Related
This discussion has been locked.
You can no longer post new replies to this discussion. If you have a question you can start a new discussion

Watch tracks heart rate even when in pocket...?

7444904
over 5 years ago

Recently been having wrist pain which has prevented me from wearing my watch like a watch.
(The only time I wear my watch on my wrist now is when I am tracking workouts. )

so I decided to stick it in my pocket to at least track my steps

Odd part is: it is still measuring my heart rate through my pocket, and that too it's accurate when compared to the time I keep the watch on my wrist

Any thoughts on this? Or has anyone noticed similar behavior with the heart rate monitor?

  • 0 over 5 years ago

    Update on this: the heart rate reading through the pocket is 5-10 bpm lower than my wrist measurement.  Just an FYI to anyone still watching this post lol 

  • 0 over 5 years ago

    It's measuring a heart rate, but not YOUR hart rate.

    Even toilet paper has a heartbeat:

    https://www.howtogeek.com/fyi/toilet-paper-has-a-pulse-according-to-fitness-trackers/

  • 0 over 5 years ago

    Yeah I read about this.  Just seemed close enough to my actual HR to be real-ish.  It's also an optical measurement and not pressure-based, and considering it is near my leg (in my pocket) near major blood vessels I can half believe it is reading something if the pockets are thin though.  Lots of "ifs" there, I know.  But still odd, I'll keep an eye on this...

  • +1 over 5 years ago

    No it is not picking up your heart rate, it must have direct skin contact to do this.  

    I believe likely you are seeing something like a rise/fall of HR based on activity level.... because when Garmin knows they don't have an accurate HR reading... (hypothesis) they estimate it based on your steps per minute.  To make the graphs/data look better.

    resting/walking HR is in a tight range for the most part... so yeah... always going to be 'close' lol.... but not within 5-10% like should be possible with a sensor.   (5-10bpm)

  • 0 over 5 years ago in reply to NickMN

    Yeahhhh I don't tend to wear the watch tightly even when I do wear it -- unless I am doing something cardio related (which is the reason I got the watch).  I don't wear it tightly because I have an existing wrist issue which gets aggravated when I do wear watches for too long.

    But you're reasoning makes sense -- it seems to be estimating the HR based on the resting HR it calculates.  It still seems to intermittently determine when it "feels" like giving a heart rate measurement, even when I'm not walking.

    Thanks, I think this is as close to an answer for this Slight smile