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Body battery accuracy increased with chest strap?

Just wanted to know if there is any written literature from Garmin on if wearing a chest strap while doing an activity improves the accuracy of the body battery reading?

I know certain metrics on my Edge 530 require a chest strap (performance condition, etc..).

Also respiration rate requires a chest strap during activities for supported watches:

https://support.garmin.com/en-MY/?faq=2yEgS0Pax53UDqUH7q4WC6

Body battery also relies on HRV so in theory it would also benefit from a chest strap especially during an activity but nothing is written on the topic:

https://support.garmin.com/en-AU/?faq=VOFJAsiXut9K19k1qEn5W5

Am I incorrect? Can somebody please clear this up for me?

Thank you

Daniel

  • I recall that the guided lactate threshold test on the 755 required the use of a heart rate strap, I believe this is just down to the improved accurate of the hear rate data.  I've not seen it do anything differently with the body battery, although for me I find that my body battery drops like a stone when I do for a run :-)

  • I have found this in the manual on the body battery but no reference to a chest strap..

    Tips for Improved Body Battery Data

    • Your Body Battery level updates when you sync your device with your Garmin Connect account.

    • For more accurate results, wear the device while sleeping.

    • Rest and good sleep charge your Body Battery.

    • Strenuous activity, high stress, and poor sleep can cause your Body Battery to drain.

    • Food intake, as well as stimulants like caffeine, has no impact on your Body Battery.

    Although the below snippet taken from the User Manual suggests the strap is used for body battery calculations it does not answer my question on if the accuracy of body battery will be improved if wearing a chest strap during an activity.

  • Knowing the limitations of the WHR and because it's well documented that Garmin recommends the use of a chest strap for more precise measurements, hasn't this question been answered without the need to write it in black and white on their website or manual. 

  • Thanks Tess, my original question was not answered "any written literature" but as you can see from the post I did some digging around and got a  "sort of / maybe / could work this way" answer.  Looks like there is not black and white answer to this. Thanks for chiming in and I will say the question is closed with no definite answer.  Lets just assume is the outcome of this one - you know what they say about assuming things..

    Hope this helps others with the same question.. 

  • Body battery also relies on HRV so in theory it would also benefit from a chest strap especially during an activity but nothing is written on the topic:

    I found this. They actually do state a chest strap is more accurate and it is in black and white after all :)  It's under "What is HRV used for in Garmin products". 

    support.garmin.com/.../

  • Thank you very much! That is exactly what I was after Slight smile

  • Hi Tess, I actually read the entire article today and no where did it say "wearing a chest strap while doing an activity improves the accuracy of the body battery"  - Which was original question.  We all know Chest Straps are more accurate but I wanted to know if this specific app is using it.

    This is all the article said:

    Most features that use HRV can use the data recorded from an Optical Heart Rate sensor, but some features may prompt you to use a chest strap heart rate monitor in order to provide the most accurate calculations.  To my understanding this would be the HRV Stress test for one and lactate threshold as another as they do not function without a chest strap (not sure about performance condition but I think this is another) - no specific mention of body battery!

    Check my reply to the most current firmware.  You will see where I am coming from.

    https://forums.garmin.com/sports-fitness/running-multisport/f/forerunner-745/242815/beta-forerunner-745-sw-3-09

    Stress feeds into the body battery metric and stress does not update with a chest strap, looks like we could be onto something.  Thank you for making me further explore this topic!

  • no where did it say "wearing a chest strap while doing an activity improves the accuracy of the body battery"  - Which was original question.
    To my understanding this would be the HRV Stress test for one and lactate threshold as another as they do not function without a chest strap (not sure about performance condition but I think this is another) - no specific mention of body battery!

    All metrics for the body battery feature comes from HRV.  Here's a clip from FirstBeat:

    Connecting the dots between physical activity, stress, and recovery, this feature delivers instant insight into your body’s resilience, responsiveness, and coping abilities. 

