safely with unsaved activities. Always clear your watch before bed. Lastly, duh, your watch is not much more than a harddrive. Every month, plug your watch into your computer, go to File Manager, and delete your FIT files from 2 or 3 months ago. That is, you always want plenty of free space on your watch's memory. As long as these FIT files have been uploaded, you won't lose them. The only thing you lose by deleting files on your watch is the ability to scroll on your watch. You can still scroll on your computer (Garmin Connect).
