Strength Activity Screen (F7 vs VA3)

I dont use the strenght app like it was meant to do. I just start it and leave it be until I am done. Trying to press lap every for every set, along with making sure the set rep number is right and enter the weight, it for the birds. I just have one long activity and let the watch log whatever it wants.

It's a valid way of using it. And if it works for you no need to change it.

Even with the issues I have with what I pointed out, I would still recommend it if you ever want to assess each exercise separately and create your own workout. It'll take some time to create it but after it's set is all straightforward.

Compared to VA3 I find the rep count is much better in F7 in terms of accuracy and correcting the rep number too, where in the past I had to write in 3 digits after every set to correct it. A pain!  Now I edit it with the up/down buttons and on avg. it takes 3 clicks. You can also set the weight for each exercise before you do them, but it's better and faster to edit it in the app after the workout than in the watch if you decide to raise it during the session and not for all the exercises. I always leave 'Edit Weight' turned off for that reason.

I've never seen that screen during my exercise:

Is this a preset workout? I only do free or my custom workouts.

It works on every workout, free and customs.

Open the activity and go to Setting > Data Screens > Add New > 'Set'

Thanks, did not know this special page was there. I always had a custom page with countdown, time and heartrate, seems this is kind of similar with some unique info only available in that special page.

Otherwise I usually stay in the list and don't like that I have to scroll up to see a running timer/countdown, while it easily could be an active timer right where I am.

Don't like that I don't see the weight of the upcoming exercise.

The screen telling me what's starting now has the font way to large so the exercise descriptions mostly dos not fit.

And I need way to much presses on start to finally get going.

I posted my thoughts on the interface a while ago: forums.garmin.com/.../8-18-beta-strength-training-thoughts-and-issues-with-the-new-layout

Btw. touch should work, activities can have an independent setting for touch, check the settings for the strength activity or use the shortcut Start and Down button at the same time to toggle it.

KrapfenKringel said:

Don't like that I don't see the weight of the upcoming exercise.

Have you set the weight in the Garmin Connect App to the particular exercise? It should appear once the notification to start it appears.

KrapfenKringel said:

The screen telling me what's starting now has the font way to large so the exercise descriptions mostly dos not fit.

Oh, you're talking about what I call the new Rest Screen. You should see the weight info in the screen you asked about there too.

Regarding descriptions... I also find inefficient to have to view the exercise details (another list) to select an exercise and view its description. I can easily see them in the Other activity–usually use this for inline skating–when scrolling down. I have a HIIT workout where every exercise is "UNKNOWN" and since descriptions aren't visible in that activity while you're doing the exercise–only during rest–I have to review the list on the phone. Already submitted this to the Share Idea section of Garmin's site.

KrapfenKringel said:

And I need way to much presses on start to finally get going.

Yeah, this too!  It tells you to press Start to do the activity and once you do you have to press Start again to select 'Start Workout' and press Start a third time to actually start. Lol Nice pointing this out KrapfenKringel

KrapfenKringel said:

touch should work

It does, but I prefer to have it off. I now have it turned on just to scroll faster through that workout list.

KrapfenKringel said:

I posted my thoughts on the interface a while ago

I took a look and I liked the suggestion of an active timer next to the current step of the list.

Yes weights are logged with the training, but when I start it it's to late, then it should be ready, I need to know in my pause so I can set it up. But maybe that set page I did not use before helps with that, will test it tomorrow. It seems to show the next step...but probably missing the weight info.

But it all leads back to the exercise list after finishing a "lap" and I'm not motived to always scroll back to other pages.

Forgot to add something. I did the test and this is how you can find out the weight.

The Set Page does tell you the next step but for what you're looking for it'll be impossible with a rest period, because when the next step is a rest and goes there the Set page only shows you a rest timer without any next step info like when during an exercise. Go figure!

It can show you the weight of the next exercise, but only if you're doing an exercise after another without a rest period in-between.

In my workout list I could see the weight, but barely. And if you scroll down past it you end up in the Rest Screen with weight info, but again all this work one has to go through is the main reason of this thread. 

After this test I also remembered something similar to the 3 Start presses it takes to start a workout, and is that once a workout ends in VA3 you went straight to the option to save or delete it. On F7 after the 'workout ended' message the activity keeps running and you still have to manually end it. Is it necessary? 

Is the 20.0 in your screen shot of the list the weight? I don't have that, probably because the German translation is longer and has this always offscreen (actually just checked, if my repetition counter is in the single digits I get the first digit of the weight on the right, but its off-screen for double digit repetitions).

Yes I can view it on an additional page that appears during the rest period, but I don't want to manually go there everytime.

I think its ok the workout does not end automatically with the last exercise, leaves it open to do something additional (it just turns into free exercise mode). But I'm bothered that my German option states "abort training (Training abbrechen)", that sounds drastic "end training (Training beenden)" would sound much nicer.

Don't forget that you can edit the activity after you have completed it by going to https://connect.garmin.com/ -- you can change the weight, reps etc.

If you find that the watch is distracting you during the session, maybe ignore it and edit the activity later.