    To make this complex relationship visible and accessible, the Firstbeat Analytics engine identifies and interprets meaningful patterns in how your heart beats from one moment to the next, a phenomenon known as heart rate variability (HRV).

    https://www.firstbeatanalytics.com/en/features/body-resources/

    Here's a link to download a PDF of FirstBeat's whitepapers if you're interested.

    https://www.firstbeat.com/en/science-and-physiology/white-papers-and-publications/

    Here's an article that explains the short coming of HRV measurements with an oHRM vs.a chest strap:

    https://help.elitehrv.com/article/119-why-can-t-i-use-my-wrist-hr-monitor-or-led-pulse-oximetry-monitors-like-fitbit

    If you're looking for documentation directly from Garmin that states "a chest strap is better", I think this discussion has come to a stalemate.  I don't believe this will ever happen as I view this topic as one of those things that just "goes without saying".  If you question the documentation from FirstBeat, ask a cardiologist or your personal doctor.  The first thing I'm certain they'd say is neither is a medical device and should be used for accuracy.  But, if they had to compare the accuracy between the two, I don't believe you'd find a medical professional that would say HRV data from a wrist oHRM is equivalent to the data you'd obtain from a chest strap. 

  • Hi Tess, you are absolutely correct that a chest strap is more accurate than an optical sensor, we have never been in disagreement there.  Although I think we are on different pages..

    Check out Garmin-Brooks reply

    https://forums.garmin.com/sports-fitness/running-multisport/f/forerunner-745/242815/beta-forerunner-745-sw-3-09

    Here is a summary below.  No HRV data recorded when a chest strap is worn! But body battery is still being drained..  Looks like it is just using high heart rate during an activity to deplete the battery not the more accurate HRV R-R intervals.  I have got in touch with firstbeat and will give you a definitive answer on this assumption when I get a reply.

    Here you can see there is no stress data collected during the activity while a HRM-Pro was being worn:

    Body battery uses the stress metric to derive the score

    Yet body battery is drained greatly during the activity which is where I believe the increased heart rate is part of the formula.

    Thanks for the links and your feedback and the healthy discussion  Slight smile

    Verdict is kind of out on this one:

    1. It looks as if a chest strap does not record HRV for Body Battery during an activity*  So the answer to this would be no (This was the intent of my original question)

    2. If wearing a chest strap all day (and night) and not starting an activity body battery would display increased accuracy if their firmware was up to date and reading stress data from their chest strap the answer would be yes.. 

    * awaiting reply from Firstbeat and according to the link above also depending on Firmware (Garmin-Brooks says his strap reads stress score with a chest strap while myself and other users do not, will have to update firmware and confirm this)

    If you think about it Garmin is well documented (see below) and there is no mention of a chest strap in the Stress widget:

    https://support.garmin.com/en-US/?faq=WT9BmhjacO4ZpxbCc0EKn9

    Stress is one of the main indicators for Body Battery..

    Final note: As the body battery page does not contain any of the following notes:

    a.  - Lactate

    How can I determine what my lactate threshold is?


    Performing a Guided Test can help determine your lactate threshold estimate. To do this, you must meet the following conditions:

    • A chest heart rate monitor strap must be worn
    • An established VO2 Max estimate must be set
    • The test must be completed while running outdoors with a GPS signal lock. Completing a warm-up jog prior to starting a guided lactate threshold test is recommended.  

    b. - Performance Condition

    *NOTE: For the most accurate Performance Condition calculation it is recommended you use a chest strap heart rate monitor.

    c. - Respiration Rate

    NOTE: An HRM-Tri, HRM-Run, HRM-Pro, or HRM-Dual strap is required for all activity types with the exception of Breathwork or Yoga activity types.  Activity movement impacts the ability to read heart rate variability using the optical heart rate sensor resulting in inaccurate respiration rate readings.

    • fenix 6 Series
    • Forerunner 945
    • MARQ Collection
    • quatix 6 Series
    • tactix Delta Series

    I wonder if it is for good reason??

  • It looks as if a chest strap does not record HRV for Body Battery during an activity* 
    * awaiting reply from Firstbeat and according to the link above also depending on Firmware (Garmin-Brooks says his strap reads stress score with a chest strap while myself and other users do not, will have to update firmware and confirm this)

    This is very interesting and now I'm starting to wonder what's going on also.  I knew Garmin wasn't measuring stress during an activity in the past, but it was my belief (now being questioned) that was changed and the 3 min HRV stress test was no longer required following an activity. 

    NOTE: An HRM-Tri, HRM-Run, HRM-Pro, or HRM-Dual strap is required for all activity types with the exception of Breathwork or Yoga activity types.  Activity movement impacts the ability to read heart rate variability using the optical heart rate sensor resulting in inaccurate respiration rate readings.

    This statement from Garmin throws me for a loop.  It implies that stress will be recorded during an activity with certain straps with the exception of yoga or Pilates.  Please keep this thread updated. Just when I thought I knew what I was talking about. Lol