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Feedback and suggestions around Garmin connect and Swim to Garmin team

Former Member over 12 years ago

I've just buy the Garmin swim.
I'm swimming from years and I'm doing competiton on Master tour.
I bought this product to help me identifing possible improvements on my training and espacially monitoring time by interval and number of arm cycle.

After 4 test of the Swim, my feedback is:
* Good result on total distance by training if you don't forget to start interval.
* No problem to identifying Free style and breathstroke even if you are swiming a medley but buttefly and backstroke are more complicated to be identify. Moreover, on a medley (butterfly, backstroke, breathstroke and freestyle), Butterfly and backstroke are at 80% never detected. My feeling is that you'd better do all your interval with the same style to be sure it will be well recorded.

To Garmin team !

Improvement on watch:
* Possible improvement on swim style espacially for butterfly, backstroke and Medley routine,
* How could we forget to press "start" / "hold" or "stop" ! Indeed, when you are in a 20x50m training cession for eg., it's difficult to do it (press, start swiming by pushing the wall and check timer really start). Improvement could be "press start" and a personalize count down start before timing really start ! It could be link with hold between interval. (ex:20x50m with 15s relax, stop could be link with start with a 15s countdown).
For stop, can a change in swimming cycle could be take into account (no more swim cycle and or time between 2 cycles increase drasticly) ?
* Can a training cession could be load before swiming (also with relax time)? Then, it could be helpfull to follow it and timer could anticipate start / hold, stop and swim style ?
* when stop is select instead of hold, you can't see last interval time and distance. System switch directly to record, start ... Could it be add ?
* Could you add the view of the total swim distance into the cession like the one you've got on "hours view" (at the bottom of the screen) ? It will be helpfull to monitor total distance made on a training cession without closing the cession.
* Drill selection ! Yesterday, part of the training was 4x(100m legs - 50m free pull) relax 10s. My relax time was using changing mode between "drill" and "normal swim". As a result, you have to think about "stop" instead if "hold" but you also have to monitor the relax time... Difficult to manage.
* Add a cardio ! with a practical sensor ! All training is not made at the same intensity. Could be very helpfull to combine those data with swim cycle and time/distance.

Improvement on Garmin connect:
*just have a look on Sport track with pool swimming pluggin ! You could change swim style where it's wrong, you could murge or divided time when you forgot to start or stop, Interval viewer is clear...
* Add analyse by swim style ! Indeed, you can't add murge all swim style and make average on. It make no sense. It's more interesting to compare how many number of swim cycle you do for a swim style versus another period (in the same training or in a period).
* Add Medley as a swim style by manual correction.

Thanks

0 gildenhuys over 12 years ago

Thanks for your detailed feedback. Though we have heard these suggestions before, it is always nice to hear them again from different swimmers. it confirms that we are working on the right things! Most of the features you describe are in various stages of development, some are even in testing now while others are on overall product road map. I haven't commented on these below. A few specific questions/suggestions:

* Good result on total distance by training if you don't forget to start interval.

In my experience, pressing Pause to start and end the intervals becomes second nature after a few sessions and you don't have to think about it anymore. In fact, for testing I sometimes try NOT to press Pause and now that has become difficult for me. :-)

* when stop is select instead of hold, you can't see last interval time and distance. System switch directly to record, start ... Could it be add ?

The intention is that you only use Stop at the end of your swim session. Typically I press Pause first at the end of my swim, look at my last interval time and distance, then press Stop to end the session. Are you doing something different?

* Drill selection ! Yesterday, part of the training was 4x(100m legs - 50m free pull) relax 10s. My relax time was using changing mode between "drill" and "normal swim". As a result, you have to think about "stop" instead if "hold" but you also have to monitor the relax time... Difficult to manage.

Yes, this is cumbersome to manage. One option is just to leave the drill log running for the whole interval and then log the total distance at the end, in your example that would be 600 m. The advantage is that you aren't pressing buttons during your rest time and the total distance for your swim is still accurate, however the disadvantage is you can't see the times for each 150m interval.

0 Former Member over 12 years ago

Thanks for your detailed feedback. Though we have heard these suggestions before, it is always nice to hear them again from different swimmers. it confirms that we are working on the right things! Most of the features you describe are in various stages of development, some are even in testing now while others are on overall product road map. I haven't commented on these below. A few specific questions/suggestions:

In my experience, pressing Pause to start and end the intervals becomes second nature after a few sessions and you don't have to think about it anymore. In fact, for testing I sometimes try NOT to press Pause and now that has become difficult for me. :-)

The intention is that you only use Stop at the end of your swim session. Typically I press Pause first at the end of my swim, look at my last interval time and distance, then press Stop to end the session. Are you doing something different?

Yes, this is cumbersome to manage. One option is just to leave the drill log running for the whole interval and then log the total distance at the end, in your example that would be 600 m. The advantage is that you aren't pressing buttons during your rest time and the total distance for your swim is still accurate, however the disadvantage is you can't see the times for each 150m interval.

Hi,
Thanks for your quick feedback and hope my english is not to bad !...
I would say "quick, quick" when I read that a lot of improvement are on going !...Have you got an approximative date for a new firmware release and what would be in it?

Agree with you when you said "In my experience, pressing Pause to start and end the intervals becomes second nature after a few sessions and you don't have to think about it anymore. In fact, for testing I sometimes try NOT to press Pause and now that has become difficult for me. :-) / The intention is that you only use Stop at the end of your swim session.". I prefer choosing "pause" rather than stop between series. You could then have access to data in relax time (it's not possible if you select stop) and it's easier to focus on 1 tech rather than 2. If it's not the case, (i never test it) can you add access to "time" without going outside of the training mode (sometimes, you have to check if you need to stop training to go back to work... ;(...

Globally, this is now the 5th time I use the watch and agree with you. It's easier to use. However, because I'm not swimming for triathlon but swimming for competition, training are really different and the biggest issues you have to complete are, from my point of view:
* Medley acquisition: Butterfly are in 75% change by Freestyle, Backstroke by Freestyle or breathstroke.
* Butterfly and backstroke recognition. Too much mistake
* Drill using: to night for eg, there was a 400m (25m freestyle leg / 75m freestyle)x4 without any stop but taking or put on the wall the board. You'd better remember at the beginning to "pause" then select "drill mode" (could take 3 screens to jump!) then press "start" and at the end to press "stop" then "select distance" then "confirm" then "change mode" (could also take up to 3 screens) then press "pause" (and not start !)... such a story. My point of view is that you'd better use another tech/button to select drill (by one press) and the same to go back to "normal" swim mode an use the same "pause" to start and stop.
* If you forgot to press "start" at the wall but on the first meter. It doesn't take into account this fisrt length (probably because there is no pushing from the wall with glide
Changing sound between "start" and "stop" or "start pause" and "stop pause". Could be helpfull to confirm you start the watch
* Countdown before starting swiming after "pause" to release "pause" to start timer. On a 20x50m "high intensity" with 15s relax pressing button underwater just before pushing the wall is more difficult rather than a personalized time (2s for eg) before real start of the timer

And garmin connect.... If you choose a watch, it's not only for counting meters ! It's, for me, to make analyses... and you need to make corrections....

Feel free to come back to me for more feedback and/or have a look on my activity. I try to put in summary the "real" training and you could compare it with data acquisition.

0 Former Member over 11 years ago

Hi

A suggestion for Garmin connect. When you select the type of running such as trail, street etc it would be good to have a multi terrain option for runs which take in different trails and roads etc. Apart from that it's great.