Altitude Acclimation: Anyone who actually knows how this works?

Hello everyone, I hope someone can give precise and clear answers to what I will write.

I live in a city at an altitude of 320 meters. A few days ago I went hiking at an altitude of 1,500-1,700 meters, using the Trail Run profile (I would like to use one dedicated to hiking, but it lacks the stamina function).

I expected the Altitude Acclimation Widget to activate since it should work from a height of 800 meters, but it was not active for the rest of the hike (about two hours).

In the past and I would not know how it was activated. Was it because I had done multiple hikes within a month above 800m?

I would like to understand if the activation of this widget depends on a minimum number of excursions above 800 meters, or is it really that it doesn't work and is there some bug?

Waiting for clear answers that make it clear how it can be activated.

Thank you

Top Replies

Dri over 2 years ago in reply to Ludovico84 +1

I remember having read (can't tell where though) that it only updates once a day, but I don't know at what time.

All Replies

0 Adam-1972 over 2 years ago

I think SPO2 should be active and you probably should stay on this altitude longer.

0 Ludovico84 over 2 years ago in reply to Adam-1972

It's not that, because the times it triggered there was no reading of SP02.

As I said in the post, I'm looking for clear answers on how it works

0 Dri over 2 years ago

Hi.

You were probably expecting the Acclimation feature/widget to kick in right at the time you went above the threshold altitude, but it doesn't work like that.

The feature actually works when you spend extended time (at least one day) in hot weather or at altitude. When you basically live and train there for days at least, not when you go for a few-hour hike and then go back to low altitude.

The watch needs info about the weather from your phone, and needs to detect the altitude correctly. Activities also require using GPS.

As your body adapts to living and training at altitude, the watch is able to tell you the equivalent altitude where you are best performing.

Example (the numbers are only examples): you have started living and training at 4000 meters. As your body adapts, after 3 days from arrival the watch will tell you your body has adapted to 1500 meters altitude. After 7 days, it will tell you have adapted to 2500 meters, and so on. In 2 weeks you will become fully adapted to 4000 meters.

Also, it will adjust your stats according to the altitude and acclimation. E.g. it will adjust your VO2max to its real value although you are not completely acclimatized and are still not performing optimally during recent activities.

Here is more info from Garmin:

https://support.garmin.com/en-US/?faq=PQCtbgWxJ65nRatXoHCmy7

Hope that helps.

0 Adam-1972 over 2 years ago in reply to Ludovico84

Of course you know better.
Maybe first you will check what producer srtated about this in your device manual: www8.garmin.com/.../GUID-4D425925-D4EE-4C26-B974-5375D0670860.html

0 Ludovico84 over 2 years ago in reply to Dri

Thanks for the very clear information you gave me.

You told me that I would have to stay at altitudes above 800 meters for at least a day, but I've never been in the mountains for more than a day, since I've always come home afterwards. I must have stayed around 10-12 hours, at the latest and the altitude acclimatization seemed to work without any problems.

Maybe it starts after a certain number of hours?

0 Dri over 2 years ago in reply to Ludovico84

I remember having read (can't tell where though) that it only updates once a day, but I don't know at what time.